Events

Past Events

Queer Perspectives: A Celebration

Please join us for readings and a conversation celebrating the publication of our issue #205 (Winter 2018), Queer Perspectives, which features contemporary writing by LGBTQ2S?+ writers in Canada chosen by guest editors Ali Blythe, Trevor Corkum, and Betsy Warland. Come and hear Adèle Barclay, John Barton, Ali Blythe, Anne Fleming, Arleen Paré, Miranda Pearson, Anaheed Saatchi, and Betsy Warland. March 23, 2019 at UVic (Human and Social Development Building Rm A240). All welcome—admission is free or by donation.

See the event page for more info.

Alden Nowlan: A Victoria Celebration

In 2017, Goose Lane Editions/icehouse poetry published the long-awaited Collected Poems of Alden Nowlan, the first-ever gathering between two covers of the complete chapbooks and full-length collections by one of Canada's most beloved poets. Come celebrate with us at a once-in-a-lifetime reading from this book, in the voices of over twenty poets from Vancouver Island & nearby, including Nicholas Bradley, Lorna Crozier, Eve Joseph, Terence Young, Iain Higgins, Don Van Wart, Eric Miller, Richard Olafson, Arleen Pare, Linda Rogers, Garth Martens, Sonnet L'Abbe, Jan Zwicky, Jamie Dopp, Rhona McAdam, Alexander Varty, David Eso, John Barton, Marilyn Bowering, Patricia Young, Sandy Shreve, and Susan Musgrave. October 25, 2018 at 7:30pm in the David Lam Auditorium, MacLaurin A144 at UVic. All welcome—admission is free.

See the event page for more info on the readers.

WordsThaw 2018

The Malahat Review's sixth annual literary symposium takes place March 16-18 at the University of Victoria.

Lectures, readings, panel discussions, and more. Readers and panelists include: Frances Backhouse, John Barton, Yvonne Blomer, Marilyn Bowering, Carl Cavanagh, Morgan Cross, Heather Dean, Karen Enns, Candace Fertile, Carla Funk, Rhonda Ganz, Bill Gaston, Jason Jobin, Michael Kenyon, Cynthia Woodman Kerkham, Judy LeBlanc, Dan MacIsaac, Joan MacLeod, Micaela Maftei, Jill Margo, Carol Matthews, Isa Milman, Sheila Munro, Julie Paul, Susan Sanford Blades, and Madeline Sonik.

See the WordsThaw site for a full list of readers and event schedules.

The Best of the Best Canadian Poetry launch

Enjoy a Sunday afternoon poetry extravaganza in celebration of the tenth-anniversary edition of the Best Canadian Poetry in English series. Come listen to a rich sampling of poems by local contributors. Readings by: John Barton, Yvonne Blomer, Lorna Crozier, Sonnet L'Abbe, Anita Lahey, Shelley A. Leedahl, and Patricia Young. December 3, 2017 at 1:30pm in the Fine Arts Building, UVic, Rm 103. All welcome—admission is free.

See the event page for more info on the readers.

Issue 200 launch

Since our first issue, published in January 1967, The Malahat Review has had the privilege of publishing writers from all corners of the world. Now, with the publication of our fiftieth-anniversary and two-hundredth issue, we focus our editorial eye on the rich literary community prospering around us. Join us downtown at Munro’s, for the launch of our tribute to the fine writers of Victoria—past, present, and future—and the word-obsessed city where they thrive. Readings by: Marilyn Bowering, Shane Book, Annabel Howard, Philip Kevin Paul, Madeline Sonik, Terence Young, and Brock Zawila. Hosted by: John Barton and Rhonda Batchelor. November 8, 2017 at 7:30pm at Munro's Books. Admission is free!

See the event page for more info on the readers.

WordsThaw 2017

The Malahat Review's fifth annual literary symposium takes place March 16-19 at the University of Victoria.

Lectures, readings, panel discussions, and more. Readers and panelists include: Jordan Abel, Maleea Acker, Joanne Arnott, Trevor Corkum, Misao Dean, Tricia Dower, Karen Enns, Erica Gies, Kari Jones, Tiffany Joseph, Anita Lahey, Darcy Lindberg, Dan MacIsaac, Jennifer Manuel, Darrel McLeod, Adam Olsen, Cole Sayers, Troy Sebastian, Gail Scott, Madeline Sonik, Yasuko Thanh, Philip Kevin Paul, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Richard Van Camp, Lorna Williams, and Patricia Young.

See the WordsThaw site for a full list of readers and event schedules.

P. K. Page at 100: A Celebratory Reading

Join us November 23, 2016 at 7:30pm at the University of Victoria in honour of one of Canada's most outstanding writers. A group of close friends will be reading from her work to pay tribute to her life and accomplishments on what would've been her 100th birthday. Admission by donation to the P. K. Page Trust. Emceed by Yvonne Blomer, panel moderated by Nicholas Bradley. Featured readers: John Barton, Lucy Bashford, Lorna Crozier, Sandra Djwa, Patrick Friesen, Eve Joseph, Patrick Lane, Carol Matthews, Jay Ruzesky, Rachel Wyatt, Derk Wynand, Patricia Young, and Terence Young.

See the event page for more info on the readers.

WordsThaw 2016

The Malahat Review's fourth annual literary symposium takes place March 16-20 at the University of Victoria.

Lectures, readings, panel discussions, one-on-one consultations with local authors, and a master class workshop with Molly Peacock. Where else will you hear Elizabeth May, Jeremy Loveday, Arlene Pare, Christopher Gudgeon, Jordan Abel, Jan Zwicky, Stella Harvey, and others? Let's launch literary through heather and the tulips, whiskered with rain, abuzz with heady conversations. Panels include will discussions on literary archives, the poet as analyst, observor, and investigator, and creative nonfiction: fact, fiction, or scandal?

See the WordsThaw site for a full list of readers and event schedules.

WordsThaw 2015

The Malahat Review's third annual literary symposium took place March 20-22 at the University of Victoria.

Lectures, readings, panel discussions, one-on-one consultations with local authors, and a master class workshop with a prominent Canadian author... it all happened here. We shook off the winter’s torrential rains and basked in the glow of timely discussions of subjects of interest, from how-to to how-to-be. Panels included discussions on young adult literature, self-publishing, creative nonfiction, and minority voices.

See the WordsThaw site for the list of readers and event schedules that took place.

I Found It At The Movies - the Victoria premiere!

On September 23, Ruth Roach Pierson and local contributors launched I Found It at the Movies, Pierson's of poems by 116 cinemastes, published in 2014 by Guernica Editions.Victoria-area poets Maleea Acker, John Barton, Marilyn Bowering, Michael Kenyon, Marlene Grand Maitre, Shelley Leedahl, Mitch Parry, and Patricia Young read poems that spliced together diverse and diverting takes on the cinematic experience.

The Malahat Review at CCWWP

The Malahat participated in the 2014 CCWWP (Canadian Creative Writers and Writing Programs) conference, held at UBC from May 16 -17. Joelle Barron, whose poem “A Girl Like This Might Have Loved Glenn Gould” won the poetry category of the 2014 Open Season Awards, represented The Malahat Review at “Literary Magazines and the Future of Canadian Literature.” Issues of the magazine were also on sale at the CCWWP Bookfair.

WordsThaw 2014

From Thursday, February 20 - Saturday, February 22 at the University of Victoria, The Malahat Review held a successful three-day event of writers, readers, panel discussions, lectures, workshops and more. Visit the WordsThaw 2014 website for full details on what events took place, and for photos!

Victoria Writers Festival

On Saturday, October 19, 2013, The Malahat Review sponsored readings and a panel discussion at the Victoria Writers Festival, with Maleea Acker, Ken Howe, Theresa Kishkan, and George Szanto. Hosted by B.C. Green Party Leader Adam Olsen.

Congress @ Planet Earth

On Friday, June 7, 2013, we held a Congress 2013 reading at Moka House on Hillside to close off the Planet Earth Poetry reading series for the season. Ariel Gordon, Cody Klippenstein, Iain Higgins, and Eric Miller read.

Words @ The Edge

On Tuesday, June 4, 2013, we held a Congress 2013 reading hosted by Yvonne Blomer with Lorna Crozier, Patrick Lane, Jeremy Loveday, Arleen Pare, Philip Kevin Paul, and music from UVic music students.

WordsThaw 2013

On Saturday, March 23, 2013 we held our 1st-annual Spring writing symposium! We held three panels during the day: "Zoom In, Zoom Out: Focus on Fiction," "A Sustainable Feast: The New Food Writing," and "In Our Names: Writers on Poverty." In the evening, we held "Words on Ice," readings from eight writers from B. C. and Alberta.

Winter Launch Event: Malahat's issue #181 and Best Canadian Poetry in English

We joined the Planet Earth Poetry reading series on February 1, 2013 to launch our Winter 2012 issue (#181) and the Best Canadian Poetry in English 2012. Readings from Patricia Young, Kayla Czaga, Michelle Brown, Steve Noyes, Catherine Greenwood, Raoul Fernandes, and Carla Funk.

Finding a Map: Writing a Biography of P. K. Page

To mark the third anniversary of P. K. Page's passing, biographer Sandra Djwa spoke about the late and great poet. Organized by The Malahat Review, Djwa's lecture, "Finding a Map: Writing a Biography of P. K. Page," was part of the Faculty of Humanities' Lansdowne Lecture series.

Writing the Arts with John Threlfall

From visual art and theatre to music, opera, film, and more, this entertaining and fast-moving talk by a 30-year arts veteran offered tips on giving good interview, finding untold stories, developing a niche, working with different writing styles, getting creative with your coverage, and writing about art forms outside of your expertise.

Fall 2012 Issue (#180) Launch: East meets West

East met West in Victoria on November 12, 2012! We celebrated The Fiddlehead's Essential West Coast Poetry & Fiction and The Malahat Review's Essential East Coast Writing issues among good food, beer, and friends at The Fernwood Inn.

Summer 2012 Issue (#179) Launch

We had a great time celebrating summer in fall on Monday, September 17th, 2012 at the Fernwood Inn with a student open mic hosted by Benjamin Willems to start, then readings from our Summer and Spring 2012 contributors.

Spring 2012 Issue (#178) and This Side of West Launch

On May 15th, we held a joint launch of this year's issue of This Side of West, the annual undergraduate literary journal of the Writing Students' Union at the University of Victoria and our Spring 2012 issue (#178).

Poet vs. Poet Debate

In celebration of National Poetry Month, The Malahat Review brought together a small crew of recognized spoken word artists and poets to debate whether or not spoken word and written word poetry are distinct genres. The debate's moderator, Yvonne Blomer, said it like this: Are these two art forms really as different as tigers and lemurs? As different as The Malahat Review and YouTube?

Best Foot Forward: How to Enter the Literary Conversation

If you have ever thought about submitting writing to a literary journal for publication, The Malahat Review’s fall 2011 workshop “Best Foot Forward: How to Enter the Literary Conversation” was a thorough primer on how to enter the both tedious and rewarding world of publishing.

To Tell The Truth:The Many Faces (and Controversies) of Creative Nonfiction

At The Malahat Review’s panel discussion, authors David Leach, M. A. C. Farrant, George Sipos, and Christin Geall discussed the challenges and issues faced by writers of creative nonfiction. 

Winter 2011 Issue (#177) and Best Canadian Poetry in English 2011 Launch

On Friday, February 3rd, we took over the Planet Earth Poetry series at Moka House to launch our Winter issue (#177) and The Best Canadian Poetry in English 2011.

Fall 2011 Issue Launch (#176)

On November 9th, 2011 we launched our Fall issue at The Well (821 Fort St.). A crowd of local seasoned writers, writing students, and literature lovers joined us to hear local writers Richard Osler, Rhona McAdam, Julie Paul, Tom Wayman, and Zoey Peterson read.

Summer 2011 Issue Launch (#175)

On Monday September 19th, we celebrated our Summer 2011 issue, #175 with readings from the issue's authors and former poetry board member, Garth Martens.

Spring 2011 Issue Launch (#174)

On Tuesday, May 3rd we celebrated our Spring 2011 issue, #174 with readings from the issue and from a couple of our board members.

Winter 2010 issue (#173) Launch and Tribute to P. K. Page

On Friday, January 28th we celebrated our Winter 2010 issue (#173) and paid tribute to P. K. Page following the anniversary of her death.

Fall 2010 Issue (#172) and Best Canadian Poetry in English Launch

On Sunday, November 14th, we held a joint launch for our Fall issue and The Best Canadian Poetry in English 2010.

Summer Issue 2010 Launch (#171)

We celebrated our Summer issue with readings from Maleea Acker, Jay Ruzesky, Kyeren Regehr, and Bill Stenson (reading from Novella Prize winner Tony Tulathimutte's "Brains").

Malahat Spring 2010 Issue Launch (#170): Lorna Crozier, Patrick Lane, and Aesthetic Kinship

A celebration of our Spring 2010 issue, featuring Lorna Crozier, Patrick Lane, Lorri Neilsen Glenn, and Tricia Dower.

Winter 2009 Issue Launch (#169) and Friends of The Malahat Launch

Featuring readings by Bill Gaston, Eliza Robertson, Allison Blythe, Brett Josef Grubisic, and Anne Marie Turza