2023 Workshops
(scroll down for details on upcoming workshops)
Join us for a variety of workshops this season from accomplished writers from all across Northwestern Ontario. Our workshops are always open to the public, but some do require registration so make sure to check back often for updates!
Upcoming Workshops
Fiction Editing
with Lindsay Hobbs
Editing your own work can be a challenge! But it’s a challenge that is well worth taking on for anyone looking to make their manuscript ready for submission.
In this two-hour workshop, learn about the different stages of editing and the positive impact a good editorial process can have on your writing. Geared specifically toward fiction editing, this workshop will show you how to approach your own drafts with an editorial eye.
Beginning with big picture story assessment and working all the way down to the nitty-gritty of spelling and grammar, professional editor Lindsay Hobbs of Topaz Editing & Literary will teach you tips, tricks, and tools of the trade so that you can self-edit with skill and confidence.

Lindsay Hobbs (she/her) is an editor and writer living in the Haliburton Highlands of Ontario, the traditional lands of the Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg and Chippewa Nations, collectively known as the Williams Treaty First Nations. She is the creator of Topaz Editing & Literary, where she offers editing services, as well as book reviews and free resources for writers and critical readers. Lindsay is a lover of language, story, grammar, etymology, and the Oxford comma; she is also a cat mom to two high-maintenance felines.
Writing Your Memoir
with Liisa Kovala
Thursday April 13, 2023
7 pm to 9 pm EST
free via Zoom
7 pm to 9 pm EST
free via Zoom
Writing your memoir, family memories, or nonfiction story can be intimidating, but
it is a highly rewarding venture.
In this workshop, Liisa Kovala, author of Surviving Stutthof: My Father's Memories Behind the Death Gate (Latitude 46, 2017) and Sisu's Winter War (Latitude 46, 2020) will discuss some of the common fears writers of creative nonfiction face, ideas for conducting research, techniques for interviewing subjects, and how to incorporate narrative techniques into non-fiction.
A variety of writing prompts will help writers explore initial ideas for a new project
or delve deeper into a work-in-progress.
it is a highly rewarding venture.
In this workshop, Liisa Kovala, author of Surviving Stutthof: My Father's Memories Behind the Death Gate (Latitude 46, 2017) and Sisu's Winter War (Latitude 46, 2020) will discuss some of the common fears writers of creative nonfiction face, ideas for conducting research, techniques for interviewing subjects, and how to incorporate narrative techniques into non-fiction.
A variety of writing prompts will help writers explore initial ideas for a new project
or delve deeper into a work-in-progress.

Liisa Kovala is a Finnish Canadian author and teacher. Her first book,
Surviving Stutthof: My Father’s Memories Behind the Death Gate (Latitude
46, 2017), was shortlisted for a Northern Lit Award and published in Finland
under the title Stutthofin selviytyjä (Docendo, 2020).
Her work is inspired by her Finnish heritage and the northern landscape she calls home. Sisu’s Winter War (Latitude 46, 2022) is her debut novel.
She lives in Sudbury, Ontario with her husband and two children.