QWF Gala

Posted on November 29, 2010 by Catherine Austen

My writing blahs were blown away last week at the Quebec Writers’ Federation Gala in Montreal. It was even bigger and better than I’d expected – definitely worth the drive.

Mingling with other writers, celebrating local literature, consuming free wine and hors d’oeuvres… it was just what I needed to renew my interest in the written word.

After the food and music came the award ceremony proper, with a dignified procession of sponsors, speakers, readings, and prize recipients. Like all good award ceremonies, this one was hosted by a comedian who filled the intervals with jokes, confessions, and laughter. Check out the QWF coverage of the ceremony.

QWF Children's Writers — Me, Caryl, Monique

The most fun for me was meeting the two other finalists for the QWF Prize for Children’s and Young Adult Literature: Monique Polak and Caryl Cude Mullin. Lovely ladies both, they were great company – for an evening and a competition.

Caryl won the Prize for her novel, Rough Magic (Second Story Press), a delightful take on Shakespeare’s Tempest. Monique was nominated for The Middle of Everywhere (Orca Book Publishers), a moving novel set in Canada’s north. (My Walking Backward is also from Orca – they’ve had a great year for award nominations.)

After the party, I lingered in Montreal for a day with my husband, sans enfants, and that was just as fun as the gala. Altogether the trip left me renewed – and since I came home to three P.D. days in a row, that’s a good thing. Now it’s back to school, back to work, and back to my work-in-progress.