The Kamloops Society for the Written Arts (KSWA) is a volunteer-led non-profit dedicated to fostering a thriving community of writers and readers in Kamloops and the surrounding region.
We are honored to be able to live and host our events on the traditional and unceded territory of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc. Secwépemculecw is a beautiful and inspiring place to live and work and we thank the Secwépemc people for allowing us to use their land. For more information about the Tk’emlúps te Secwe̓pemc, please visit https://tkemlups.ca.
We are honored to be able to live and host our events on the traditional and unceded territory of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc. Secwépemculecw is a beautiful and inspiring place to live and work and we thank the Secwépemc people for allowing us to use their land. For more information about the Tk’emlúps te Secwe̓pemc, please visit https://tkemlups.ca.
Our Goals
We strongly believe that we can play an important role in helping to build a more robust and engaged literary community in Kamloops and the surrounding area. We also suggest that the benefits of nurturing the arts in the community, particularly the values of reading, literacy, and continued development of written expression, can only strengthen the population of Kamloops and the surrounding region.
We seek to inspire, connect, and spread a love of reading and writing. We are committed to bringing together diverse voices, to promote and nurture the written word, and to continue building a thriving community for readers and writers in the Kamloops region.
Our larger goal is to create a community of readers and writers, not just at the festival but year-round. Writing and reading are both solitary pursuits and can lead to isolation. We seek to provide a place for readers and writers at any level to come together to share their passion for written expression. For writers especially, having a community larger than themselves allows them to keep motivated, provides inspiration, and improves their writing skills. It is also very helpful to share tribulations and successes with other like-minded creative people. Several workshopping/critique groups have formed each year as a direct result of our festival, and we try to model a responsibility to be part of the larger community.
We seek to inspire, connect, and spread a love of reading and writing. We are committed to bringing together diverse voices, to promote and nurture the written word, and to continue building a thriving community for readers and writers in the Kamloops region.
Our larger goal is to create a community of readers and writers, not just at the festival but year-round. Writing and reading are both solitary pursuits and can lead to isolation. We seek to provide a place for readers and writers at any level to come together to share their passion for written expression. For writers especially, having a community larger than themselves allows them to keep motivated, provides inspiration, and improves their writing skills. It is also very helpful to share tribulations and successes with other like-minded creative people. Several workshopping/critique groups have formed each year as a direct result of our festival, and we try to model a responsibility to be part of the larger community.
Our History
The Kamloops Writers Festival was founded in 2010 by Sylvia Olson and the Kamloops Arts Council (KAC) as a place for readers and writers in the region to come together, learn, network, and share their words. The KAC and the organizing committee produced the Festival from 2010 to 2014, and in 2015 hosted a ticketed fundraiser with proceeds going towards a 2016 festival. In June 2016 the Kamloops Society for the Written Arts was incorporated as a non-profit society and became the primary producer of the Kamloops Writers Festival, which had grown to the point where it warranted its own society. We continue to enjoy an excellent relationship with the KAC.
From 2016 to 2019 the KSWA produced full versions of the Festival with a variety of different events including panel discussions with that year's authors, paid workshops for writers and free readings for the public. We offered blue pencil critique sessions, a variety night with readings and musical performances, and opportunities for networking.
In 2018 we re-branded our festival as Words Alive Kamloops in order to more accurately represent the connection between readers and writers.
From 2016 to 2019 the KSWA produced full versions of the Festival with a variety of different events including panel discussions with that year's authors, paid workshops for writers and free readings for the public. We offered blue pencil critique sessions, a variety night with readings and musical performances, and opportunities for networking.
In 2018 we re-branded our festival as Words Alive Kamloops in order to more accurately represent the connection between readers and writers.
Our Present
Throughout the year, the KSWA also offers readings, presentations, and other events to bring together readers, writers, and published authors, including writing workshops, author readings, and writers’ meetups. We enjoy good relationships with other local organizations, and regularly produce events in partnership with these organizations, including the Thompson-Nicola Regional Library, CBC Kamloops, and the Thompson Rivers University Student Union (TRUSU).
Our 2020 Board of Directors consists of:
President: JP Baker
Vice-President: Janet Whitehead
Secretary: Catherine Schmidt
Treasurer: Chuck Harris
Director at Large: Lindsay Curry
Our board would like to thank all the other volunteers who help us run our events all year long, the authors, hosts, and workshop facilitators that lend their expertise to our events, and the fantastic arts community in Kamloops.
Our 2020 Board of Directors consists of:
President: JP Baker
Vice-President: Janet Whitehead
Secretary: Catherine Schmidt
Treasurer: Chuck Harris
Director at Large: Lindsay Curry
Our board would like to thank all the other volunteers who help us run our events all year long, the authors, hosts, and workshop facilitators that lend their expertise to our events, and the fantastic arts community in Kamloops.
