by Amanda Earl
A Sunday morning in spring: photo by Lisa Barber
What do Centretown churches, a sex shop, galleries, theatres, pubs & cafés have in common? They are all sites of literary activity in the city. It’s springtime and Ottawa is blooming with readings, spoken word showcases, book clubs, slams, book signings and launches, a literary festival, and storytelling. Here are a few of the venues, series and events taking place in Centretown this month.
The A B Series, founded by Max Middle, offers performance sound and experimental poetry by North American and international artists. Gallery 101, at301 1/2 Bank St., is one of its venues. Next up is American multi-media artist, publisher and visual poet Dan Waber on Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 8pm; doors open and seating begins at 7:30pm. The event is free. In May, the Canadian Creative Music Collective (CCMC) with Phil Minton, Paul Dutton, Michael Snow and John Oswald, will perform at the NAC Fourth Stage. For more information visit abseries.org.
Plan 99 is hosted by local poet David O’Meara, who is the Canadian judge for the Griffin Poetry Prize this year. The series has existed since (you guessed it) 1999, and takes place at the venerable Manx Pub, 370 Elgin Street. It features Canadian fiction writers and poets. Two poets will launch new collections this spring: Roo Borson’s ninth full-length solo collection Rain; road; an open boat is published by McClelland & Stewart, and George Murray’s new book, Whiteout, has just been published by ECW Press.
Voices of Venus is a monthly showcase of women’s live lit and spoken word that takes place (fittingly) at Venus Envy, 320 Lisgar St. It also has an open mic. Further information is available at voicesofvenusblog.wordpress.com/
Raw Sugar Café,692 Somerset St. West, is the site of many readings including the recent spring launch of Mansfield Press on Wednesday, April 18, 2012, 7:00 p.m., hosted by Stuart Ross. The press launched new titles by Nelson Ball, Alice Burdick, Jaime Forsythe and David W. McFadden.
Other cafés such as Umi Café and the Daily Grind on Somerset West also have literary events, open mics and spoken word performances.
The Ottawa International Writers Festival Spring Edition begins on April 26, 2012, with many of the events taking place at the Knox Presbyterian Church, 120 Lisgar Street. The festival is an international celebration of ideas that recharges our imaginations. As part of the festival, on April 29, 2012 at 8:30pm, Venus Envy will be hosting CockTales: Tamara Faith Berger, author of Maidenhead; Daniel Allen Cox, author of Basement of Wolves; Megan Butcher, author of Here, There, Home; Nerys Parry, author of Man and Other Natural Disasters; and Jasmine Aziz, author of Sex & Samosas. For more information, visit www.writersfestival.org.
The Main Branch of the Ottawa Public Library at 120 Metcalfe and other local branches also feature readings, children’s storytelling events and book clubs.
For more information about literary events taking place in Centretown and across the National Capital Region, please visit bywords.ca and check out the events calendar. While you’re there, read the monthly featured poetry by current and former Ottawans and check out the guidelines; then submit your own poetry. Bywords.ca is grateful to the City of Ottawafor funding. Please follow @bywordsdotca on Twitter for daily event tweets.
Amanda Earl lives close to the construction and good dumplings in Chinatown & the great sandwiches on Gladstone, but is often lured out to Hipsterburg for donuts & tacos and Collected Works or Old Ottawa South for pie and Mother Tongue Books. Earl is the managing editor of Bywords.ca and the Bywords Quarterly Journal.