The Mag Awards Guide to Word on the Street

Canada’s largest magazine & book festival – Word on the Street – is coming to four Canadian cities this month, with opportunities for readers to browse great deals on magazine subscriptions, hear inspiring stories from their favourite writers and go home with an exciting stack of new reads.

Halifax – Saturday, September 17, Halifax Central Library
Saskatoon – Sunday, September 18, Exhibitor Marketplace
Lethbridge – Saturday, September 24, Main Library
Toronto – Sunday, September 25, Harbourfront Centre

Here are some of the events and speakers at Toronto’s Word On The Street we’re looking forward to, featuring NMA winners:
Lauren McKeon, 2-time NMA winner and editor of THIS Magazine (now celebrating its 50th anniversary year) leads a discussion with panelists: NMA winner Daniel Viola (Maisonneuve), Sheila Sampath (Shameless Magazine), Priya Ramanujan (Urbanology), and Shawn Micallef (Spacing) on why independent media is now more important than ever, and what role this form of journalism will play in the next fifty years. The hour-long discussion starts at 3:15 at the Canadian Magazines Stage.
John Lorinc, 7-time NMA winner for Spacing, Toronto Life, Report on Business and others, will speak about working on his latest book, “The Ward” at the Toronto Book Awards Tent at 2:00-2:30.
Randi Bergman, 2-time NMA winner, chats with Corduroy Magazine editor-in-chief Tim Chan and 7-time NMA winner Tanya Watt about what is and what isn’t Canadian fashion, with examples of designers and companies across the country at 4:15 at the Canadian Magazines Stage.
Emily Donaldson, editor-in-chief of NMA-winning publication CNQ: Canadian Notes & Queries, joins Brick editor, Laurie D. Graham, and Nailah King in a showcase discussion of Canadian literary journals and magazines at 12:45 at the Canadian Magazines Stand.
NMA Gold winner in Poetry, George Elliott Clarke, is participating in the Diaspora Dialogues panel which will explore how to write about Toronto in the future at 3:00 at the Toronto Book Awards Tent.

NMA winners speaking at the Nothing But The Truth Tent, hosted by Sue Carter, editor at Quill & Quire and arts & ideas editor at THIS Magazine.

Craig Davidson, 2-time NMA winner, talks about his new book “Precious Cargo: My Year Driving the Kids on School Bus 3077”. Starts at 12:15.
Diane Schoemperlen, silver NMA-winner for Fiction, talks about her new book “This is Not My Life”. Starts at 4:15.
Sandra Martin, 2-time NMA winner, discusses her book “A Good Death”. Starts at 5:15.

Check out these National Magazine Award-winning titles at the Exhibitor Marketplace and the Magazine Mews (MM). Word on the Street always brings out great deals on magazine subscriptions, often with gifts and back issues on sale, too. [Map of WOTS Toronto]