Crime Writers Canada took over the Vancouver Public Library on Tuesday, August 20th. We heard readings from Daniel Kalla, Charlotte Morganti, Joanna Vander Vlugt, Craig Bowlsby, and Erik D'Souza. Special thanks to Bob Harris and Winona Kent for organizing the event and to Jim Goddard, our official photographer.
Hear first-hand about the fun and challenges of writing as part of a team from four talented authors in this Crime Writers of Canada panel discussion.
Moderator Jass Ajula.
Joyce Woollcott recently won the Best First Sentence award at Thrillerfest in New York and received a critique from award-winning novelist and teacher Tosca Lee. At Killer Nashville she made the Claymore Awards Top Picks List and the Silver Falchion Top Picks List for her second book, Blood Relations. She was shortlisted for her first book in the series A Nice Place to Die in 2023. She has just learned that she has been shortlisted at the Claymore Awards for her unpublished new work in progress, A Desolate Grave.
Congratulations, Joyce!
We're pleased to share the following book launch announcement from author & CWC member Angela Van Breemen:
Join me for my book launch and signing of Past Life’s Revenge on Sunday, August 25th, from 2:00 to 4:00pm at the beautiful library located in the Past Glories of Toad Hollow antique mall in Orangeville, Ontario.
I am honoured that award winning poet Mike Madill will be interviewing me about my book! Stop by to hear a reading of my book, while you enjoy coffee or tea and desserts!
To register for the event and pre-order your book, visit: https://angelavanbreemen.ca/pa...…/ or scan the QR code.
My CD, In the Breeze will also be available.
https://angelavanbreemen.ca/bo...
On June 15, Crime Writers of Canada -- along with Literacy Central Vancouver Island -- presented an event titled "I Wrote a Book. Now What?" CWC Vice-Chair Winona Kent was the facilitator of one of the four workshops, "WRITER ORGANIZATIONS: WHAT THEY CAN DO FOR YOU DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING FOR." For more information about the event, please see the previous post about it here; photos of the event are included below, thanks to all who attended!
Thanks to everyone who attended our Annual General Meeting on June 20th and contributed to CWC discussions. The minutes and associated documents will be posted to the Members-Only section of the website by the end of the summer.
Your 2024-2025 board of directors is as follows, from west to east:
Winona Kent – CWC Vice Chair and BC Regional Director
Craig Copland – Director at Large, Fundraising & Finance
Barbara Hawryluk – Regional Director, Manitoba/Nunavut
Jass Aujla, Jane Burfield, Lorne Tepperman – Regional Directors, ON: Southwest, North & GTA
John Hill – Regional Director, ON: Central/East/Ottawa Region
David Wickenden – Director at Large
Ann Lambert – Quebec Regional Director
Del Chatterson – International Director
Veronica Purcell – Atlantic Regional Director
Volunteers:
Isabelle Zimmerman - Secretary
Debra Shaw – Fundraising & Finance
Gregory Ryman - Member Engagement
The new board of directors will be selecting a chair at their next meeting.
Many thanks to our elected and volunteer members. CWC cannot function without our stalwart contractors and these dedicated folks who have offered to participate in governance activities on your behalf. Please support them by stepping up to offer your assistance on committees (Marketing & Communications, Jury Selection, Awards, Fundraising & Finance) and with key projects such as mentoring and member engagement, participating in local events and by sending in your ideas for initiatives.
Farewell to Cathy Fynn
Our intrepid Executive Director, Cathy Fynn, has announced that she will be retiring from her role with CWC. Cathy joined us last December at a critical time, when we were grappling with a series of critical organizational and administrative challenges. Her high-level experience, good humour and extensive knowledge of the non-profit field were invaluable as we addressed the impacts of longstanding gaps in policies and procedures, transitioned to the new and improved website and reorganized administration and finance.
Cathy is leaving to focus on her writing and to pursue travel adventures around the world.
Staff Restructurings
Ludvica Boota, MBA, Associate Executive Director and Program Manager, has agreed to fill the role of executive director, effective 1 August 2024. Ludvica brings a wealth of organizational experience, creativity and business acumen to her new role. She will continue as Program Manager, shepherding the annual Awards of Excellence and working closely with the Jury Selection and Awards Committees.
Erik D’Souza, CWC’s indefatigable Social Media Coordinator, will take on an expanded role as Marketing & Communications Manager. He will continue to coordinate our social media offerings but will also function as chair of the Marketing & Communications committee as well as being responsible for member promotions, and production of internal and external newsletters. Erik has been instrumental in raising our profile with his social media posts, member interviews and ever-popular podcasts.
Erik and Ludvica will work closely with Stephen Butters of Smartypants Inc, our webmaster, to ensure the continued integrity of the CWC website and timely dissemination of information to our members. Fresh content is key, so keep them in the loop by letting them know in advance about upcoming book events and local, national and international writing-related activities.
Summer Office Closure
The CWC offices will be closed for the month of July. This measure has been undertaken to ensure that our contractors can step away from day-to-day work demands to take care of their wellness and wind down during the slowest time of the year.
Only critical issues will continue to be dealt with. All other messages will be answered at the beginning of August. Member renewals and new member signups will be automatically processed. For technical issues, kindly contact our webmaster at: techsupport@crimewriterscanada.com
This will be my final missive as chair. It has been my honour to serve for the last two years. It has truly been a transformative experience.
Hyacinthe Miller
Past Chair
It is with profound sadness that we let you know our former board member and good friend to CWC, Gwen Martin, has passed away after a courageous battle with cancer.
Gwen was born in Bristol, England and moved to Ontario as a young child. She began her career as a geologist, and then made a living as a writer and editor. She taught writing and editing workshops, authored Our Forest Heritage, a publication for the Province of NB, plus four geology books: Once Upon a Mine, For the Love of Stone (Vols 1 and 2), and Gesner’s Dream – The Trials and Triumphs of Early Mining in New Brunswick.
Gwen joined CWC in February 2020 and was a devoted supporter of crime writing and an active board member. She became ill in 2023. As her strength permitted, Gwen volunteered to complete tasks for CWC. Her most notable recent project was cleaning up that Mega List of 2000 names.
We will remember Gwen for her intelligence, generosity, incredible kindness and sharp sense of humour. She will be missed very much.
In September, CWC will announce the naming of an Awards of Excellence prize in Gwen’s honour.
Please see below for more comments and memories of Gwen, shared by those who knew and loved her well; and you may login below to add your own messages.
Gwen’s obituary can be found here: https://mcadamsfh.com/tribute/details/1761/Gwen-Martin/obituary.html#tribute-start
Don Graves, aged 78, passed away peacefully on June 4, 2024, due to complications following a stroke.
Among other things, Don was a mystery book reviewer who almost exclusively reviewed Canadian books. He was published in the Hamilton Spectator until it was bought out, then he published his reviews online.
Don was a CWC supporting member for many years. In 2012, CWC presented Don with the Derrick Murdoch Award for his contribution to promoting Canadian crime writing.
If you wish to share your memories of Don, please login and use the form below.
Don’s obituary can be found here:
https://www.arbormemorial.ca/en/dbburlington/obituaries/donald-havelock-graves/124837.html
donalee Moulton's historical novel Conflagration! is a finalist in the 2024 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense.
To learn more about the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence, please visit the link below. You can find out more about the novel, and donalee's other novels, in our Book Catalogue.
The supporting materials related to the AGM are now available for download on the CWC website, including the following documents:
To view or download the documents, please use the following link:
Registration
CWCs Annual General Meeting is scheduled for June 20th @ 7:00 pm ET and will be held using Zoom. The deadline for registration is June 19th. Once registration is closed, members who have registered will receive an email with a link to the Zoom meeting. All CWC members in good-standing are permitted to attend to the AGM; to register, please use the link below (registration closes June 19th at 12:00 pm ET):
Volunteering
We are still looking for members to volunteer for vacancies on the Board of Directors. Won't you consider being part of the CWC Board? Please use the following link to volunteer:
AGM Nomination & Volunteering Form
We look forward to seeing you at the AGM!
