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Resources for Victoria Writers

Publishers, writing services, warnings & advisories

Groups | Readings | Publishers | Services | Resources | Warnings & Advisories
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For Victoria Writers

This page contains content suitable for Canadian writers, particularly writers in the Greater Victoria area.

These links are aimed at writers in the Victoria (Vancouver Island) area and were originally maintained by Russ for the Canadian Authors Association Victoria & Islands Branch.

The Canadian Authors Association (CAA) is a national organization with a local presence dedicated to promoting a flourishing community of writers across Canada and to encourage works of literary and artistic merit.

Writing Groups

Local writing groups provide you with a place to improve your craft and a solution to the solitude writing requires.

• Vancouver Island Romance Authors.
• Victoria Creative Writing Group.
• The Victoria Writers' Society (annual writing contest).

BC writing groups sponsor awards, contests and workshops.

• BC Association of Travel Writers.
• CAA BC Branch.
• Federation of BC Writers.

National writing organizations are better equipped to lobby for improved copyright and other writers' concerns.

• Association for Canadian and Québec Literatures (ACQL).
• Association of Italian Canadian Writers.
• Canadian Authors Association (CAA).
• Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ).
• Canadian Freelance Guild.
• Canadian Society of Children's Authors, Illustrators and Performers (CANSCAIP).
• Crime Writers of Canada.
• InScribe Christian Writers' Fellowship.
• League of Canadian Poets.
• Literary Translators' Association of Canada (Association des traducteurs et traductrices littéraires du Canada).
• Playwrights Guild of Canada.
• Science Writers and Communicators of Canada (SWCC).
• The Word Guild — Christian writers across Canada.
• The Writers' Union of Canada.
• Writers Guild of Canada.

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Local Readings & Events

Looking for opportunities to read or to hear other writers read in Victoria?

• Bolen Books Events.
• Planet Earth Poetry.
• Russell Books — Events.

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Publishers

This is a list of some of the local publishers on the Island (mostly Victoria) that maintain a website. The descriptions provided are subject to change.

Check the publisher's site to see what they've published to determine if your book or piece will fit in. The publisher's Writer's Guidelines page is usually a great place to start.

Local Publishers

• Ekstasis Editions.
• Island Writer Magazine accepts submissions.
• The Malahat Review.
• Sono Nis Press.

Publisher Associations

• The Association of Book Publishers of British Columbia (ABPBC)
• Magazine Association of BC.

Canadian Indie Book Publishers & Bookstores

• Canadian Independent Book Publishers (Google Maps).
• Canadian Independent Bookstores (Google Maps).

Self-Publishing

• Printorium Bookworks (Island Blue Print) provides Print-on-Demand self-publishing services.
• First Choice Books provides professional publishing and printing services including ebooks.
• ABPBC resources for writers (book proposals, literary agents and more).

E-Publishing

• LibreOffice free office suite compatible with Microsoft Office/365 files (.doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .ppt, .pptx). Learn more …
• Instant book mockup generator.

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Writing Services

See the Warnings & Advisories section to help you determine legitimate resources and avoid getting scammed.

Copyright & Contracts

• Access Copyright
• Public Lending Right Program compensates authors for the free public access to their works.
• The CAA FAQs contains advice on publishing, agents, ISBN and copyright.
• Just say no to bad contracts — Canadian Freelance Guild.

Editing Services

Do you need freelance or salaried editorial assistance? Find and hire the right editor for your project.

 

Consult our Definitions of editorial skills to determine what kind of help you need. Editors can put many different skills to work on your text.
— The Editors' Association of Canada

• Proofreading secrets by Elizabeth Macfie (PDF).
• Professional Editors Association of Vancouver Island.
• The Editors' Association of Canada.
  • Agreement template for editing services.

Writing Courses

• Fernwood Writers workshops.
• The University of BC:
  • EdX: Write Your Novel is a series of six-week non-credit online courses at UBC designed to take your novel from concept to completion.
  • writing courses.
  • creative writing programs.
• The University of Victoria:
  • Department of Writing encourages the best in emerging writers.
  • Professional Communication program will teach you the skills you need to succeed as a writer.
  • Continuing Studies also offers writing courses.
• West Coast Screenwriting two-day intensive workshop.
• Writing retreats & workshops.

Writing Conferences & Festivals

• Surrey International Writers' Conference held in October each year.

Writing Jobs

• Craig's List Victoria Writing Gigs where writers can find writing gigs posted for the Victoria area.
• Canadian Writer's Journal includes markets, contests and new writing ideas.
• Submissions guidelines database from Writers Write.

Writing Prizes

• BC and Yukon Book Prizes.
• BC BookLook Awards.
• Victoria Book Prizes $5,000 prizes awarded annually to Victoria authors.
• The Malahat Review's writing contests.

Help for Senior Writers

• The Canadian Writers' Foundation is a registered charity to help Canada's senior writers when they fall on hard times.

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Resources

References

Language and writing references.

• The Elements of Style
• OneLook Dictionary | OneLook Thesaurus
• The Apostrophe Protection Society.
• The Editor's Manual.
• The University of Victoria's Hypertext Writer's Guide
  (archived March 13, 2016 on the WayBackMachine)

Research Resources

Sources not necessarily directly related to writing, but useful to writers.

Libraries

• British Columbia Library Association has links to other libraries.
• Greater Victoria Public Library.
• Libdex — Worldwide index of library catalogues, libraries & books.

Government

• BC Government.
• CRD Arts & Culture.

Archives

• City of Victoria Archives.
• British Columbia Archives.

Databases

• Area Code Look Up.

Translation

• DeepL Translator
• Google Translate

Other Resources

• Russ Harvey Consulting Computer & Internet Services
• Russ Harvey's Self-help Resources (computer and Internet information).
• Consumer Medical Resources.

Warnings & Advisories

Learn from others' experience about shady practices aimed at writers.

Real publishing houses do not need testimonials from authors. Their customers are readers, not authors.
— Anne R Alen

Writer Beware

Writer Beware (hosted by SFWA) is perhaps the best known of the resources about scams and pitfalls facing writers trying to get published.

• Overview.
• Contests and Awards.
• Vanity Anthologies.
• Vanity/Subsidy Publishers.
• Writers' Services.
• Blog.

Preditors and Editors

Preditors and Editors is a valuable service that's promised a new site for a while (you can visit them on Facebook).

Reedsy Blog

Here's the ugly truth: Vanity presses don't rely on book sales to pay the bills. Their end customer is the author who's willing to pay for services like editing and design.
— Reedsy

Book publishers to avoid: 5 types of shady companies.

Fraud Warnings

We've seen a sharp rise in potential fraudsters targeting authors, with flattering messages, fake book club invitations, and offers to sell "exclusive" membership lists. Red Flags to Watch for:

• Book club "invitations" that require payment to feature your work
• Paid review offers for Amazon or Goodreads (against platform rules)
• Sales of mass mailing lists, with promises of thousands of contacts
• Pressure to act quickly, wire money, or share personal details
• Senders with generic or mismatched email addresses

Remember: real book clubs ask for books, not money. Always question about whether the email sender and the content match. Don't click links or send money unless you have confirmed and verified the email sender through other means.
— Canadian Authors Association

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