BONAFIDE // Kya Publishing Releases 13th "Black Toronto-Based" Fiction Book

TORONTO, ON (December 2022) – Toronto-based publishing and communications company Kya Publishing has just released their 13th book featuring Toronto-based Black characters, cultures, and locales.

TITLE | Bonafide

AUTHOR | SM Robinson

PUBLISHER | Kya Publishing

PRICE | $11.99

PAGES | 220

ISBN-13 | 978-0-9879195-3-3

GENRE | Fiction

SYNOPSIS | A story about a 41-year-old professional female who is selected to participate in a research project analyzing life in the city for Black Torontonians born in the 1970s: #BlackTorontoLive. Presented with a group of eligible male bachelors, her courting process is documented through livestreams, social media, and a series of orchestrated dates.

"Documenting contemporary Black/African Canadian life is important to us, so our stories reflect a range of cultures, sub-cultures, characters, and experiences within the city of Toronto during the 90s, early 2000s, and present time. Through the fiction of SM Robinson and Kamilah Haywood, our catalogue of books features themes of relationships, self-love, human trafficking, Caribbean carnival, incarceration, coming of age, friendship, marriage, and the entertainment industry, all with a focus on development, growth, and self-awareness."

Order Bonafide by SM Robinson in paperback or ebook format.

To view this, and additional books from Kya Publishing, please visit our website.

 

Toronto Author KWooDZ and Glowz offer Writing Workshops for the Previously Incarcerated and Warrior Women

TORONTO, ONT (November 2022) Toronto-based authors Kamilah Haywood (aka KWooDZ) and Gloria O'Koye (aka Glowz) are continuing their series of writing workshops this month: "Warrior Women Winning" and "Find Your Voice" were established to support marginalized voices, and also to cultivate new stories and shared experiences to encourage and inspire each other.

All are welcome to attend the workshops, to connect with KWooDZ and Glowz and build a community of creatives from within Toronto (and internationally) with free access to a safe space for conversation, creative sharing, and composition.

The WARRIOR WOMEN WINNING for trauma survivors, will be held on Sunday, November 20 at 2:00pm EST (REGISTER HERE).

The FIND YOUR VOICE workshop for will be held on Sunday, November 27 at 2:00pm EST (REGISTER HERE).

"These workshops are important, because our stories and experiences are all important," said KWooDZ. "We want to provide a space for writers to gather, talk, work out their ideas, and get on a path to implementing them."

Both authors have been actively involved in prison rights activism, as well as supporting Toronto's Black and Indigenous communities through their writing, and project participation. Special guests have contributed to the events through song, performance, poetry, and ceremony.

"We hope to continue to uplift one another," said Glowz. "Virtual workshops have been a great tool for us these past few years, and we have built many strong relationships that translate from Zoom, to protests, to our laptops, and into beautiful fiction, spoken word pieces, poetry, and other creative arts."

Support from the Forgiveness Project, Kya Publishing, TU Book Expo, and community participants have helped to continue the momentum for the writing workshops.

For additional information about the workshops or future opportunities to contribute/participate, please contact kamilah@kyapublishing.com.

International Writers' Workshop returns Emancipation Day Long Weekend in Toronto

(June 2022) - The International Writers' Workshop (IWW) returns for a virtual edition during Emancipation Day long weekend in Toronto, Thursday, July 28, 2022 from 12:00pm to 1:30pm over the Zoom platform. The theme is "Enhancing and Leveraging the Black Writing Community" featuring presentations and a roundtable discussion from all registered participations; registration is free.

The Workshop, now in its fourth edition, is designed for writers (particularly those in the Black/African diaspora) to present and advance their writing projects and initiatives through conversation and connection.

During the interactive discussion, experts will share culturally-specific experiences and strategies for writing and marketing, in addition to providing resources for starting, sustaining, and [self-]publishing writing projects in a variety of genres.

"We hope to continue to provide writers with an inviting and comfortable platform to cultivate new ideas and artistic networks," said event administrator Stacey Robinson.

Presented by the TU Book Expo, and sponsored by the Toronto Arts Council, Toronto's Kya Publishing, Nairobi's Mutendei Writes, Cleveland's Elevated Waves, and Toronto's Bstellar Group Inc, the IWW team is composed of Black writers Mutendei Nabutete, Stacey Ann Berry, Kamilah Haywood, and Jameel Davis. 

"Our goal is to continuously strengthen the writing, the voices, and the unification within the Black writing community, and to also establish Toronto as a hub and key international location for Black writers to feel welcome, supported, and enhanced as artists."

Previous sessions have highlighted:

• "Character Development and Historical Representations" by Mutendei Nabutete
• "How to Use Writing to Ignite Freedom, Healing and Power" by Stacey Ann Berry
• "Content Marketing" by Jameel Davis
• "Self Publishing vs. Traditional Publishing" by Kamilah Haywood and Mutendei Nabutete
• "Traditional Marketing Methods in the Digital Age" by Stacey Ann Berry
• "Literary Cultural Barriers in the African Diaspora" featuring guest presenter Adam H.C. Myrie, in addition to presentations from the IWW Board members.

Writers and literary supporters from all communities are welcome to attend!

REGISTER HERE

VISIT TUBOOKEXPO.COM

Contact us with your inquiries or to learn more about the International Writers' Workshop at IWW@kyapublishing.com.

ABOUT EMANCIPATION DAY

Emancipation Day is celebrated on August 1 in Ontario, Canada. The Government of Canada officially designated this day on March 24, 2021 to mark "the actual day in 1834 that the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 came into effect across the British Empire."

"Canadians are not always aware that Black and Indigenous Peoples were once enslaved on the land that is now Canada. Those who fought enslavement were pivotal in shaping our society to be as diverse as it is today. Therefore, each August 1, Canadians are invited to reflect, educate and engage in the ongoing fight against anti-Black racism and discrimination. Emancipation Day celebrates the strength and perseverance of Black communities in Canada."