WOTS Plus+ tackles tough issues
Extra festival day takes dive into the topics making headlines in Toronto and Canada
The Word On The Street is writing a new chapter for the 2018 season.
Toronto’s treasured festival for book and magazine fans is adding an extra free day to the traditionally singly-day event.
Called WOTS Plus+, the new programming promises to expand minds with a diverse list of panellists, among them authors, journalists, political experts, academics, planners and publishers, providing thoughtful insight into issues close to the heart of Torontonians.
“The new day gives us an opportunity to step back and look at the critical issues facing us in Canada and in the city,” explained festival director David Alexander.
“We have such a strong appetite for book and magazine events in Toronto and we’re able to bring in an audience that doesn’t necessarily go out to literary readings every month.”
The event takes place Sept. 22 at Harbourfront Centre from 12-5:30 p.m., and is made up of three distinct panels.
On Civil Society, presented by the Toronto Public Library and moderated by former Toronto mayor David Miller, will see experts tackling tough questions about the state of democracy, social media, and whether Toronto is creating an inclusive city.
Conversations+ brings forward enlightening conversations between authors on subjects such as dystopia, community and Indigenous literature.
And Headlines+ will delve into news and current events impacting the city. Some sensitive news stories will be examined, including a discussion called the “Long Road to Justice: Bruce McArthur and Toronto’s LGBTQ+ Community,” which will look at the case of the alleged serial killer, how police handled the cases, and the response from the community.
In a city juggling many pressing issues, narrowing down the day’s themes took analysis and some back-and-forth among organizers.
“Some discussions, such as those on satire and dystopia, stem from broader trends in what people are reading and writing,” Alexander said. “Others respond to specific writing that raises and responds to important questions of citizenship, struggle, and community resilience.”
Unlike the Sunday event, WOTS Plus+ will not host a marketplace for shoppers. Instead, it’s a space devoted to the exchange of ideas, rethinking critical topics, and considering GTA-based issues on a deeper level.
Organizers hope a full weekend affair will appeal to an even larger audience, especially as trends and new interests are identified each year.
“Our Sunday, we’ve been at it for 28 years, since 1990, and we have an established audience for that event,” Alexander said.
“One of the nice things about growing out from the one day is we’ve been packing more and more into one day. What a new day will mean is that people can spend a little more time with us. We hope that attendees will come away with deeper insight into the challenges we face as citizens. We hope that these conversations equip attendees to participate in public life as citizens and writers.”
View the full schedule at: thewordonthestreet.ca/toronto/ wots-plus.