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Jun 15, 2021

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Toronto International Festival of Authors Unveils Plans for 2021 and 2022, including a New Crime and Mystery Festival

Toronto International Festival of Authors Unveils Plans for 2021 and 2022, including a New Crime and Mystery Festival

TORONTO, June 15, 2021 – The Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA), Canada’s largest and longest-running literary festival, today shared announcements about its upcoming festivals in 2021 and 2022. Following the success of 2020’s Festival – the largest digital literary festival internationally – TIFA will return in a digital format for its 42nd edition from October 21–31, 2021. This year’s Festival will again offer a dynamic lineup of authors and artists from Canada and around the globe through live conversations and entertaining performances, alongside compelling new events celebrating books, authors and stories.

This year, Festival audiences can expect the return of popular TIFA Kids! events and Write in the Neighbourhood podcast series. Audiences will also discover Can You Hear Me Now?, a new collection of writing commissions from some of the world’s most diverse voices. For these commissions, TIFA invited writers to respond to this phrase – familiar in this age of digital meetings, while also speaking to global movements for change to empower marginalized and disenfranchised voices to be represented, celebrated and heard.

In 2022, as TIFA returns to in-person activities at its iconic home at Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre, the 43rd Festival will mark the arrival of an exciting new chapter by shifting the festival’s dates to September 22 – October 2, 2022. Building on TIFA’s vision to inspire, empower and connect through the art of stories, and the potential of the Festival’s location, in particular the outdoor spaces, TIFA will enhance the experience for audiences and authors, opening up new creative opportunities for Festival programmes and activities.

“We are inspired by the way audiences responded to our digital format. It provided us with an incredible opportunity to broaden our programme and reach a significantly larger number of readers who share our love of literature and storytelling. We look forward to building on this success and creating new possibilities for audiences and authors in September 2022 and our return to in-person events,” said Roland Gulliver, Toronto International Festival of Authors Director.

Continuing TIFA’s commitment to a year-round calendar of events, 2022 will also witness the launch of a new three-day crime and mystery festival (June 3–5, 2022). From cozy crime to police procedural, psychological thriller to true crime, this genre has created some of the world’s best storytellers who are much loved by readers everywhere. The three-day Festival will celebrate writers from Canada and across the world, with a particular focus on Nordic Noir in partnership with Nordic Bridges 2022, spearheaded by Harbourfront Centre. There will be more than 50 events including in-conversations, writing masterclasses, and youth and children’s programming. It will take place both indoors and outdoors at Harbourfront Centre, with online digital content and activities to complement live programmes.

“The crime and mystery genre is immensely popular in Canada, offering page-turning reads from fantastic storytellers. Alongside being widely accessible and relevant, the genre offers varied perspectives on the world and explores contemporary social issues through captivating narratives. I am incredibly excited to see how our audiences respond to the inaugural Festival,” added Gulliver.

The full programming slate for TIFA’s 2021 edition will be announced in September. For more information, visit festivalofauthors.ca.

About Toronto International Festival of Authors
The Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA) inspires, empowers and connects through the art of stories, offering book lovers a breadth of bold, ambitious and accessible literary experiences. As Canada’s largest literary festival, the charitable organization provides engaging opportunities to meet, hear and learn from the world’s best contemporary writers and thinkers, and to celebrate the power of stories. Since 1974, TIFA has presented thousands of authors, including 22 Nobel Laureates, who represent diverse perspectives and a range of literary genres for all ages. TIFA's creative programmes continue to adapt to changing times, capturing the most innovative and enlightening forms of storytelling, on stage and online. Alongside the flagship Festival, TIFA delivers a year-round programme of events and activities that reflect Toronto to its residents, its literature to the nation, and its creative ambition to the world. TIFA will celebrate the 42nd edition of the Festival from October 21–31, 2021.

TIFA is grateful for the support of the Government of Canada – Department of Canadian Heritage, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Government of Ontario – Ontario Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries, the Ontario Arts Council, the Toronto Arts Council, and Ontario Creates, as well as the generosity of its donors.

The crime and mystery writing festival is made possible in part by Nordic Bridges 2022 in collaboration with Harbourfront Centre, Toronto.

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