Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop at Word on the Street

On September 26, 2010, Ray Hsu of the The Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop and instructor at the UBC Creative Writing Program's first Asian Canadian creative writing course, will be offering a session called "Cultural Writing" at WOTS that will teach participants how to be meme-splicers: taking cultural materials and remixing it so that it catches in people's minds, sticks, and even go viral.

The Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop (ACWW) assists Asian Canadian writers in publishing and showcasing their work. ACWW has been in operation since 1969 and is also the publisher of Ricepaper Magazine, showcasing creative and inspirational Asian Canadians. Ray Hsu will also be reading in The Poetry Tent from his new book, Cold Sleep Permanent Afternoon. The workshop is limited to 30 people, so early queuing is recommended.

Accès Asie! Asian Heritage National Symposium in Montreal September 2010

The Accès Asie Festival, which celebrates its 15 year of existence in 2010, organizes in collaboration with the MAI (Montréal, arts interculturels) an exclusive event for the first time in Canada. Thanks to the Symposium, Accès Asie brings together many professionals from Asian arts and culture who will propose debates, information sessions. Two years ago, the Symposium project was created by Accès Asie organisers. Indeed, this symposium will create a national exchange between the different Asian communities in Canada, to introduce the Asian Canadian wiki and work with a dynamic, passionate and engaged team.

On September 17-19, 2010, various organizations, including the Asian Heritage Month organizations across the provinces, and various artists from different horizons will come together. For the Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop, it will be a really rewarding experience be able to create and facilitate new networks between the pan-Canadian communities. The Symposium is a unique event in Canada as the three days of meeting will be under the sign of conviviality, friendship, sharing and respect among the organizations.

Eury Chang, Editor of Ricepaper Magazine and Artistic Director of Creative Dominion, will be presenting a session called, "Writing Diversity, Positioning yourself for success in today's global marketplace," while ACWW board of director and UBC Creative Writing instructor, and poet, Dr. Ray Hsu will be a convener for the panel called "Asian (Canadian) History & Culture in Education Systems & Integrations?" and Tetsuro Shigematsu, another ACWW board of director, will be emcee throughout the symposium. Needless to say, ACWW & Ricepaper will be well represented at this important symposium. For more information about this event, please see:

Press release

Program

Way of Ray on TV

ACWW board of director, Ray Hsu was interviewed on ThatChannel.com along with a.rawlings, Phoebe Tsang on July 16 2010!

Asian Etch Your Sketch Off

On May 10, 2010, SKETCHOFF!#$%!! drew a large audience. In fact, it has been a sold-out event every year and the annual show has provided a rare showcase for various Asian stand-up comedians and sketch teams from all over Canada and the U.S. Organized and managed by Asian Canadian theatre icon Joyce Lam, the Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre aims to produce quality plays in which Asian-Canadians take on culturally or artistically significant roles, dispelling Asian stereotypes and creating positive images. Not surprisingly, as a developer of talent, VACT has over the years helped launch such local Asian-Canadian sketch comedy troupes as Hot Sauce Posse and Assaulted Fish.

Hong Kong as Heritage Site

Hong Kong began as a coastal island geographically located in southern China. While small settlements had taken place in the Hong Kong region, with archaeological findings dating back thousands of years, regularly written records were not made until the engagement of Imperial China and the British colony in the territory. Starting out as a fishing village, salt production site and trading ground, it would evolve into a military port of strategic importance and eventually an international financial centre.

The World's First Asian Writing School in English

On January 15, 2010, City University of Hong Kong, an English-language school with seventeen thousand students and a campus notable for its urban, contemporary architecture, will begin accepting applications for a new low-residency MFA program in creative writing. Up to thirty students will be admitted and spend two summers and three long weekends on the Hong Kong campus studying poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction in English over the course of two to four years. While the program will have a focus on Asian writing, it is open to writers from anywhere in the world. This is a significant turning point in not only English creative writing, but global creative writing, where languages emerge from a creole English that is now spoken so predominantly in many postcolonial geographies such as Singapore and Vancouver. Leading the charge as part of this is author Xu Xi.

Vancouver Chinatown

Vancouver Chinatown is a haven for tourists each year. But what many do not realize is that Chinatown rivals other Chinese cities such as Hong Kong in terms of historical significance. As the Western Hemisphere's second largest Chinatown in area (after San Francisco), and third largest in population (after San Francisco, and New York), Vancouver's Chinatown continues to hold much mystique, for much of the 20th century, Chinatown was often an ethnic enclave which the majority of white residents had excluded and ostracized. Much of the stories of Asian Canadian literature – Sky Lee, Wayson Choy, and Madeleine Thien, to name a few – use Chinatown as the backdrop for their stories.