Events › Word Vancouver Launch

Vancouver Public Library is hosting the launch of Word Vancouver with MC Chris Bose, the 2025 Indigenous Storyteller in Residence.

The Word Vancouver Festival aims to foster the joy of the written word and inspire creativity by bringing together readers and writers from all backgrounds in an annual, inclusive and free literary arts festival, connecting local communities and celebrating literary arts through the collective experience.

Come join us for an evening of storytelling and music with Indigenous Storyteller in Residence at the VPL, Chris Bose, Word Vancouver Indigenous Curator Kayla MacInnis and Word Vancouver LGBTQ2S+ Curator Candie Tanaka. We are honoured to have special guests Les George, Sasha Mark, Carleigh Baker and Aren X. Tulchinsky.

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Chris Bose is a writer, musician and multi-disciplinary artist hailing from Kamloops, B.C. A member of the Nlaka’pamux and Secwepemc Nations, Chris has been a professional storyteller for almost 30 years. His work has been published in a variety of publications and exhibited in galleries. He has also shared traditional Nlaka’pamux and Secwepemc stories at schools, festivals, and cultural events across Canada. To find out more about Chris’ residency and keep up with his upcoming events visit: vpl.ca/storyteller

Kayla MacInnis is a Métis storyteller who, in her work, mixes the visual and written worlds. As a research assistant, freelance writer, photographer and curator, she explores diverse storytelling mediums. Kayla lives, works, and explores in Vancouver, British Columbia. Currently pursuing her Master’s in English with a specialization in print culture, she is passionate about how stories shape our understanding of the world.

Les George is a member of the səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nation, where he lives on the north shore of Burrard Inlet. He is the grandson of the late səlilwətaɬ Chief Dan George and is connected through family to the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) nations. Les attended the Native Education College in Vancouver. In 2017 he was invited to return, giving a performance and prayer at the opening of their cultural gathering space.

Sasha Mark (he/him/they/them) is Cree/Métis of the Red River area and a stand-up comedian from Treaty 1 Territory. He has done work with APTN, Just For Laughs, OutTV and is the Co-Host of “Camp! Comedy!” Mark now lives in Vancouver, BC on the unceded territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nation. Before starting his career in comedy, Mark was studying to be a teacher at the University of Winnipeg.

Carleigh Baker is an author and teacher of nêhiyaw âpihtawikosisân (Cree-Métis) and European descent. Born and raised on Stó:lō territory, she currently lives on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilwəta (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples. Her debut story collection, Bad Endings (Anvil Press, 2017), won the City of Vancouver Book Award, and was also a finalist for the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize and the Indigenous Voices Award for fiction. Baker’s newest collection, Last Woman, is now out with McClelland & Stewart.

Aren X. Tulchinsky (he/him), the writer formerly known as Karen X. Tulchinsky, is a novelist, screenwriter, video editor and writing mentor. An out and proud member of the LGBTQ Community, Aren is a born storyteller—he was the kid writing short stories in math class. Aren is the author of The Five Books Of Moses Lapinsky, a novel set in 1930’s Toronto, which won the One Book One Vancouver Prize, was a Toronto Book Award Finalist and was named One of the Top Ten Books about Toronto by the Toronto Star.

Candie Tanaka is a multiracial trans writer, artist and librarian challenging the binaries continually reconstructed between self and other while exploring archive and memory in a socio-political context. Their first YA book, Baby Drag Queen was shortlisted for the City of Vancouver Book Award. They’ve also published work in Resonance: Essays on the Craft of Life and Writing with Anvil Press and This Will Only Take A Minute: Canadian Flash Fiction with Guernica Editions.

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*Light refreshments and bannock will be served!

In partnership with Word Vancouver and the SFU Department of English.

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***To locate the Alice MacKay Room on the lower level, take the stairs before you reach the main entrance and it will be the room right at the bottom of the stairs. Elevator access is also available and is located directly across from the main entrance near the bank machine.