Why Toronto Needs an Urban Book Festival
Kya Publishing was initially established to support the books I (Stacey Marie Robinson) have written and to provide an outlet for me to share these works with others, with the hopes of seeing Kya Publishing develop into a natural home for other urban Canadian writers who have not yet established a place within the current Canadian literary market. I am a writer, and have been an “aspiring author” since adolescence. I had the ideas, the passion, and the determination, but was not always presented with an opportunity. The Toronto Urban Book Expo (TUBE) is my way of giving an opportunity to writers like myself, and including myself, so that we have a consistent venue to display our work, and share our art and voice with the greater society. The importance of being a supporting voice in the Canadian urban literary and cultural community was reinforced for me when I was invited to attend a Toronto Public Library event in celebration of Black-Canadian writers in February of 2010....