Draft is back! Join us for the Seeds festival, February 21 & 22, 2026
Whether travelling, germinating or lying dormant, seeds embody possibility. On the weekend of February 21-22, 2026, the Draft Reading Series will invite writers to meditate on the metaphorical and physical seeds that animate their lives. We will host almost fifty emerging and established writers, sharing new and unpublished work on the theme of Seeds. Scroll down to the bottom of this message for a full list and schedule.
DATES AND TIMES
Saturday, February 21: 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on ZOOM
Sunday, February 22 : 11 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. IN PERSON: St. Matthew Clubhouse, 450 Broadview, Toronto.
WHO’S READING?
See the list below.
Watch this space for more information, and/or register for the festival to receive updates.
HOW DO I REGISTER?
Registration for the festival is closed. Please email us to join a waiting list. Attendance is free!
OTHER EXCITING ACTIVITIES THAT WEEKEND
The festival will include scheduled readings as well as “cross-pollination” sessions for community building. Instead of offering advice on how to fit into a crowded marketplace, we invite participants to find ways of making more space, for themselves and each other. Presenters and audience members are welcome to participate. We will host breakout rooms in our Zoom sessions and designate an area of the St. Matthew’s clubhouse venue for people to gather if they are looking for members of a writing group. Our mix-and-mingle sessions will be a good place to meet collaborators to set up publishing ventures, help each other with promotion, or just share ideas and brainstorm. We look forward to spreading the seeds of community. The sessions are listed in the schedule.
At our live session on Sunday, we will hold a Town Hall moderated by Bänoo Zan on censorship of political writing. She has also created a list of good sources of information regarding Iran.
EXCITING COLLABORATION
We are honoured this year to be joined by five fellows from the INKspire Writer Fellowship Program. It’s a free, year-long program designed to support and develop emerging women writers (aged 18-24). This program offers a structured opportunity to gain hands-on publishing experience, build a professional writing portfolio, and engage with Toronto’s literary community through mentorship, workshops, and collaborative projects.
VENUE AND ACCESS
We’ll be hosting the live festival day at St. Matthew’s Clubhouse, the home of East End Arts. We have been collaborating for years with this wonderful organization, which hosts a variety of programs serving east Toronto communities. The facility includes an access ramp, power doors and one accessible washroom. The venue is located on the edge of a park, allowing time out in nature for anyone who needs a break from the stimulation of the event. The venue is bright, and we have a good sound system. Celiac-safe, nut and shellfish options will be available for lunch, as well as vegan and vegetarian options. No pork will be served.
QUESTIONS?
Please contact us: draftreadings at gmail
SCHEDULE
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 21 ON ZOOM
11 to 12:30
Introductory remarks
READINGS BY
Sonja Boon
Ellen Chang-Richardson
Carol Duncan
MA|DE
Rebecca Rosenblum
Niloufar-Lily Soltani
Gordon Taylor
H. Nigel Thomas
Fereshteh Molavi
1:00 to 2:00
Community-building session #1
— Finding people to join a writing group
— Mix and mingle
2:30 to 4 p.m.
READINGS BY
Christopher Canniff
Arundhati Dhara
Kyraan Gabourel
Nora Gold
Cornelia Hoogland
Yolande House
Marcia Johnson
Diana Manole
Christine Mazumdar
Saeideh Mohajer
Pamela Mordecai
Veronique Synnott
4:30 to 5:30
— Finding people to join a writing group
— Mix and mingle
SUNDAY FEBRUARY 22 IN PERSON
11 to 12 p.m.
Opening Remarks
READINGS BY INKSPIRE FELLOWS
Hana Greenberg
Samantha Ti
Yulia Gulyaeva
Sandini Kodikara
Angela Zhang
Vivian Zhi
12:00 to 1:00 p.m.
Lunch
1:00 to 2:00 p.m.
— Finding people to join a writing group
— Mix and mingle
2:00 to 3:30
READINGS BY
Hannah Brown
Jacquie Buncel
Kern Carter
Hardish K. Dhaliwal
Puneet Dutt
Salma Hussain
Hannah Lee
Brooke Lockyer
Karen Mulhallen
Priya Ramsingh
3:30 to 4:30
Bänoo Zan
Reading segues into Community-building session #4
This will be a Town-Hall style discussion. You are invited to bring your questions, concerns and personal stories regarding censorship of political writing. You’re also welcome to be there just to listen and learn.
4:30 to 6:00
READINGS BY
Leah Bobet
Terri Favro and Ron Edding
Carole Giangrande
Roger Greenwald
Judy Holm
Lesley Krueger
Maria Meindl
Noreen Shanahan
Chyx Xyng