What is Rebecca Fisseha, author of Daughters of Silence, up to? A whole lot. Let’s take a look:

On February 17th, it was announced that Daughters of Silence had been selected by Margaret Atwood herself to be spotlighted at this year’s GritLit Festival in Hamilton, Ontario! GritLit, Hamilton’s festival for readers and writers, is an annual literary festival that welcomes some of the biggest Canadian authors, up-and-coming authors, and local Hamilton writers together in one intimate space where attendees can “get up close and personal” with their favourite writers. This year’s festival will be from April 16th-19th, and will welcome such names as Margaret Atwood, Rebecca Fisseha, Lynn Coady, Jesse Thistle, and more.

GritLit’s spotlight series is an event where one of Canada’s most iconic authors, this year Margaret Atwood, chooses two up-and-coming novels to be singled out and placed in the “spotlight.” This year, Rebecca Fisseha’s Daughter’s of Silence was chosen alongside Jesse Thistle’s From the Ashes. The two spotlighted authors will be in discussion about their respective books, the writing process, and what it is like to be an emerging author on the Canadian literary stage! Those who miss this risk getting a serious case of FOMO (feeling of missing out), so mark your calendars.

After this incredible announcement, the Toronto Star wrote on February 20th, “Where Atwood Goes, Headlines Follow.” The Toronto Star expects great things to come from Fisseha, and we at Goose Lane expect the same. Rebecca is a rising star for sure.

The Star followed their announcement on the 21st with an article for Black History Month, where Fisseha shared book recommendations in honour of the month, alongside other influential and knowledgeable authors! I don’t know about you, but I’ll be taking her advice.

Although February is coming to a close, that does not mean that we should stop engaging with and honouring authors of colour. On February 4th, CBC shared “Six Canadian Writers of Black Heritage to watch in 2020,” and that list still stands as we enter into March.

Some ways you can continue to engage with Fisseha and her work, as well as other incredible Canadian authors, are by attending some of these other upcoming events:

On February 27th, Fisseha will be in conversation with Kaie Kellough on diaspora and coming-of-age writing.

Fisseha will be participating in this year’s Growing Room Festival from March 11th-15th. Growing Room is Room Magazine’s annual literary festival, held in Vancouver, BC. Room is committed to deepening our learning about inclusion and accessibility, both within the systemic structures of the festival and the creative curation. Growing Room is a celebration, a protest, a reflection, a re-visioning, a gathering, a question, and a dream.

Where will Rebecca be at this festival, you ask? She will be participating in a panel titled: “The Heart of It: A Reading About Family” on March 14th, and again at “Dipping Into Diaspora” on March 15th! Growing Room Festival is sure to host plenty of engaging and important discussions that a literary nerd (like you and I) will not want to miss out on.

Finally, Fisseha will be a part of Incite, Vancouver Writers Festival’s reading series! This event is free and open to the public, AND books will be available for purchase! How could you say no? Incite is a free reading series put on by the festival and public library every Wednesday from January to May! They are intimate gatherings for authors and readers alike to converse and enjoy literature together. The reading series provides a free and accessible way for folks to engage with writers and their ideas. Fisseha will be there on March 18th at 7:30 p.m.

That takes us to the end of April. Mark your calendars, and we’ll see you there!