Writing Difficult Family Stories with Wiley Wei-Chiun Ho

About this event

Adults. Join memoir writer Wiley Wei-Chiun Ho for a writing workshop that invites attendees to explore their own complex lived experiences, especially the difficult moments in every family, and write together to optional prompts. Wiley will share how she muddled through the many drafts of her memoir that took her eight years to finish, including research and interview tips for broaching delicate subjects with family members. She will cover how to write nuanced stories with natural voices and full characters that avoid stereotyping, as well as discuss the fine line between what's your story to tell and what isn't. She will guide attendees into a generative writing period with optional prompts. Come prepared to write with your favourite implements (pen and paper or laptop). Optional: bring a photograph or memento that you wish to write about. This workshop is suitable for writers of all levels and those looking to draft a new scene or story, rather than working on revision or editing. This class is supported by the Canadian Poetry Fund, a local donor-advised fund which fosters accessible public education outreach for poetry and other forms of creative writing -- Wiley Wei-Chiun Ho is a Taiwanese Canadian writer, whose award-winning short stories and personal essays have been published in literary journals, magazines, and anthologies. Her first book The Astronaut Children of Dunbar Street (Douglas & McIntyre) debuted on the BC Bestsellers List in April 2026 where it still remains, and is a summer read recommendation by CBC News. A strong champion of writing communities, Wiley founded the Diasporic Writers Salon and is a member of the Asian Canadian Writers’ Workshop, the Federation of BC Writers, and the North Shore Writers’ Association, where she regularly organizes and hosts community reading events and workshops.