Session Description
Don your favourite fit, gather your friends, and join us for a delightful high tea with romance writers Jackie Khalilieh, Elle Douglas, Joss Richard, in conversation with Lavanya Lakshmi. This charming specialty event blends lively conversation, themed trivia with fabulous prizes, and plenty of swoon-worthy moments.
This event takes place at the Rose Theatre’s Studio. It’ll be followed by a meet-and-greet with the authors in the Rotunda. Free underground parking is available at the venue (1 Theatre Lane).
$50/person. Tickets available until April 26.
Sponsored by Harlequin Canada.
Featured Speaker(s)
Jackie Khalilieh
Jackie Khalilieh (she/her) is a Palestinian Canadian writer with a penchant for Samoyeds, to-do lists and staying up too late. She is passionate about positive representation within her writing. Something More, her debut YA novel, was shortlisted for the Ruth & Sylvia Schwartz Award, as well as the Snow Willow Award, and was selected for several Best Books of 2023 lists, including the New York Public Library and Audible Canada among others. Her second novel, You Started It, was a JLG Gold Star Selection. She resides just outside Toronto, Canada, with her husband and two daughters, and Samoyed Pearl.
Elle Douglas
Elle Douglas (she/her) is the author of ten small-town romances for Harlequin and Tule Publishing. Between writing love stories and working as a high school guidance counsellor, she works exclusively in helping others find their happily-ever-afters.
Elle is a graduate of TMU’s Radio and Television Arts program, OISE at the University of Toronto, and the U of T Creative Writing program. She is an instructor in the Creative Writing program at Algonquin College.
Find her on Instagram at @elledouglaswriter
Joss Richard
Joss Richard (she/her), international bestselling author of It’s Different This Time, is an editorial & social director who’s worked at companies such as Hello Sunshine and Reese’s Book Club, The Walt Disney Company, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Netflix, and Paramount. She’s also the creator and host of Three’s Company, Too: A Rewatch Podcast and has been formally recognized with a Daytime Emmy Award. Born in Toronto, Ontario, to Filipino immigrant parents, Richard currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California.
Lavanya Lakshmi
Lavanya (she/her) was born in New Delhi, India and grew up in Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong before coming to the US for her undergrad. She has a master’s degree from NYU and lived in New York for nine years. Lavanya has worked in the publishing industry for thirteen years and is on the board of directors for the Festival of Literary Diversity. Her debut novel, LEAVE AND COME BACK, will be published in June 2026 by Doubleday Books in Canada, PRH in the US, and HarperFiction in the UK. Both she and her perpetually cold feet currently reside in Toronto.