31. The Premiere of Sufferance with Thomas King - The FOLD
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Home Festival & Events The Festival of Literary Diversity Registration 31. The Premiere of Sufferance with Thomas King

31. The Premiere of Sufferance with Thomas King

Feature Event

Session Description

In his newest novel, Thomas King delves into the life of Jeremiah Camp, a.k.a. the Forecaster. Exploring the patterns that create opportunities and profits for the rich and powerful, King discusses the real life stories that shaped his incredible new book Sufferance with beloved radio personality Shelagh Rogers.

How to Register

Events scheduled for May 1-15 are available via an all-access festival pass. The festival pass costs $39 and gives you access to a virtual festival platform, which includes an auditorium hosting forty virtual events, an exhibit hall with a live chat feature for communicating with vendors, and a lounge for engaging in discussions before and after events with other festival-goers.

Passholders will have be able to compete in the space for incredible prizes and will have access to the platform and all of the recorded festival events, as well as bonus content, until May 30, 2021. If the cost of the pass is prohibitive, please fill out the Patron Pass form, and a pass will be made available.

Featured Speaker(s)

An elderly Indigenous man with glasses and greying hair sits at a computer. He wears a white button-down shirt and jeans.
Thomas King
Bio
A middle-aged white woman with long golden brown hair stands with her left arm resting on a railing. She is outside, and wears a dark cardigan with a light blue scarf.
Shelagh Rogers
Bio
An elderly Indigenous man with glasses and greying hair sits at a computer. He wears a white button-down shirt and jeans.

Thomas King

Thomas King is the author of The Inconvenient Indian, The Back of the Turtle, and Indians on Vacation. He is a retired university professor and a Companion to the Order of Canada.

A middle-aged white woman with long golden brown hair stands with her left arm resting on a railing. She is outside, and wears a dark cardigan with a light blue scarf.

Shelagh Rogers

A veteran broadcast-journalist, Shelagh Rogers is the host of The Next Chapter, the CBC Radio program devoted to writing in Canada. In 2011, she was named an Honorary Witness by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Her off-air time is dedicated to speaking about truth, respect and reconciliation and to taking the stigma out of mental illness. She has known Thomas King since 1993. She is honoured to be participating at FOLD.

The FOLD is a remarkable and wonderful event for authors and attendees alike. What an amazing community, dedicated to the vital need for inclusive stories and the critical role they play in building a better world.

Soraya Chemaly, author of Rage Becomes Her

Field Guide to the North American Teenager is my first novel and FOLD was my first Canadian literary festival. While American and Canadian culture overlap quite a bit, especially when it comes to bookshelves, Canadian literature is unique and I was very heartened by to be embraced by that community I consider home despite residing in the US. It was a homecoming I didn’t know I needed!

Ben Philippe, author of Field Guide to the North American Teenager

The Festival of Literary Diversity was an absolute joy–the organizers thought of *everything* and by anticipating authors’ needs, they freed us to focus on connecting with the audience and each other. There was no pretension, no posturing–just very genuine conversations with invested writers and engaged readers.

Zetta Elliott, author of Dragons in a Bag

I have been to a lot of writers festivals and the FOLD is definitely near the top of the list of those I want to be invited back to.

Harold Johnson, author of the memoirs Clifford and Firewater

Being part of such a clearly diverse, inclusive and mutually respectful group was thrilling and inspiring: a glimpse of a better world.

Kathy Page, author of Dear Evelyn, winner of the 2018 Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize

Wherever I go in Canada and find another writer of colour, we eventually end up gushing about how great the FOLD is, how by normalizing diversity it liberates us to talk to audiences about craft. It’s hard to imagine the literary landscape returning to a prehistoric pre-FOLD era.

Ian Williams, Author of the Giller Prize-winning novel Reproduction

FOLD is a festival experience unlike any other I’ve had. The FOLD team strive to create a space that’s welcoming and engaging, while allowing for curiosity, ingenuity and the fostering of real community – and they succeed, every year.

Alicia Elliott, author of A Mind Spread Out On The Ground

The FOLD is one of the most important literary events on this continent. By focusing on diverse voices and giving authors space to share their stories and speak their truths, it is revolutionizing the writing and storytelling realm as we know it.

Waubgeshig Rice, author of Moon Of The Crusted Snow

Being part of the FOLD community has provided me with a strong sense of belonging. Sharing diverse stories and listening to different voices that broaden my understanding of the world has impacted me as a person and motivated me as a writer.

Ann Y.K. Choi, author of Kay’s Lucky Coin Variety

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