Donate Now

Celebrating Black Canadian Authors: Sankofa's Pen 10 Year Anniversary

29sep4:00 pm4:45 pm4:00 pm - 4:45 pm Celebrating Black Canadian Authors: Sankofa's Pen 10 Year AnniversaryKern Carter, Wanda Taylor, Kevin heronJones, moderated by Nadia L. Hohn

Event Details

Founded in 2014 by Nadia L. Hohn, Sankofa’s Pen (formerly known as African-Canadian Writers for Children and Young Adults, ACWCYA) is a group that supports writers and illustrators of African or Caribbean descent and paves a way of opportunity for Black writers and illustrators for children and young adults currently living or formerly residing in Canada. Celebrating its 10th Anniversary this year, please join Nadia, Kern Carter, Wanda Taylor, and Kevin heronJones as they celebrate the incredible strides Black Canadian authors have made in the last decade, especially in the realm of Young Adult fiction!

Speakers for this event

  • Kern Carter

    Kern Carter

    Author

    KERN CARTER is the author of Boys and Girls Screaming, along with two self-published novels, Thoughts of a Fractured Soul (novella) and Beauty Scars. In addition to his writing, Kern is a filmmaker and also teaches professional writing at a local college, committed to supporting emerging writers and helping them find their voice. He lives in Toronto.

    URL https://www.kerncarter.com/

    Author

  • Kevin heronJones

    Kevin heronJones

    Author

    Kevin heronJones is storyteller. Through prose or through poetry; novel or short story. He writes and he narrates in the tradition of the ancient African griots who used stories and poetry to educate as well as entertain. A student of journalism and creative writing, he uses his arena to inspire and encourage creativity and a love of literature amongst our young people. Kevin grew up in Jane/Finch and Brampton. He has published three novels and three books of poetry. He has also been featured on six spoken word poetry albums and narrates novels and short stories through his Listen Fiction platform.

    Author

  • Nadia L. Hohn

    Nadia L. Hohn

    Moderator

    Nadia L. Hohn, B.A. (Hon.), B.Ed., M.Ed., M.F.A. is an educator, artivist, and award-winning author of several books for children including A Likkle Miss Lou and the Malaika series. Malaika’s Costume (2016) was the 2021 TD Grade One Book Giveaway. Her books Malaika, Carnival Queen (Groundwood Books) and The Antiracist Kitchen: 21 Stories (and Recipes) (Orca) were released in 2023. Nadia’s upcoming books are Getting Us to Grandma’s (Groundwood Books, 2024) and Patty Dreams (Owlkids, 2025).  She teaches elementary school and writing for children courses at post-secondary institutions.

    Moderator

  • Wanda Taylor

    Wanda Taylor

    WANDA TAYLOR is the author of fiction and non-fiction books for children and adults. She  is also a screenwriter, a journalist and a college professor. Her articles have appeared in  numerous publications including Quill & Quire and the Globe and Mail. Taylor’s middle  grade non-fiction book Birchtown and the Black Loyalists was listed as one of the top Black  history books for young readers by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre. Her recent novel  The Grover School Pledge won the Northern Lights Middle Grade Book of the Year Award in 2023.

    URL http:/www.wandataylor.squarespace.com

Books

And Then There Was Us

AuthorKern Carter

Hacking Heartbreak

AuthorKevin heronJones

I Am a Child of the Sun

AuthorKevin heronJones

Not Talking About You

AuthorKevin heronJones

The Antiracist Kitchen

AuthorNadia L. Hohn (ed.)

The Grover School Pledge

AuthorWanda Taylor