Library author in residence Lori Hahnel launches short story collection

Calgary Central Library writer-in-residence Lori Hahnel is launching her new short story collection Vermin Thursday night

Calgary — Do you have an idea for a book or a short story and a dream to have it published?

Calgary Central Library resident author Lori Hahnel will be hosting a seminar at the Central Library downtown, where she’ll read and evaluate a portion of your manuscript or idea for free along with providing a one-on-one consutation- virtually - for the next 10 weeks.

As the library's Author-in-Residence, Hahnel’s job will be reading manuscripts and holding consultations with writers in the Calgary community. She's looking forward to learning some of our city's stories.

“People are looking for advice about where to publish their work, find resources on how to study writing or how to connect with other writers.” said Hahnel, in an interview with CTV News.

Hahnel added that she’ll also be presenting writing programs based on different writing topics such as “free fall writing”, “writing from life” and “navigating the seas of publishing” where she’ll show some of the different ways on how people can publish their work.

Hahnel says the top two questions that future writers always ask are remarkably consistent. One is “How do I find the time to write? and (the other is) how do I get my work published?” she said.

“Nowadays there are so many options for publishing work," she added. "It’s a little tricky for people to know what’s the right thing for them.”

Hahnel hopes that when people meet with her that they have a better sense and direction on how they can improve their work.

“No matter what level you’re writing at, there’s always room for improvement.” said Hahnel.  “I hope they come away feeling encouraged and feeling like they got some ideas of where they can go with their work, once we’re done with the consult.”

“Everyone has a story in them," she said. "For some of us it’s easier to tell our story than it is for others. For some people, their story is close to the surface. For other people you have to dig a little bit.”

Hahnel is considered to be a literary leader in Calgary’s writing community and has published  two novels, Love Minus Zero and After You’ve Gone, and some short works. Her short stories has been published in journals in North America, Australia, and the United Kingdom.

She’ll be launching her new book of short stories Vermin Thursday night.

Hahnel will be available for consultations at the Central Library on Mondays between 5-8 pm, Thursdays between 12:30-3:30 pm and Sundays between 12:30-4:30 pm.

To book a time slot click here.

If you have a manuscript or have any questions for Hahnel you can e-mail her at [e-mail]