WFNS logo ltrmark sticky 100px
WFNS logo ltrmark sticky 100px

Sparking Bookish Joy when Writing for Children (Halifax) with Lana Shupe

Discover how to infuse your stories with imagination and joyful curiosity! In this engaging workshop, award-winning author Lana Shupe explores the essential ingredients of memorable children’s books by creating wonder through voice, humour, and heart—especially heart!

Participants will discover techniques for inspiring young readers, weaving meaningful themes into age-appropriate stories and turning everyday moments into magical adventures. Whether you are just beginning your writing journey or polishing a manuscript, this workshop will provide practical tips and fresh inspiration to help you craft stories that children will treasure long after the final page is turned.

Come ready to spark your creativity and ignite bookish joy in yourself and in the hearts of your future readers.

About the instructor: Award-winning author Lana Shupe has loved books for as long as she can remember. A former teacher, bookseller and lifelong storyteller, she delights in creating stories that celebrate kindness, imagination, history and the magic to be found in everyday life. Her acclaimed picture books include The Lonely Little Lighthouse, The Hippie Pirates, The Little Church Beside the Sea, and The Book Witch, the Wee White Dog and The Little Free Library. Her first book for adults, Seasons of the Heart: A Tapestry of Stories Woven through Time, will be published in September, 2026. Lana loves to share the lessons she has learned on her author journey through workshops and writing group meet-ups. When she is not writing, Lana can be found with a good book in hand, exploring the outdoors while crafting stories in her head, or spending time with her beloved family.

Recommended experience level: All writers welcome (About recommended experience levels)

Participant cap: 30

Location: Room 301 (3rd floor), Halifax Public Library (5440 Spring Garden Rd, Halifax)
     Wheelchair-accessible venue with all-gender and gendered washrooms

Date & time: Saturday, Oct 3, 2026 (1:00pm to 1:45pm Atlantic)

Participation is free

Add $0 pre-registration to cart
Scroll to Top
WFNS logo ltrmark sticky 100px

Experience Levels

The Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia (WFNS) uses the following terms to describe writers’ experience levels:

  • New writers: those with less than two years’ creative writing experience and/or no short-form publications (e.g., short stories, personal essays, or poems in literary magazines, journals, anthologies, or chapbooks).
  • Emerging writers: those with more than two years’ creative writing experience and/or numerous short-form publications.
  • Early-career authors: those with 1 or 2 book-length publications or the equivalent in book-length and short-form publications.
  • Established authors: those with 3 or 4 book-length publications.
  • Professional authors: those with 5 or more book-length publications.

Please keep in mind that each form of creative writing (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, writing for children, writing for young adults, and others) provides you with a unique set of experiences and skills, so you might consider yourself an ‘established author’ in one form but a ‘new writer’ in another.

Occasionally, WFNS uses the phrase “emerging and established writers/authors” to mean ‘writers and authors of all experience levels.’

The “Recommended experience level” section of each workshop description refers to the above definitions. A workshop’s participants should usually have similar levels of creative writing and / or publication experience. This ensures that each participant gets value from the workshop⁠ and is presented with info, strategies, and skills that suit their experience. 

For “intensive” and “masterclass” workshops, which provide more opportunities for peer-to-peer feedback, the recommended experience level should be followed closely.

For all other workshops, the recommended experience level is just that—a recommendation—and we encourage potential participants to follow their own judgment when registering.

If uncertain about your experience level with respect to any particular workshop, please feel free to contact us at communications@writers.ns.ca