Tag Archives: Our Past Matters

{Kevin Allen from the Calgary Gay History Project is delighted to participate in this event—please join us! At the same time, you can check out the newly installed gay history artifact at Shelf Life Books!}

Industry Night #8: Writing Calgary: Local Interest Literature

Thursday, Jul 24th, 2025 at 7:00 PM

Join Shelf Life Books for Industry Night #8, our series of panel discussions on writing, publishing, and all things books! Each event will feature several panellists and an expert moderator/host.

The theme for Industry Night #8 is Writing Calgary: Local Interest Literature. The panellists will be Charles Agopsowicz, Kevin Allen, Lori Beattie, and Dale Leckie. The moderator will be Jim Ellis. 

In this event, our panel will discuss the planning, writing, and publishing that goes into these local landscape books, and share these exploration opportunities that exist in our city and surrounding areas. Whether you have an interest in the process of writing these books or just want to know more about our city and activities to do, either way, this event is for you. These authors will walk you through the process of writing, publishing and connecting with the community through local interest literature. The information shared will allow you to get out there and explore with newfound awareness.

ABOUT THE PRESENTERS

Charles Agopsowicz | withthesetwohands is a Graphic Designer, Illustrator and Comic/Zine Creator, Musician, and Twitch Streamer in Calgary / Mohkinstsis Treaty 7 whose comix and zines focus mainly on Canadian history, labour history, challenging Canadian identity, and reconciliation. Charles taps into Canadian history for the subject matter of much of his work. He sees Canadian history as “something not just to learn about, but to learn from”, and seeks to inspire others to learn more and reflect upon Canada’s past and what it can inform us about our present and future.

Kevin Allen is a fourth-generation Calgarian who has been documenting and profiling queer people and events for 30+ years. Kevin started the Calgary Gay History Project in 2012 to uncover and preserve stories from Calgary’s 2SLGBTQ+ past (www.calgarygayhistory.ca). The Project has achieved national recognition and led to the award-winning documentary film: Gross Indecency: The Everett Klippert Story; and the best-selling book Our Past Matters: Stories of Gay Calgary. Additionally, Kevin works as a senior election administrator for both Elections Canada and Elections Alberta.

Lori Beattie is the face behind Fit Frog. She has been organizing and leading year-round Calgary walks, hikes, and snowshoe days since 1997. She is also the author of Calgary’s Best Walks, now in its 3rd edition, and Calgary’s Best Bike Rides, and features walking, biking, hiking, and connecting cities on foot and by bike in monthly articles in the Calgary Herald, her walk series on CBC Homestretch and many years as segment host on CTV Morning Live. She presents to groups on the pleasure of self-propelled urban exploration, being a tourist in your own city, building communities through walking, and making Calgary feel like home, one step, or pedal, at a time.

Dale Leckie, Ph.D., is a geologist who worked at the Geological Survey of Canada and after as chief geologist at Nexen, a large Canadian energy company. He has edited numerous books and published widely on the geology of western Canada. He is an adjunct professor in Earth, Energy, and Environment at the University of Calgary. Dale has written three bestsellers on the scenic geology and landscapes of Alberta. He lives in Calgary, AB.

Jim Ellis is a professor of English and Director of the Calgary Institute for the Humanities at the University of Calgary. He has edited a number of books with a Calgary focus (Calgary, City of Animals; Water Rites; Intertwined Histories: Plants in their Social Contexts) and is the editor of the Calgary Atlas Project, a series of maps of lesser-known histories of Calgary.