For Angela Nolan, an American born and raised in Hawaii to a Pilipino-Spanish mother and a Chinese-Pilipino-Polynesian father, the group is a universal language. “I have learned from all of them, especially those from other countries since they have a different perspective of life. Nobody describes a flower in the same way.”

“These are stories of our city,” Lauren adds. “They are about the experiences we don’t always hear about – the lives that can be hidden from the mainstream – and having these stories written and published really does show how much they count.”

Back in the program room at the Bloor Gladstone Library, I am now writing stories in English, and I am also now confident enough to share my writing with the rest of the group. I also encourage other women to continue writing in spite of the barriers that they may face in theirs lives, especially those, like me, who came from other countries looking to start a new life in Canada.

Sister Writes helped me to start my writing journey. I now have my own blog called Spiciness in a Cold Country. My goal is to fill it with articles about women and immigrants, but I also want to create a section for fiction. Meanwhile, I am still part of Sister Writes and look forward to starting our new session that will focus on memoir writing.

Sister Writes is 100% free to its participants and runs year-round, accepting up to 15 women and trans people writers per session, on a first come first served basis. The program is presented with the support of Sistering, The Toronto Arts Council, The Ontario Arts Council, and The Toronto Public Library. For more information on how to register for Sister Writes, please visit www.sisterwrites.com

Hortencia Cruz has been a member of Sister Writes since 2011 and is also a newcomer to Canada and a journalist from México; some of her writing has been published in the Sister Writes Magazine: Roots to Branches.