The Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA) is Canada’s longest-running literary festival, a charitable cultural organization. It presents the finest of Canadian and international writers, artists and thinkers across the range of literary genres from fiction to non-fiction, poetry to plays, graphic novelists and illustrators. It enables audiences access and empowerment to meet, hear and learn from the finest contemporary writers and thinkers of our time.

It is an 11-day festival, now in its 41st edition, with a year-round programme of events, activities and mini-festivals, including the curation and delivery of Toronto Lit Up, a programme of book launches celebrating new and emerging writers in the city; and Lit ON Tour, a programme of events enabling audiences across Ontario to experience literary events.

Alongside the flagship Festival, TIFA partners with and delivers a range of literary highlights through the year:

• In May, with the Ontario Library Association we present the Forest of Reading Festival, a three-day celebration welcoming over 10,000 children for readings, workshops, presentations and award ceremonies in both official languages.
• Each September we present Word On The Street, the largest outdoor book and magazine festival.
• Every June TIFA partners with the Book and Periodical Council to host the annual Book Summit, a day-long industry event involving writers, publishers, librarians, educators, booksellers, literary agents, policy makers and publishing students.

Since its inception in 1974, TIFA has welcomed onto its stages over 9,500 authors from more than 100 countries, including 22 Nobel Laureates and countless other award winners in events ranging from keynote addresses, book launches, conferences, workshops, performances, special award celebrations alongside artists’ talks, readings, interviews and discussions.

TIFA has partnered with major literary awards including the Governor General’s Literary Award for English-language Fiction, the Rogers Writers Trust Award, the RBC Taylor Prize for Non-fiction, the Harbourfront Festival Prize and others. Harbourfront Centre is home to the Toronto Book Garden, a year-round representation of the Toronto Book Awards.

Alongside the public celebrations, TIFA runs an internationally renowned professional programme: the International Visitors (IV) Programme sees TIFA working with Canadian publishers to create a bespoke programme for international publishing and festival representatives to engage in Canadian literature and enable promotion overseas. The Delegate Programme brings Canadian influencers from publishing, literature, traditional and digital media, to experience the Festival and promote it to their networks.

Legally known as International Readings at Harbourfront (IRAH), the Toronto International Festival of Authors receives support from a range of public funders including Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Ontario Creates and Toronto Arts Council, and from a patron and membership programme, plus support from corporate businesses and international cultural funding programmes.

Visit Our History page to learn more about the origins of TIFA.

Word Alliance

The Toronto International Festival of Authors is proud to be a member of the Word Alliance, a collaboration of eight of the world’s finest literary festivals. The Word Alliance creates a platform for artistic partnership; further expansion of online content; professional, audience and organizational development and an international touring programme for authors.

TIFA will engage with:

• Organisations
• Industry
• Funders
• Authors
• Audiences

TIFA will represent:

• Celebration
• Representation
• Innovation
• Investigation
• Experimentation
• Transformation

TIFA will be built upon the following:

• Ownership
• Accessibility
• Visibility
• Integrity
• Creativity
• Ambition

Mandate

The Toronto International Festival of Authors is a charitable, cultural organization mandated to inspire and empower audiences and visitors with a breadth of bold, ambitious, accessible and engaging literary experiences.

Mission

The Toronto International Festival of Authors is on a mission to reflect our city to its residents, its literature to the nation and its creative ambition to the world, through the celebration of authors, books and stories.

How We Do This

• Creating literary festivals, programmes and events that bring together people of all ages (virtually or in person) to be inspired and empowered
• Generating diverse and exciting conversations across communities in the city, the nation and internationally, to foster new thinking about what it means to be living in today’s world
• Championing the best of Canadian and international publishing to audiences and industry