The Fat Oyster Story Festival is back again this year on Saturday, Oct. 5.

The festival, which is for teen and kid readers, will be held at the Fanny Bay Community Hall. This year, three accomplished, award-winning authors will be present, showing their work in a fun, interactive way. Four sessions with the authors will be held from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Starting at 11 a.m., author Carla Maxmuwidzumga Voyageur will be reading from her picture book The Princess and the Pants. The book is a contemporary Indigenous take on a well-loved fairy tale. In this story, a young Dzawada瘫始enux瘫w princess grows up to be a curious student, an influential leader, and a mother. She is a humble person and doesn鈥檛 speak of her royalty to her children.

Maxmuwidzumga Voyageur is of Musgamagw Dzawada鈥檈nuxw and Nisga鈥檃 ancestry. Maxmuwidzumga is the traditional name that bestowed upon her, roughly translated to 鈥渓eaves a part of herself wherever she goes 鈥� her essence鈥� from the Kwakwala language. She was raised immersed in the richness of the Kwakwaka鈥檞akw language, culture, values and traditions. She lives on the traditional unceded territory of the K鈥檕moks and Pentlatch tribes and is a Kwakwala instructor at the North Island College. The Princess and the Pants is her first book.

After a break for lunch, events continue with Frances Backhouse holding a talk called Bear Buddies, Beaver Boosters and Owl Allies: How To Be a Friend to Wildlife. Backhouse's presentation will look at how life can be hard for many animals, and how people can often be their biggest problem. However, Backhouse will show how people can "turn things around and be a wildlife supporter."

Backhouse studied biology in university and worked as a park naturalist and biologist before becoming an environmental journalist and award-winning author of books for adults and children. Her books about wildlife for middle-graders include Beavers: Radical Rodents & Ecosystem Engineers, Grizzly Bears: Guardians of the Wilderness and Owls: Who Gives a Hoot?

The third author, Sara Cassidy, will read from her new chapter book The Secret Office, and participants will write a story together, exploring the author's best tools: their senses. That presentation will be from 2 until 3 p.m.

Cassidy has written 21 children's books, including board books, picture books and wordless books. She also writes chapter books and novels for middle-grade children and teens, which have been nominated for many awards.

The final session is a writing workshop. From 3 until 4 p.m., participants are encouraged to bring paper and pen or laptop and "be prepared to explore character and dialogue 鈥� everyone speaks differently!"

They will also learn how to captivate readers, no matter the genre.

All ages are welcome. Kids under 13 must be accompanied by an adult, and each event is drop in, by donation.