Festival founder Alma Lee created a literary lollapalooza in Vancouver

In the aftermath of Vancouver’s wildly successful Expo 86 world’s fair, Alma Lee got the idea that the city ought to be showcasing Canadian writers in a setting where they could meet the readers who devour their words. Edinburgh, where she was born and raised, had launched its dynamic book festival in 1983.Ms. Lee, who had been the first head of the Writers’ Union of Canada in the 1970s, was friends with Canadian literature’s big names and rising stars. So, when planning her inaugural festival in 1988, she approached the Toronto novelist Timothy Findley with an invitation. “I knew if he said yes, we were on the right track,” she told the seniors’ magazine Inspired last September. He instantly agreed to appear.