25 Women in STEM Wrote the Stories They Were Never Told. The Book Launch is September 12 in Calgary.

The Fires We Lit is an anthology of illustrated stories written by women in STEM who dared to question the rules they inherited... and imagine something bigger.

25 stories.

25 hand-painted illustrations, each created from the artist's own reading of the story, with no direction from the author.

25 women who walked into a workshop saying "I'm not a writer" and walked out with a finished piece of work they are proud of.

This is what happens when imagination meets courage.

Get your tickets at campfirekinship.com

September 12, 12–3pm at SCA Community Association, Calgary

Live readings. Book signings. Art showcase. Local makers. Food and drinks.

And 25 authors in the same room, ready to meet you.

In this episode:

[00:00] Introductions and the project that brought us together

[05:10] What feminist fantasy fiction is and why it exists

[10:30] How 25 women showed up saying "I'm not a writer" and left with a finished story

[16:45] Writing her story in Costa Rica... and what the ocean unlocked

[22:00] The letter-writing prompt that cracked everything open

[28:15] The themes that kept appearing across every single story

[34:40] The illustrator who read every story and painted without direction

[40:00] Why the infrastructure we live in was built without us... and what we're doing about it

[46:30] How to get the book, attend the launch, and support the project

The line that will stay with you:

"Until the lion learns to write, every story will glorify the hunter."

This book is for you if you have ever felt like someone else was writing your story.

If you have ever shrunk to fit a box that was never built for you.

If you are ready to pick up the pen.

About the creator of this project:

Gayathri Shukla is the founder of Campfire Kinship, a social enterprise that builds inclusive cultures through story-based solutions.

She holds an electrical engineering degree, an executive MBA, and spent decades in the energy sector before turning her focus to storytelling full-time.

Her first anthology, Landed: Transformative Stories of Canadian Immigrant Women, became a bestseller and was nominated twice for the Calgary Awards.

She received the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal for her community leadership.

The Fires We Lit is her second anthology... and it is her most ambitious yet.

Anshu Stephen is a human services professional, educator, community builder, and now a published author.

She will remind you that you are a writer too.

You always were.

Tickets and details: campfirekinship.com