Franzen, Martel headline Toronto writer fest

Dionne Brand, Michael Cunningham, Jonathan Franzen, Yann Martel and Fay Weldon are among the authors lined up for this year's International Festival of Authors in Toronto.

The 11-day festival, in its 31st year, released a preliminary lineup Tuesday.

American writers Cunningham, author of The Hours,Jonathan Franzen, author of The Corrections, and Paul Harding, will be joined by British writers such as Andrea Levy and DBC Pierre.

Well-known Canadian literary guestsinclude novelists David Bergen, Ian Brown, and Jane Urquhart, as well as Dany Laferrire, the Haitian-born Montrealer who has won the Prix Mdicis in France and the Blue Metropolis Literary Grand Prix.

Italy's Paolo Giordano and Claudio Magris, Chinese-American writer Anchee Min, and Israel's Eshkol Nevo will make their festival debuts.

The festival, scheduled for Oct. 20-30, also plans programs revolving around debut writers, crime writers, poetry and graphic novels.