jess singh, portfolioyvr, author, word on the street, vancouver, toronto, helen siwak, yvr, entrepreneur, business

Author Jess Singh Goes National with Toronto ‘Word on the Street’ Invitation

When Portfolio.YVR last featured Jess Singh in December 2025, the Vancouver author had just released her third novel, There Is No You and I, and was carrying it across a string of launches in India. Now, Singh is preparing for her first Canadian book festival, an invitation to Toronto’s Word on the Street.

Singh will sign copies of There Is No You and I during the festival. The book follows Kavya, a young woman whose life is upended by a chance encounter, in a story that swings between Mumbai and New York City. It is familiar territory for Singh’s fans, who have followed her voice since her 2022 debut, All That She Wanted.

jess singh, portfolioyvr, author, word on the street, vancouver, toronto, helen siwak, yvr, entrepreneur, business

A Vancouver Story, Told Everywhere Else First

Singh’s biggest launches so far have happened almost entirely outside Canada. Her second novel, I Never Loved You, came out with Notion Press in 2023, and the publisher’s reach carried her into a string of India-based events, including launches across Kashmir, Bangalore, Delhi, Ahmedabad, and Shimla.

Toronto marks the first time that momentum is circling back home, on one of the country’s largest literary stages.

Why Vancouver Still Matters to the Work

Singh credits the city’s neighbourhoods and communities with shaping both her characters and her voice. “Creating characters who take readers on a journey that is joyous, humorous, and, many times, deeply dramatic is what excites me most about writing in the South Asian rom-com space, with a modern twist,” she said. “It matters to me to share pieces of my own lived experience, and the experiences of the people I have met along the way who inspire these characters. Voices like mine remain underrepresented in Canadian romance fiction, and their stories deserve to be told with humour, honesty, and heart.”

Helen Siwak of EcoLuxLuv Communications & Marketing, who has worked with Singh since her novel’s launch, sees the invitation as part of a longer arc for BC-based writers looking past the province’s borders. “Working with BC-based creatives and giving them the tools they need to grow locally, across Canada, and to reach an appreciative audience around the world is key to Jess’s success,” Siwak said. “Her voice deserves a national and international platform, and this appearance at Word on the Street is an important step in that ongoing growth.”

Three Books, One Growing Audience

Three novels in a short span is a demanding clip for any author, let alone one building an audience across two continents, and Singh is already well into a fourth. The Toronto appearance reads less like a debut and more like a milestone in a career built steadily over time.

Canada’s South Asian diaspora numbers well over three million, putting Singh in front of a readership that has not had many chances to see her in person. For a writer whose work centres on representation, that is the point.

Details on the full Word on the Street lineup and schedule are available at toronto.thewordonthestreet.ca.

Author Profile

Helen Siwak, Collaborator: This story is created in collaboration between Helen Siwak and the featured subject. As the founder and publisher of Portfolio.YVR Business & Entrepreneurs Magazine, Helen works closely with entrepreneurs to share their paths of innovation, resilience, and growth. Each story in this series is co-developed through interviews and first-person insights, blending authentic voices with Helen’s editorial expertise to highlight the remarkable individuals shaping British Columbia’s business landscape.