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Algonkian Writer Conferences – Pitching at Niagara
Last October I attended the Niagara event sponsored by the Algonkian Writer Conferences with my novel , Weather Vane, in my hot little hand, ready to knock the agents and editors dead. It was ready. It...
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Sunshine Radio Interview
On Monday, October 29th, I was interviewed on Sunshine 89.1 by Jim Birchard in regards to the Writers’ Community of Simcoe County. He was gracious and calm, set me instantly at ease and asked a wide...
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The Writing Life – lessons in slowing down
Writers love to read about writing. It makes us feel not quite so alone. The thing is, reading about writing doesn’t get the book written. Writing the book gets the book written. And writing the book...
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Prompts – a conversation with god
At Sanctuary, that precious day of writing with other writers, we were given pieces of paper with words and phrases, and instructed to use them just as they were and fashion them into a dialogue. The...
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The Next Big Thing
A couple of weeks ago I received an email from my friend Lauren Carter, asking me if I’d like to carry on a “blog tour.” She wrote: “I was just tagged in an ongoing blog tour by Aga Maksimowska to do a...
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Bumps and Potholes on the Writing Road
Sitting on the tarmac at Pearson Airport on Thursday afternoon waiting for all the rerouted planes to dock and disgorge their occupants, I turned on my iPad to read the emails I couldn’t read in Cuba,...
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The Next Big Thing 2
Okay, I didn’t do it right. I was supposed to add the names of those who would carry on this blog chain of novels in progress, and I didn’t. Because no one answered my email requesting their posts....
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Why is always about sex?
My sixteen-year-old son recently consoled me as I wept over the rejection I received from the Banff School’s Writing Studio’s 5 week residency course. He told me that I would make it, that my writing...
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External Validation – when is it enough?
I have just returned from two weeks of divine restoration on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, which included but was not restricted to, languid morning yoga practice, guided on-the-spot writing, a salt...
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Censorship, Triggers and POV Redux
I loathe confrontation. In fact, I can turn into a blithering idiot when challenged to explain myself, even when secure and grounded in the topic. The problem is that I’m no shrinking violet. Last year...
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The Gift of Boring Boozing Boys
Maybe I’m intolerant. Maybe I’m a snob. Understand, I like a glass of wine or beer from time to time; occasionally, on particularly festive occasions, I like a Margarita. Two, even. And don’t get me...
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My bookstore fantasy
Reblogged from Drinking Tips for Teens: It will be a combination used bookstore and café. I will run the bookstore and my wife will run the café. That way we will both become equally wealthy. We’ll...
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How Not to Fail (Fail First)
In 1982 or thereabouts, Cross-Canada Writers’ Quarterly accepted my short story, Oblique Angles for publication, with a note that went something like this: …although there are many better written...
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How Story is Felt
Yesterday I attended the Ontario Writers’ Conference in Ajax Ontario. It was a heart-breakingly beautiful sunny day, and I wondered aloud if I really needed another writers’ conference. I’d already...
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THE BEGINNING AND THE END – when will it be done?
I’ve listened to agents, editors, teachers and friends advise, guide, support and suggest ways to approach and improve my novel. I’ve been down dirt paths, super highways, and regular old two-lane...
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Some Version of the Truth
Recently I was speaking to Barbara Turner-Vesselago, author of Writing without a Parachute – The Art of Freefall and writing teacher extraordinaire, about the requirements and cost of writing memoir....
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DANCING THROUGH THE PAIN or QUITTING WHEN IT HURTS
When I was twenty-one I set out to become a dancer. For six months I’d been drinking in Europe – its museums, galleries, cafes and its men – but I was still thirsty. I’d been stretching my legs on...
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The Best Rejection Ever!
Thank you for sending “Conception” to PRISM international. We apologize for the delay in our reply. We only held onto your piece for so long because we considered it so strongly for publication....
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HOW I DO THINGS
There is ongoing dialogue regarding the relative efficacy of academic versus more experiential approaches to developing the creative process. And I would like to go on record as one who is bursting...
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Exploding head. Embodiment. Gratitude. Story.
Warning: this blog post is a bit of a ramble. It’s been a while since I posted, so many of the notions bouncing around in my head have found their place here, however tangentially connected. There are...
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