Ontario book news, interviews and more

Acknowledging Fear in Writing

“Don’t tell us what to believe, what to fear. Show us belief’s wide skirt and the stitch that unravels fear’s caul.” – Toni Morrison Fear.Fear of the first draft, fear of spiders, fear of ...

On Photography

Writing, for me, often begins with an image. By this, I mean not an imaginary image that appears in the mind’s eye, but rather an actual photograph I stumble across in my daily life. A certain picture ...

Blogpost #8: TRENDING CURRENTLY: Top 8 Diverse Middle Grade and Young Adult Themes I’ve Observed

Dear Reader:This is my final post as the February 2020 Open Book Writer In Residence. (And, did you catch that this is the 8th blogpost and I am listing 8 middle grade and young adult themes?  Didn’t ...

Making Time: How Ondaatje Taught Me To Show Up For Myself, or Plotting vs. Pantsing

There are some books whose images stay with us long after we’ve read them, far more than the stories or the characters themselves. An image that has stayed with me over the years is from The English ...

The Entitled Interview: March 2020 Writer-in-Residence Leslie Shimotakahara Finds Inspiration Through Family

Reading Toronto-based author Leslie Shimotakahara, you get the sense that family, and history, have always been important to her work.Her first book, the Canada-Japan Literary Prize-winning The Reading ...

BIPOC of Publishing in Canada Has Created a Mentorship Program

For people of colour, breaking into the world of publishing can be challenging. BIPOC of Publishing in Canada, a group dedicated to promoting inclusivity in the industry, has set out to alleviate some ...

Blogpost #7: DOES WRITING KID’S BOOKS MAKE CENT$? Part 2 Financing your Writing

    Since 2015, I have been a published author of books for young people and present my stories to hundreds of children each year.  Some of the most common questions I am asked by this audience are ...

My Story: Prudence Emery On Writing Her Memoir, Making New Discoveries, and Looking Back

Saying Prudence Emery has had a unique ride through life would be an understatement. Born in Nanaimo, British Columbia, she left behind her family and their expectations to attend art school in London, ...

A Love Letter to Scarborough Writers

To busy writers, penning poems on the back of receipts, scribbling into notebooks on Line 3 — this is for you.I rarely find time to sit down and write anymore. Instead, I create fragments wherever I ...

Read an Excerpt From Paddy Scott's Darkly Funny Debut 'The Union of Smokers'

Kaspar Pine, the irreverent and foul-mouthed twelve year-old protagonist of Paddy Scott's debut novel The Union of Smokers (Invisible Publishing), tells you right away that he is going to die today. What ...