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December 29, 2023
When Life Influences Form
What’s the best form for your next writing project? Often, this is decided by the sort of thing you want to write. Your sprawling epic fantasy idea likely won’t work as a short story, for example. ...
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May 08, 2020
When My Mind is Frenzied, I Don’t Read—I Listen
Being read to is a luxury.Growing up, there were no bedtime stories in my household, at least none that I can remember. There were true stories traded around dinner tables of course, but there was none ...
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November 30, 2020
When old ways, thoughts, beliefs, and people no longer serve you
“Every moment is a fresh beginning.” —T.S. EliotLately I have been thinking about the act of releasing the things in my life that no longer serve me. When I revise a piece of writing, the first ...
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June 07, 2023
When Readers Write
Whenever I do a book event, people tell me things. Sometimes they tell me a bit about themselves or their families. At other times, they disclose traumatic experiences. I respond by holding the moment, ...
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June 05, 2021
When Research Influences Life
In my novel The Quiet is Loud, tarot cards form an integral part of the life of the novel's main character Freya Tanangco, a tarot reader. They serve as a career choice and legitimate outlet for her prophetic ...
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September 01, 2020
When Your Father is Your Biggest Fan
I don’t believe that any father was more proud of having a son for a writer than my own dad. Whenever I met somebody who knew him—it might be a waiter in a restaurant—the person would say, “Oh, ...
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January 03, 2017
Where Are the Classmates Now?
I met Rebecca Rosenblum in the Advanced Fiction Writing class during my undergrad in Creative Writing - at Concordia University, in Montreal. But Rebecca did not go to Concordia - she went to McGill - ...
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November 07, 2019
Where Are You Now? Author Tyler Clark Burke on Working in Publishing and How to Write a Great Book for Kids
"Where does it go?" is one of the most common questions parents are asked by their little ones. Early on, children are fascinated by the disappearance of natural things in their world. Snow covers everything, ...
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November 07, 2019
Where Ideas Begin
Questions every writer is familiar with: “Where did you get the idea?” or “How did you decide what to write about?”How did Denis Johnson decide to make a character obsessed with Elvis Presley’s ...
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February 17, 2022
Where the magic happens...sorta? Kinda? (Sometimes?)
Warning: I fully embrace my nerd status in this one. If I remember correctly there's a Latin term for this...yup, found it:Hey there, Open Book reader. Welcome back! Hope you've been having an awesome ...