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September 27, 2018
Coming to Voice
I worked on this piece while at a residency for BIPOC writers in the fall of 2017. I did not pick it up again when I returned. While workshopping it there, I was not convinced it captured what I was trying ...
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March 23, 2020
On Road Maps
Before beginning a project, is it worthwhile to do a detailed outline? Or is it preferable just to dive in? I’ve tried both approaches. In writing my first novel, After the Bloom, I outlined extensively. ...
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April 30, 2024
Building a Writing Routine When You’re Bad at Routines
I’ve written before about my bad luck in developing a structured writing routine. I’m happy to report that in the time since I wrote that, I still haven’t developed a structured writing routine—but ...
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February 21, 2024
On Writing the Same Book Over and Over
In a 2015 webchat on The Guardian’s site, Kazuo Ishiguro was asked about his varied subject matter. He replied:“My subject matter doesn't vary so much from book to book. Just the surface does. The ...
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May 11, 2016
Posthumous Lit: How Do You Capture a Dead Author’s Voice and Intentions?
You all know the saying. It goes something like this. The only three things guaranteed in life are death, taxes, and the Toronto Maple Leafs not making the playoffs. Okay, so I tacked on the latter Leafs ...
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October 11, 2017
On Pseudoscience, Wrestling, and Finding Storytelling in the Unconventional
When I was in university I had to take a science course to complete my undergraduate degree. I decided on “Science and Pseudoscience” – mostly because the title reminded me of the sort of conspiracy ...
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July 12, 2018
"Here Might Be a Path Out of Myself" Steve McOrmond on Discovering Poetry
Steve McOrmond's Reckon (Brick Books) is his first book since the widely-praised The Good News About Armageddon was published in 2010. Reckon is worth the wait, packed with poems that balance wit ...
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February 23, 2018
Sorry Not Sorry: On Writing a Good Apology
To some extent, public apologies always are a little false. We’ve had no shortage of them recently. Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and Louis C.K. come to mind. Their statements always feel removed from ...
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November 28, 2019
What to Do When Your Story Already Exists in the World
We all know that every story has already been told and our challenge, as writers, is to come up with new, original ways to tell stories. Unfortunately, sometimes you think you’ve done just that and, ...
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June 05, 2016
Smoky Garden Songs - a playlist for writing
So much of writing is creating the right mood, the right place. Do you need absolute silence? Do you like a bustling coffee shop?Well, I asked Damian Rogers, whose recent book of poetry Dear Leader blew ...