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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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December 16, 2020
Soundwalking Through the Pandemic
Every year, there are a few times I think I’m free from the grip of depression. And every year, there are a few times I realize that I’m not. Years ago when I was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, ...
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June 02, 2014
A Day in the Life of a Launching Author: Then I Spot the Audience
Yesterday, I celebrated the first day of June and the first official day of my Open Book residency – hi y’all! – by appearing on the slate of a Globe and Mail/Ben McNally Books Authors' Brunch event ...
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January 17, 2018
Jaime Lee Mann's Writing Nook: "Writing is More About Mental Space than Physical Space"
The Legend of Rhyme series by Jaime Lee Mann Blood and Stars (Blue Moon Publishing) is exactly the kind of children's fantasy series we all longed for as kids. Packed with fairies, witches, ogres, and ...
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October 29, 2023
Reading the Veil
When it’s going well, writing feels like magic. You sit in front of a blank page, and against all expectation, open a portal to new people, scenarios, settings, and ideas. Through some synthesis of ...
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March 12, 2020
On Family Secrets
Why does my writing tend to focus on family secrets? In particular, on children trying to unearth secrets tied to their parents’ pasts? I’m often asked these questions during interviews. The first ...
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July 02, 2024
Promoting Your Book Online: Avoiding Burnout
Does anyone else remember back in the mists of time when you didn’t know your favourite writer had a book coming out until you saw it on the shelf? You may have attended a reading or read an interview ...
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May 25, 2021
The Many Faces of Writer's Block
Despite the fact that I don’t really believe in it, the words Writers’ Block always conjure up a dark, amorphous cloud in my mind. Which is ironic, because the part I don’t believe is that there’s ...
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December 09, 2022
On Orpheus & Eurydice, or the Inevitability of Timing
I’ve become superstitious about my novel. I believe that if I look back at the previous pages, I will not be able to write – not even one word to move it forward. After I finish writing for the day, ...
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October 04, 2016
Reconciling a Double Life: Law and Literature
I’m very happy to be spending the month of October as Writer in Residence at Open Book. I’m also happy that it’s a virtual residency as I was able to skip town on the very first day to attend a ...