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November 25, 2020
Read an Excerpt from Will Toffan's Watching the Devil Dance, a Fascinating True Crime Story of Canada's First Spree Killer
For younger Canadians, the name Matthew Charles Lamb may not ring a bell. But those who know it will never forget the man who was dubbed Canada's first spree killer after a bizarre and unprovoked shooting ...
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June 26, 2021
What Makes a Good Writing Routine?
As I mentioned in a previous post, I'm fascinated by other people's writing routines. Not only am I just a somewhat nosy person (as many writers are, I imagine), but I don't have much in the way of a ...
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April 05, 2025
Every Ingredient in Our Ancestors' Kitchen by Willie Poll Thrums With Meaning and Tradition
Métis activist and storyteller Willie Poll has deep connections to her community and traditions, all of which is on full display in a beautiful new picture book from the author. Poll's poetic voice ...
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October 18, 2018
My friend Richard
In my last post I talked about some of the influential writers and books that inspired me to seriously pursue my own creative writing. My list is much longer than that, and there are many more storytellers ...
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January 12, 2017
levarT emiT
Picture it: 1999. The last months of the last year of an infernal century. David Fiore had completed requirements for his History degree. He took our Romantic Literature class for fun. A gumshoe intellectual, ...
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July 13, 2021
Read an Excerpt from Rob Benvie's Darkly Brilliant New Novel, Bleeding Light
Writer and musician Rob Benvie's newest book, Bleeding Light (Invisible Publishing) defies easy description. It follows four people, seemingly unconnected to one another, through wild journeys both physical ...
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October 28, 2013
A Response to Ann Elizabeth Carson's We All Become Stories, Blue Denim Press, 2013
Ann Elizabeth Carson’s WE ALL BECOME STORIES is a generous book. This recounting of journeys the author has made with a baker’s dozen of elders (she makes the thirteenth) is an intimate exploration ...
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January 31, 2014
On Writing, with Dane Swan
By Open Book and Dane SwanDane Swan is Open Book's February 2014 Writer in Residence. In his On Writing interview, he tells us about his latest book, Bending the Continuum, his next project and his ideal ...
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July 03, 2017
canada 150: the indian act and neechie hustle
First of all, I would like to say that I am honoured to be the writer in residence for Open Book this month. I love the idea of a digital residency and the flexibility that this affords to a writer like ...
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September 13, 2023
Susan Vande Griek on How the Reemergence of Urban Animals Around the World Inspired Her New Picture Book
Anyone who has ever seen a deer, fox, or other skittish wildlife knows that your best bet to catch a glimpse is to stay still and quiet – to pretend, in essence, that you're not there. In The Animals ...