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October 21, 2020The casting call
“Each writer is born with a repertory company in his head and … as you get older, you become more skillful in casting them.” — Gore VidalThe characters who show up in my stories are truly a mixed ...
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October 07, 2020Eamon McGrath on Exploring the Pressure Cooker of Life in a Touring Band
While there's nothing quite like seeing your favourite band play live, the reality of life on the road for musicians can be complicated, stressful, and sometimes surreal. No one knows that better than ...
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September 16, 2020"I Couldn’t Type Fast Enough" Phyllis L. Humby on First Drafts and Newfoundland Magic
Phyllis L. Humby's Old Broad Road (Crossfield Publishing) is a story of the complications, joys, and risks of taking an unexpected leap of faith. When Sylvia Kramer leaves her comfortable life on the ...
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September 09, 2020"Your Past Inhabits Your Present" Emily Urquhart on Why Creativity Has No Age Limit
There's no age limit on creativity, and yet there's often an assumption that the most innovative and vital work comes from the young. Bestselling author and journalist Emily Urquhart doesn't buy that ...
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September 08, 2020Picture Book Magic
People are often surprised to learn that a picture book begins with the words. But every children’s book editor I’ve met has preferred to read a picture-book manuscript without any images. A good ...
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September 03, 2020
My One Week on the Bestseller List
On Saturday, June 21, 2014 I opened the Globe and Mail to the books section (back in the time when newspapers had book sections) and after reading the reviews I began to idly scan the bestseller list. ...
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August 13, 2020My Story: Julie Macfarlane on Standing Up, Speaking Out, and Surviving
Trigger Warning: Discussion of Sexual AbuseAuthor, activist, and law professor Julie Macfarlane has written extensively about our legal system, publishing books and articles over the course of her distinguished ...
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August 11, 2020On Returning to Pen & Paper
The last time I wrote a story in a notebook must have been back in elementary school. I can remember handwriting in the thin cahiers we were given, double spacing my writing as instructed. Because I was ...
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August 04, 2020My Attraction to Gritty Stories
Not all stories are romantic or are tied up neatly at the end. Sometimes characters do not have a redeeming quality, and sometimes their experiences have made them hard and difficult to “save.” Gritty ...
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August 03, 2020August Writer-in-Residence Alison Wearing on Family, Unexpected Inspiration, and the Art of Memoir
Say hello to Alison Wearing, our writer-in-residence for August!A critically-acclaimed author, educator, and multimedia artist, Wearing's previous book Confessions of a Fairy's Daughter earned her nominations ...
