A WRITER'S LIFE

 Fantasy is fun to write and creating magic is so fabulous! Tara Gilboy is the author of Unwritten and the sequel Rewritten  published by Jolly Fish Press. Tara spills the beans about her writing journey and she has great tips on how to write fantasy. https://taragilboy.com/for-kids/https://a.co/d/1DwZMbzhttps://www.facebook.com/taragilboy.Unwritten/https://twitter.com/taramgilboy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Eembeddedtimeline%7Ctwterm%5Escreen-name%3Ataramgilboy%7Ctwcon%5Es2https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17243098.Tara_Gilboyhttps://darlingaxe.com/Support the show

So much fun with Michelle Barker! We spoke about her life as a writer, and she has an incredible amount of insight about writing and editing. I loved reading her latest novel My Long List of Impossible Things  published by  Annick Press 2019. A brilliant historical YA that asks: how do you choose between survival and doing the right thing?https://a.co/d/8gpdff7https://michellebarker.ca/https://www.facebook.com/MichelleBarkerAuthor/https://www.annickpress.com/Contributors/B/Barker-Michellehttps://www.siwc.ca/presenters/barker-michelle/Support the show

If you love BC history you'll love hearing this interview with Jennifer L.  Butler. Jennifer is the great-granddaughter of Mame and Duke Wastell, who bought and named Telegraph Cove in 1912. Butler's book Boom & Bust: The Resilient Women of Historic Telegraph Cove, published by TouchWood Edition truly is a treasure, and  a must  read. Jennifer and I spoke about some of her many fascinating jobs, life in Telegraph Cove, and so much more.   https://www.touchwoodeditions.com/https://jenniferlbutlerauthor.com/https://www.amazon.ca/Boom-Bust-Resilient-Historic-Telegraph/dp/1771512989https://www.amazon.ca/Boom-Bust-Resilient-Historic-Telegraph/dp/1771512989Support the show

I love Barbara Black's work, and we  had  such a wonderful conversation.  We spoke about music, puppets,  favourite books and Barbara read from her book Music from a Strange Planet, a striking and genre-bending debut short story collection published by Caitlin Press, 2021. https://www.barbarablack.ca/https://www.instagram.com/bblackwrites/https://www.facebook.com/barbarablackwriterhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSf6wfF1zx0-GbnPcZSK8vQhttps://caitlin-press.com/our-books/music-from-a-strange-planet/Support the show

Eufemia Fantetti,  was a delight to talk with, and what fun we had . We spoke about life in Italy, cultural differences, and mental illness.  Eufemia talked about what it was like for her to write her  second book My Father, Fortune-tellers & Me: A Memoir  released by Mother Tongue Publishing, in 2019.   https://www.eufemiafantetti.comhttps://twitter.com/eufemiafantetti?lang=enhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuSvRhwUS44&t=1shttp://www.mothertonguepublishing.com/page31/2019-new-books.htmlhttps://a.co/d/1mb3tDnhttps://a.co/d/7YibEc0https://a.co/d/6ERUvBiSupport the show

I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Holly Anna Rose.  We had a lovely conversation about writing,  she spoke about her writing process, and I was amazed at her story telling skill. I have a new favourite author! If you would like a copy of her story 'The Girl of Peace'  by donation, for the SPCA,  please email Holly's mom.  darcystottwellness@gmail.comSupport the show

Last spring I spoke  with Caroline Adderson, who is the author of five novels, and many books for young readers. We spoke about when she joined the youth program, Katimavik. I loved hearing about why, and how she became a writer. Caroline is the Program Director of the Writing Studio at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, which runs for five weeks every May. I learned about The Shoe Project, and of course hearing her read, and talk about her lates novel  A Russian Sister Published  by Harper Collins Canada, 2020 it was fascinating. Caroline is not just a gifted writer, a brilliant teacher,  but she gives back so much to the writing community.  For more information about Caroline Adderson and her latest writings, take a look at the links below.   http://www.carolineadderson.comhttp://www.carolineaddersonkids.comhttps://www.facebook.com/carolineadderson.writer/https://theshoeproject.online/people/caroline-adderson-2https://thewalrus.ca/the-procedure/https://notesandqueries.ca/short-fiction/all-our-auld-acquaintances-are-gone/https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=caroline+adderson&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIjpvRqNPA-QIVBz6tBh0KGAIaEAMYASAAEgINRPD_BwE&hvadid=208312141173&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1001898&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=b&hvrand=11538835713110648797&hvtargid=kwd-306726153980&hydadcr=23338_10093184&tag=googcana-20&ref=pd_sl_3f6jw1lrwd_bSupport the show

What a fun conversation I had with Katherine Fawcett, we talked about her favourite books growing up,  naturally we spoke about writing, we laughed a lot and I must say I was spellbound listening to one of her stories from her latest book  of short stories ' The Swan Suit' published by Douglas and McIntyre (2020)   the book is enchanting, a little wicked and truly magical. Katherine Fawcett  who is a Squamish-based author. Her latest book, The Swan Suit  published by Douglas and McIntyre (2020) was a finalist for the ReLit award. She's also the author of The Little Washer of Sorrows  published by Thisaldown Press (2015), which was shortlisted for both The Sunburst Award and the ReLit, and A Whistler Bear Story (2010). http://katherinefawcett.comhttps://www.instagram.com/katherinefawcet/?hl=enhttps://twitter.com/604fawcett?lang=enhttps://douglas-mcintyre.com/collections/katherine-fawcetthttps://www.amazon.ca/Swan-Suit-Katherine-Fawcett/dp/1771622601https://www.facebook.com/Sea-to-Sky-String-Orchestra-1712643938952484/https://pixabay.com/music/main-title-scary-house-114608/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/047802-meow-63545/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/pouring-drink-into-glasswav-14555/https://pixabay.com/music/beats-the-long-walk-theatrical-7593/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/baby-noises-60911/https://pixabay.com/music/scary-childrens-tunes-halloween-4537/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/natural-thunder-113219/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/angry-cats-65018/Support the show

This was an intriguing and fun interview, and I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was a little intimidated. Daniel Paisner is an amazing writer and a well-established Ghost writer, New York magazine once called him “the world’s most prolific ghost,”  His bio reads, Daniel Paisner is a journalist, author and podcaster, with more than 70 books to his credit, including 17 New York Times best-sellers. He is the “voice” of Serena Williams, Steve Aoki, John Kasich, Whoopi Goldberg, Denzel Washington, Ray Lewis, Ron Darling, Gilbert Gottfried, Anthony Quinn . . .  We talked a bit about his early childhood, books he grew up with, he spoke about what it is like being a ghostwriter, we did a little surfing, well not actually surfing, but  I learned  about a very wonderful organization called Surfers Healing.  We didn't get the time to talk about his podcast  As Told To, next time.  I loved hearing about his lates book Balloon Dog  published by Koehler Books. For more information about Daniel Paisner and his works, click on the links below.  Thank you, Daniel for a fun and informative interview. All good wishes. https://www.danielpaisner.com https://twitter.com/danielpaisner https://www.facebook.com/danielpaisnerbooks/Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/Balloon-Dog-Daniel-Paisner/dp/164663697X/Amazon.ca: https://www.amazon.ca/Balloon-Dog-Daniel-Paisner/dp/164663697X/ https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/balloon-dog/9781646636983-item.htmlhttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/balloon-dog-daniel-paisner/1141316478https://vol1brooklyn.com/2022/05/22/sunday-stories-bet-youre-wondring-how-i-knew/https://astoldto.libsyn.comBelow is more information about the organization Surfers Healing.💞http://www.surfershealing.org  Support the show

Heige's writing is influenced by the stories of her parents who grew up in Nazi Germany, and who at the end of the war, found themselves in East Germany. They escaped with their first two children to West Berlin in 1961, and Heige was born in Euskirchen West Germany on November 11, 1964. Ten years later the family immigrated to Vancouver, Canada, where they lived at the Sylvia Hotel for the first few months.In 1983 Heige's father was murdered in Texas. It was her desire to know his stories, and to understand him, that inspired her first novel. Heige spent 10 years researching and writing Secrets in the Shadows published by Ronsdale Press 2019.She holds a creative writing certificate fromThe Writers’ Studio of Simon Fraser University and a Liberal Arts for 55+ Certificate from Simon Fraser University.​Heige is working on her next novel, and she is the host of the podcast A Writer's Life. www.awriterslife.co She lives on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEGLvOvqohYhttps://bcparks.ca/explore/parkpgs/stein_val/https://twitter.com/HeigeBoehmhttps://www.heigeboehm.cahttps://www.instagram.com/awriterslife.co/https://www.facebook.com/HeigeBoehmauthorhttp://ronsdalepress.com/authors/boehm-heige-s/https://www.amazon.ca/Secrets-Shadows-Heige-S-Boehm/dp/1553805720https://pixabay.com/music/https://pixabay.com/music/traditional-jazz-restaurant-music-110483/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/bushmovement-6986/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/rustling-leaves-6875/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/waterstream-small-30360/https://pixabay.com/sound-effects music=6875Support the show

Crystal D. Mayo is a Native New Yorker, an actress and storyteller. Her repertoire of writing spans from memoirs and poetry to children’s literature. Her literary contributions have been published in the Bronx Memoir Project Volumes 3, 4, and 5 III, IV and V. She most recently performed one of her memoirs entitled, "Teaching Me A Lesson" at the Caveat theater in NYC with the Generation Women ensemble. Additional anthologies she is a contributor to, are, The African Voices tribute to (en·tuh·zaa·kee shaang·gay ) Ntozake Shange  and Our Voices Our Stories, an anthology of Writings Advancing, Celebrating, Embracing and Empowering Girls and Women of Color through the National Girls and Women of Council Inc. Crystal’s latest memoir, Wicked Blues is featured in the Connecticut Literary Anthology 2021. Crystal holds a Masters in elementary education and is the founder and artistic director of My Daughter My Legacy. This entrepreneur’s mission statement is to empower youth to discover their voice and vision through literacy and the arts. She teaches students how to write and perform spoken word in addition to creating collaborative performance pieces.When Crystal is not writing she serves as a mentor for the New York based organization, Girls Write Now, and can be seen performing her latest spoken word and writing prompts on the virtual mic stage of the NYC Writers Coalition. https://crystalmayoinfo.wordpress.comhttps://www.instagram.com/my_daughter_my_legacy/?hl=enhttps://fabulouslyfiftywomenofcolor.com/tag/crystal-d-mayo/Music byhttps://pixabay.com/music/https://pixabay.com/music/traditional-jazz-restaurant-music-110483/Support the show

Heige's writing is influenced by the stories of her parents who grew up in Nazi Germany, and who at the end of the war, found themselves in East Germany. They escaped with their first two children to West Berlin in 1961, and Heige was born in Euskirchen West Germany on November 11, 1964. Ten years later the family immigrated to Vancouver, Canada, where they lived at the Sylvia Hotel for the first few months.In 1983 Heige's father was murdered in Texas. It was her desire to know his stories, and to understand him, that inspired her first novel. Heige spent 10 years researching and writing Secrets in the Shadows published by Ronsdale Press 2019.She holds a creative writing certificate fromThe Writers’ Studio of Simon Fraser University and a Liberal Arts for 55+ Certificate from Simon Fraser University.​Heige is working on her next novel, and she is the host of the podcast A Writer's Life. www.awriterslife.co She lives on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia. https://twitter.com/HeigeBoehmhttps://www.heigeboehm.cahttps://www.instagram.com/awriterslife.co/https://www.facebook.com/HeigeBoehmauthorhttp://ronsdalepress.com/authors/boehm-heige-s/https://www.amazon.ca/Secrets-Shadows-Heige-S-Boehm/dp/1553805720https://pixabay.com/music/https://pixabay.com/music/traditional-jazz-restaurant-music-110483/Support the show

Bonnie Nish,   is  the Executive Director of Word Vancouver and Pandora’s Collective Outreach Society. Bonnie has a Masters in Arts Education from Simon Fraser University and a Ph.D. in Language and Literacy Education from UBC. Bonnie’s research interest is focused on how those recovering from trauma, specifically Mild Traumatic Brain Injuries (MTBI), are affected by the kind of care they receive in terms of recovery using poetic inquiry and life writing.  Bonnie has been widely published worldwide in such places as The Ottawa Arts Review, The Danforth Review, Haunted Waters Press, Illness Crisis & Loss Journal Volume 24 and The Blue Print Review.Bonnie’s first book of poetry ‘Love and Bones’ was released by Karma Press.  Her next book “Concussion and Mild TBI: Not Just Another Headline” an anthology of concussion-related stories, was published by Lash and Associates in 2016. Bonnie is an Expressive Arts Therapist with a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies from the Vancouver Expressive Arts Therapy School,  where she is a faculty member. Her latest book, Cantata in Two Voices, co-written with Jude Neal was released by Ekstasis Editions. Bonnie is currently working on her next book.https://www.pandorascollective.com https://www.wordvancouver.cahttps://bonnienish.comSupport the show

 David Wiseman lived and worked in Oxfordshire most of his adult life but in recent years he has spent more time in Canada and became a permanent resident there in 2016. He currently lives on the unceded territories of the Mi'kmaq people in Nova Scotia in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia.Lifelong interests include maps, reading, writing, travel and photography. And for the last 25 years, genealogy.In 2009 in conjunction with close friend Neil Evans he produced The Further Bank, a memoir of photographic expeditions around the landscape of the upper Thames.  A Habit Of Dying was his first published full-length novel. It was followed in October 2012 by The Subtle Thief Of Youth – another mystery story but quite unconnected to the themes of A Habit Of Dying. In 2016 he returned to those themes with his third novel,The Death of Tommy Quick And Other Lies. 2019 saw the publication of Casa Rosa, a story with a different setting but returning to some familiar themes. He is currently working on a fifth novel, expected to be published in 2020/2021.DJ Wiseman also edited and contributed to the Askance short story anthology Positional Vertigo published in October 2012. More recently his short fiction Unforgettable has won the Retreat West flash fiction award and Double Aspect won The Ghost Storyaward in autumn 2018. Mystery Weekly, Geist Magazine and Moose House featured stories in 2019 and he has been a finalist for several prizes including the Commonwealth Writers Short Story prize.Further information, including other writing and outlines of family history, may be found on the author’s own web site.http://djwiseman.ca https://askancepublishing.wordpress.com/authors/dj-wiseman/https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3012342.D_J_Wiseman https://www.lostcousins.com/newsletters2/dec19news.htm#CasaRosa http://www.theghoststory.com/double-aspect https://www.facebook.com/DJ-Wiseman-372292326195720 https://djwiseman816374974.wordpress.com/2021/12/28/a-reading-year-2021/Support the show

Tanya Bellehumeur-Allatt,  her essays and poems have appeared in Best Canadian Essays 2019 and Best Canadian Essays 2015, The New Quarterly, Grain, EVENT, Prairie Fire, Malahat Review, subTerrain, carte blanche, Antigonish Review, Room, The Masters Review Anthology X (forthcoming), Queens Quarterly (forthcoming), Syncopation Literary Journal (forthcoming) and The Toronto Star, among other publications. She holds an MA from McGill University and an MFA in Creative Writing from UBC. Tanya’s poetry collection Chaos Theories of Goodness. published with (Shoreline, Press will be out this coming spring ( 2022)  She is the author of Peacekeeper’s Daughter:  Middle East Memoir, it was published this fall by Thistledown Press, 2021 and nominated for the Quebec Writers’ Federation Mavis Gallant Award for Nonfiction. It is available wherever books are sold. Peacekeeper’s Daughter is the astonishing story of a French-Canadian military family stationed in Israel and Lebanon in 1982-1983. Told from the perspective of a twelve-year-old girl, Peacekeeper’s Daughter parachutes the reader into the Lebanese Civil War, the Palestinian crisis, and the wave of terrorism—including the bombing of the American Embassy—that ravaged Beirut at the height of the siege. This novelistic memoir moves from Jerusalem to Tiberius, from the disputed No-Man’s Land of the Golan Heights to Damascus, and on to Beirut by way of Tripoli, crossing borders that remain closed to this day.It’s June, 1982. Twelve-year-old Tanya and her family are preparing to leave their home in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, to move to Israel and Lebanon, where her father will serve a one-year posting with the United Nations. While they’re packing up, Israel invades Lebanon. The President-elect of Lebanon is assassinated. Thousands of Palestinian men, women, and children are murdered at the Sabra-Shatila refugee camps in southern Beirut. The Middle East’s relative peace explodes into waves of violence.It is in the midst of this maelstrom that the family arrives in Israel, and settles into an apartment. And one day Tanya and her brother walk to school; yet nothing is ordinary, nothing is familiar. The simple act of walking down the street is fraught with peril. Violence may come at them from any direction at any time.Peacekeeper’s Daughter is a coming-of-age story, as well as an exploration of family dynamics, the shattering effects of violence and war—and the power of memory itself to reconcile us to our past selves, to the extraordinary places we have been and sights we have seen.  https://tanyaallattbellehumeur.com/https://thistledownpress.com/product/peacekeepers-daughter/https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59413349-peacekeeper-s-daughter?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=oM75u6RxFd&rank=1https://www.cbc.ca/books/peacekeeper-s-daughter-1.6126403https://mobile.twitter.c@TBellehumeurAom/tbellehumeurahttps://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/topics/mental-health-wellness/post-traumatic-stress-disorder.html#a1https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/mental-health-support-in-bc/suicide-and-self-harmSupport the show

 Christina Alagaratnam is a writer from South London.She studied at the University of Westminster and graduated with a BA in English Literature & Creative Writing in 2014 and with an MA in Creative Writing the following year. Christina’s plays have been performed at the Brighton and London fringe festivals to four star reviews. She also had a performance of her play 'Face to Face' performed at Linklaters law firm, for a special diversity event.Last year, Christina published a short story called ‘Sanctuary’ on Amazon Kindle. She also launched her own podcast called, ‘The Night Writer’ which can be found on Spotify, Anchor FM and YouTube. https://chrissysnotebook.com/?fbclid=IwAR00xstVLdfiOlLCP88ymtQ8XKzSXv44Q2fnbfV9jP_UrCuBgafhRXCaGMAhttps://chrissysnotebook.com/podcast/https://twitter.com/ChrissyA_92https://twitter.com/Face2FacePlay Support the show

Bill Arnott is the bestselling author of the suspense/thriller series The Gamble Novellas, all-ages Allan’s Wishes: Illustrated Edition, poetry collection Forever Cast in Endless Time, column-series Bill Arnott’s Beat, award-winning travel memoir Gone Viking: A Travel Saga, and the travelogue sequel Gone Viking II: Beyond Boundaries. He’s been awarded for prose, poetry, songwriting, and for his Gone Viking expeditions has been granted a Fellowship at London’s Royal Geographical Society. When not trekking the globe with a small pack, weatherproof journal and laughably outdated camera phone, Bill can be found on Canada’s west coast, making music and friends. https://twitter.com/billarnott_apshttps://www.instagram.com/billarnott_aps/https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19391591.Bill_Arnotthttps://billarnottaps.wordpress.comhttps://rmbooks.com/book/gone-viking-ii/Support the show

Claire Finlayson lives and writes on the beautiful Sunshine Coast of BC. After a 25-year career working as a jewellery designer, she now writes full time.  She has been writing for as long as she can remember, as an essayist and occasionally as a journalist. Her passion is narrative non-fiction Dispatches from Ray’s Planet, A Journey through Autism, published by Caitlin Press, is her first book.  Claire served for ten years on the board of directors of Sechelt’s Festival of the Written Arts, the last three years as vice president. The Festival, Canada’s longest running literary event, was founded by her mentor, Betty Keller. Claire has been asked to appear as one of the Festival’s “New Voices” in August of this year.  http://www.clairefinlayson.com Support the show

RC Weslowski is the author of My Soft Response to the Wars, his debut poetry collection with Write Bloody North Publishing.  RC is also a broadcaster, a podcaster, voice actor and clown plus Co Founder and Artistic Director for Hullabaloo: BC's Youth Spoken Word Festival.  RC is the 2016 recipient of the Sheri-D Wilson Golden Beret Award and former Poet of Honour for both the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word and the Victoria Spoken Word Festival.  RC is also Co Founder of Mashed Poetics a spoken word and music mash-up event that recently celebrated its 50th event since 2009.  RC is also co-host of Wax Poetic on Co Op Radio, a radio program dedicated to poetry and poetic pursuits.   www.rcweslowski.com  www.writebloodynorth.ca  https://twitter.com/RCWeslowskihttps://www.amazon.ca/My-Soft-Response-Wars-Weslowski/dp/0992024587https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UCdOGkai0A Support the show

Richard Till reads his poetry to audiences large and small at public venues in the UK, Alberta and BC. His poetry has a strong focus on nature but can veer off into pieces on social justice, war and irony. But for a few travel articles he has rarely been published but his poem The 6th of June received a $500 first prize (which came in handy at the time). He describes his attempts at retirement as an abject failure. He still practices his trade as a metalworker and is known to take on projects ranging from marine construction and bridge building to ornate ironwork. He built, launched and sails his 36-foot sloop My Island that continually serves as a platform for film work and as an escort vessel for Tribal Journeys and other canoe voyages. From a young age he engaged in a life of all things outdoors. He has ice climbed, worked grassroots prospecting, built a log cabin in the mountains, co-developed an Adventure Based Counselling degree program and continues to support First Nations Land Based Learning initiatives including ethno-botany and guiding. His greatest love is for family and his growing clan of grandchildren. His novel Woven Deep is approaching completion. Support the show