There are so many family photos I love, but for this exercise I picked this one, which I love so much I included it on my home page. It’s Christmas 1958, and the picture features the amazing women of my family: my great grandmother, seated, holds my mum’s first cousin, born just a few weeks… Continue reading Favourite Photo #52Ancestors
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The #52Ancestors Challenge
With school and life, working on my own ancestry has taken a back seat. To stay connected with it through this busy year, I’ve decided to give Amy Johnson Crow’s #52Ancestors challenge a go. I doubt I’ll keep up, especially since I’m starting late, but I’ll try to do at least some of the posts.… Continue reading The #52Ancestors Challenge
A New Year, A New Challenge
For all but four years of my life (my own first two and my daughter’s), this day, the Tuesday following Labour Day, has marked the beginning of a new school year in our house. I went straight through from preschool to elementary school to high school to university as a student, then became a teacher,… Continue reading A New Year, A New Challenge
On Writer’s Block
I’ll let you in on a secret: I haven’t written a word in two months. This is a highly unusual state of affairs for me. Even when the words aren’t flowing easily, and there have been lots of times when they haven’t, there are words most days, or at least most weeks. Only deliberate vacations,… Continue reading On Writer’s Block
Mastering Writing Craft?
I was skimming through a bunch of blog posts recently, and came across one that said an unnamed “famous” writer had mastered his craft and no longer needed editorial help. I’ve since lost track of where I read it, but the sentence stood out to me, making me want to yell various things at my… Continue reading Mastering Writing Craft?
Three Things on a Friday Afternoon
This topic came up in a random conversation the other day, and I thought it was a fun one to put on the blog, mostly because I’d really love to hear your own answers to this: what are three things most people probably don’t know about you? I found it hard to come up with… Continue reading Three Things on a Friday Afternoon
Catching up on Links
Today is one of those rare days when I’m taking an hour to catch up on reading all the cool links I’ve clicked through to and left sitting open on my browser until I have so many windows open my computer is struggling to breathe. Among them is stuff that might be of interest to… Continue reading Catching up on Links
Women's Fiction: Your Favourite Quiet Reads
I write what are typically called “quiet books”, women’s fiction with character-driven stories about relationships and the choices we make and human emotions and all that good stuff. Not surprisingly, those are also the kinds of books I love to read. Thanks to (the perfect) thank you gift I received in the form of a… Continue reading Women's Fiction: Your Favourite Quiet Reads
SiWC 2015
As anyone reading this likely already knows, I have just wrapped up a full year of work that culminated, as it always does, in the gathering of hundreds of writers at the Surrey International Writers’ Conference. It’s always bittersweet for me when the conference is over. It’s wonderful to experience the conference through the eyes… Continue reading SiWC 2015
Scotland Photos
A few people have been asking me to see photos of my trip to Scotland in May. I flew to Edinburgh, and from there worked my way up to Elgin, where I met up with my parents, who were touring around, too, to spend several days touring all the family history areas of the country… Continue reading Scotland Photos