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The page proofs have arrived
The proofs have arrived! It's pretty exciting to see what The Medal will look like in book form. I've spent the last couple of days going over each page to check for errors or changes. My husband saw me moving my pencil from word to word and asked why I was counting...
When is enough enough?
When Borealis Press requested my novel, I had to make a decision about the ending. For months I had considered writing a different one. I like happy endings, but I think the new last chapter creates better dramatic irony. Now I have to send the manuscript to the...
July 7, 2014 – a great day
July 7th -the day I heard that Borealis Press wants to publish my novel, The Medal. My roller coaster ride with Borealis began in February. On one of my crazy-busy Tuesdays, I rushed home at 5:30 pm to change out of my yoga clothes and get ready to pick up my...
Self-editing
When some people write, they dump all their words on the page until they exhaust their ideas. It's an intense, uninterrupted process. Not me. I write a paragraph or two (sometime just a sentence) and then I review: there's a better word here; I need more detail there;...
You never know what you’ll discover…
Last week I visited a friend in Ottawa. After a great dinner at The Table (gluten free, vegetarian, and delicious - for those so inclined by necessity or choice) we went for a walk along Wellington Street. There we came across a large, old building that had seen...
What a surprise!
In the summer, a writing contest was announced in a locally published newspaper. Poetry or prose entries were accepted as long they they illustrated rural life. I had previously written a short story that fit the theme, so I rewrote it to the 750-word limit, and...
Chapters and Verse
In 2013 I joined a local Writers' Group: Chapters and Verse. It had been in existence for a number of years, and over time, some had dropped out, and others had joined. When I came on board, there were seven of us. The group used to meet at the Community Room in the...
A Day to Remember
This morning I attended the Remembrance Day service in our local community. It was held outside at the cenotaph in double digit temperatures beneath a bright November sun. As always, I thought of my grandfathers and great uncles who fought in World War I; my father,...