where deadly meets fabulous
There is no place like home. Unless you happen to live in New York or London reading a novel that is set in your home town is a special and rare treat, something that I am currently experiencing with Kelley Armstrong’s The Gathering. This paranormal YA novel takes place in my home province of BC, […]
Read MoreBecause, she thinks leaning over the keyboard with a crowbar spine, I never believed, I could get pulled into a novel, Written in verse. Or that it was even possible. So thank you Ellen Hopkins, for disrupting–and expanding–my concept of what a novel can be, you inspire me.
Read MoreThere is nothing like a novel’s first line. Setting, character, tone, some delicately hinted at conflict—it’s always intriguing to see how authors blend all of these elements together and hook a reader into their story with little more than a handful of words–and of course, totally impressive. And no opener has ever wowed me more, […]
Read MoreIt takes a lot of work and time to produce a novel manuscript. At least for me. My very first attempt took almost five years. Granted, the subsequent works have not been quite so painfully long to create, but only marginally so–which is why I am always completely blown away when I see Meg […]
Read MoreAn agent once told me that most authors don’t get published till their third manuscript. On a blog I was reading the other day, it was four. Now, considering my first manuscript took me about five years to write that would mean, according to this rule of thumb, I can expect to see my name […]
Read MoreAdolescence—it is a brutal stage of life filled with anxiety and doubt but wonderful highs I could probably only achieve these days with illegal drugs. And it’s for that reason that I am always drawn to that period of life as the setting for my manuscripts. And what better way to truly connect to that […]
Read MoreAt a writer’s event I attended last summer, a celebration of Christianne’s Lyceum of Literature of Art, I had the good fortune of meeting Carrie Mac–author of numerous award winning YA novels including The Gryphon Project. While we exchanged only a few words what really stuck with my afterwards was the fact that Carrie arrived at the […]
Read MoreI received an invitation to buy yogurt today and it made me smile–and not because I have a hankering for dairy. Several years ago one of my best friends moved from Vancouver to pursue her and her husband’s dream of starting their own yogurt brand–Tree Island Yogurt. It’s been a long and difficult haul for them both–but Scott and […]
Read MoreA couple summers ago I took a writing class with Susan Juby, author of the HILARIOUS teen fiction series, Alice I think. I have always admired Susan’s work and was very excited to have her teach me the trade for 5 whole days. However, as much as I enjoyed learning dialogue tricks and plot tightening […]
Read MoreThere is nothing that makes me want to churn out story magic than surrounding myself in a wall of freshly minted YA covers on a dark and rainy Vancouver night. Like the triple chocolate brownies and oat fudge bars displayed behind glass in the downstairs Starbucks, all those shiny images and flashy titles ignite my appetite to write. […]
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Book reviews, the occasional rant, and more
