Halloween Giveaway: A Pair of Wickedly Cute Earrings

October 28, 2016.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Hello Darlings, Dead bodies, cupcakes, and ultra-cute Japanese cartoon animals? If I had designed a pair of earrings based on my novel,The Tokyo Cover Girls, they would look like this. So, to celebrate their fabulousness (and yours) I’m giving away three sets on October 31. For a chance to win follow me on twitter, on instagram, or simply like this […]

My Self-Publishing Experiment: THE COVER

August 11, 2015.Reading time 2 minutes.

First off, let’s be clear: I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I’M DOING. However, I spent enough time waiting for boys to call when I was 15 (note to teen self: they never do) to know when it’s time to stop doing the same thing with literary agents. That’s right, I have decided to embark on […]

Something I learned about writing today: manuscripts are like cats

February 5, 2013.Reading time 1 minute.

I have suddenly found myself paralyzed in an indecision of the Coke or Pepsi magnitude. I recently got some feedback on a manuscript I ‘finished’ several months ago, and would be totally ready to dig into it if however I also happen to be two drafts in to a completely new one, leaving me with in a […]

Things that inspire me to write #18: New Girl the Novel

January 11, 2013.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Whoot! whoot! for Joan…mostly. I ran into a woman I used to be in a writing group with this afternoon and found out one of the manuscripts she was working on, New Girl during our sessions was released as an e-book last October by Musa Publishing. And despite the initial twinge of envy I admit […]

Things that inspire me to write #29: The ‘Best Ofs’

December 30, 2012.Reading time 1 minute.

The year in photos, the top 40 songs, the 100 most influential people…that’s right, the ‘BEST of’ season has officially arrived. With New Years Eve quickly approaching, every magazine, newspaper and website in the world suddenly appears to be focused on that one all important question: what the hell did we do with the last 365 […]

Things that inspire me to write #38: The Gathering

December 22, 2012.Reading time 1 minute.

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, […]

Things that inspire me to write #45: Ellen Hopkins

December 14, 2012.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Because, 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.

Things that inspire me to write #48: The first sixteen words of Feed

December 11, 2012.Reading time 1 minute.

There 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, […]

Things that inspire me to write #49: Meg Cabot

December 10, 2012.Reading time 1 minute.

It 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 […]

Things that inspire me to write #64: Christianne’s Lyceum of Literature and Art

November 24, 2012.Reading time 1 minute.

It started with a short story and a night of open mic. Pretty soon I was coming to writing workshops, volunteering with kids’ zine-making groups and even worked as a program assistant at one point, helping to build floating poetry lanterns and then heading down to the ocean to set them free. Being involved, just […]