One February morning last year, I shuffled along a snowy Toronto sidewalk, internally freaking out. I was on my way to the very first meeting of my new writing group. My friend Teri had set it up, and while I trusted her, I didn’t know what to expect. Would we all get along? Would I fit […]
Semi-Retired Hens: In praise of the best writing group Read More »
In 2016, I wrote the following blog post for my history blog, The Small Histories. I was thinking about it again recently and wanted to share it here as well – book lovers will appreciate it! Also, I had to actually laugh out loud when I read “I’m not a worldbuilding sort of writer” –
The history of fictional worlds Read More »
In 2008, I booked myself a hotel for the night for a DIY writing retreat, after being frustrated at not being able to afford a traditional retreat, and also too impatient to wait for one I could afford. I’d been meaning to do it again since then, and last weekend I finally did. Here’s how
My DIY writing retreat – what I learned Read More »
It’s been fall for a few days now, and it’s probably the third one in a row where I can look back on my summer writing and actually feel fairly impressed. Usually, summer is terrible for my writing. In my part of Ontario the summers are scorching, humid, and long. Many people love this, but
My summer of sorta writing Read More »
I’m half-Finnish, but I didn’t know what a Moomin was until I was an adult. Maybe that’s not entirely true; I do have a dim memory of receiving a Moominpapa piggybank as a child, but I had no idea what what the character was supposed to be. However, as an adult I did finally learn,
“Freedom is the best thing” – Reading ‘Tove Jansson: Work and Love’ Read More »
A couple of days ago, I was thinking about the phrase “aspiring writer” or “aspiring author.” I want to say first that I don’t mean to call anyone out or be a downer. In fact, I hope this is a positive rant! I’ve just been noticing that a fair number of people on social media
Stop calling yourself an aspiring writer (please) Read More »
At the end of 2017, I had finished the draft of my novel, and was feeling kind of lost. I had been working on it for a year, I had finished NaNoWriMo with it, and suddenly it was done and off to beta readers. I had this writing momentum I didn’t want to lose, but
New novel & worldbuilding Read More »
Unpopular opinion: I think the Rewind feature in Instagram stories is better than any other (I’m looking at you, Boomerang.) And writing in reverse is sometimes more fun than writing normally.
Writing in reverse Read More »
I couldn’t tell you how I started, but tonight I found myself reading through archives of my blog previous to this one, Clock & Bell. I came across some old writing-related posts that, all these years later, were so much fun for me to read. Such a different time. Was I ever really that person?
Some old new things. Read More »
There is a middle-aged woman in the building behind mine who I relate to. She has a big comfy chair by the window, and she likes to sit in that chair with her computer or a book or a crossword. There’s a lamp right next to the chair and a desk across the room, but
January 2009, Calgary: Neighbourly. Read More »
