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Posts in category Odds & Sods

Writing Life #3

Wowzas! Grab a cuppa and listen up to poet, children’s writer and essayist Virginia “Ginny” Boudreau as she gives us a behind-the-scenes peek into her writing life. You’ll find her post loaded with inspiration and laced with writing tips. When our dear friend Sandra asked me to share some of my ideas about writing in […]

Writing Life #2

In my last post I said I would be going through seven binders of writing “stuff” accumulated over the past 20 years. Today was the day. There were actually nine binders dating back 25 years. It all started when I took my first poetry workshop with Mark David Gerson here in Yarmouth. At the time, […]

Writing Life 1

I just started a new category called Writing Life. If writing is in your realm of interests, yay! Read on. If not, I hope you read this anyway—and consider writing. Everyone has a story. Mine, today, is this: Mama always said that she felt closest to God when she was picking blueberries. Thinking about this […]

Spring

Spring

Columnist Doug Larson once said, “Spring is when you feel like whistling, even with a shoe full of slush.” As I look outside, I see parts of the ground covered in that white, wet stuff. Yeah. Slush. And it’s almost April. But I still feel like whistling! I’ve actually been practicing my whistle. Sounds corny, […]

Tsk Tsk …

Tsk Tsk …

Well now, this is embarrassing. It’s been almost five months since I’ve posted anything … and well over a year since I added any new stories that have been published to “My Work” samples, or any new photo galleries. And I can’t blame it on that elusive time thief any more; as that old cliche […]

Wilderness lodges—two of the best (yet oh-so-different!)

Less than an hour’s drive from where I live in Southwest Nova Scotia, there are two wilderness lodges: Trout Point Lodge, located east of the village of Kemptville, Yarmouth County, and Birchdale, located north of the same village. Think: opulence versus bare bones. Oddly enough, as the crow flies, they are less than 10 km […]

HEARTSONG!

HEARTSONG!

As my travel memoir–Waking Up In My Own Backyard–seems to have struck a cord with readers,  Melanie (to whom I dedicated the book) and I decided to roll out the concept across Canada. We recently held a FB contest for a name and received 187 suggestions! We selected “The Heartsong Project,” submitted by Anna Mallin. […]

WORKSHOPS!

WORKSHOPS!

I have a series of memoir writing workshops on the docket this spring! (And one travel writing workshop.) Saturday, April 7, Moncton, NB, at the Moncton Public Library 1-5 pm Saturday, April 28, Shelburne, NS, at the McKay Memorial Library 9;30-4:30 Thursday May 3 and Saturday May 5 in ON (places to be determined this […]

Birthing “Backyard” … readings planned

Birthing “Backyard” … readings planned

Whoop! Book should be rolling off the press any day now. Here’s the schedule of launches and readings. Note: The book does not contain any photos. However, at all the readings I’ll be giving a short slide show with an overview of the 31 days, along with reading some excerpts from the book. Would love […]

R.I.P. John Prout

When I was six, a guide by the name of John at Birchdale (a hunting and fishing lodge in Southwest Nova Scotia) taught me how to paddle. There were two guides there around that time: John Jeffrey (deceased) and John Prout. I had the good pleasure of meeting John Prout just over a year ago. […]

Welcome! This is where I occasionally post a story that's not filed under My Work ... or give a behind-the-scenes commentary (when fit to publish.) You'll also find notices about upcoming workshops, such as memoir or travel writing. Enjoy your visit and come back often. Better yet, subscribe!

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