2024 is here, and many of us will have committed to some fresh starts and new year’s resolutions. Establishing new year’s resolutions is a tradition found around the world. People generally [...]
Most of us want to know that we matter and that our lives matter. Leaving a written memoir is a legacy of sorts, a way of documenting what small impact we hope we have had in the lives of [...]
Everyone has a story to tell. Not every story needs to be published. But some do. Oftentimes people want to record family stories and memoir pieces for their families. They may not [...]
There are many paths to publication and everyone has their own unique story about how they got there. This is a simple sharing of my own experiences in case it is helpful to others.
First [...]
My new novel has much to say about the importance of families and their evolving nature. I believe that discussions about family structure are particularly relevant in a country such as ours [...]
Some people are curious about the title of my new book. I’m by no means an expert on Persian carpets but I thought that it might be useful to share some thoughts about my interest in carpets. [...]
Here is an excerpt from Stella’s Carpet, coming out in the fall. “Exploring the intergenerational consequences of trauma, including those of a Holocaust survivor and a woman imprisoned during the [...]
Most of us can survey our bodies and point out the scars or marks left by accidents and our encounters with life – a badly scraped ankle from a fall, a broken arm, a deep cut, a burn, perhaps [...]
None of the furniture in our house is particularly valuable but each piece priceless in terms of the memories and history it represents, and each has its own story. There’s a stuffed armchair [...]
In the early part of our marriage, I determined that I would one day write a book about mothers-in-law, as a thinly-veiled revenge piece for daughters-in-law everywhere. It would not have been a [...]
Healthy, thick hair was one of the few remaining vestiges of my youth. And although I allowed the color to naturally change from the darkest of browns, to a much lighter shade of brown, to [...]
Everyone in Port Perry has a favorite delicacy that can only be purchased at Hank’s Bakery: cinnamon
buns and knots, danish pastries, carrot cake, eccles cakes, strawberry pie, sausage rolls, [...]
It’s approaching that time of year when many of us acknowledge the special people in our lives by giving them Valentine’s Day cards, organizing small celebrations, or preparing other small loving [...]
As a writer of historical fiction, I am happy to own Social Etiquette: or Manners and Customs of Polite Society, published in 1878.* Books like this serve me well as useful references for [...]
Is it any surprise that people are having trouble knowing who or what to believe anymore? The public seems polarized on contentious issues (i.e., decisions about whether or not to wear masks or [...]
I’m having trouble imagining the holidays without a house filled with friends and family. I’d happily restrict myself to just having our son come home but I know that as an essential worker it is [...]
Ingredients:
2/3 cup peanut butter (creamy or with chunks)
2/3 cup butter (melted)
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1-1/4 cups flour
½ tsp. (heaping) baking soda
Yes! That’s what the title says—my butt is apparently dead. Dead butts are a real thing. Who knew?! Like many of you, I intended to age gracefully. I consider myself to be a reasonably [...]
Ingredients: Crust & Topping 41-1/2 cups all-purpose flour ½ tsp. baking soda 1-1/2 cups quick quaker oats 1-1/2 cups brown sugar 1 cup butter Filling 1 pound pitted dates ½ cup hot water ¼ [...]
I love old things -- dishes, silver, furniture, jewellery, and books. I love that they represent bygone times and the
lives of people who once owned and used and cherished them. I have several [...]
The Creative Writing Correspondence Programme at Humber College is an incredible learning opportunity. Humber carefully partnered me with a writing mentor who was sensitive, respectful and [...]
This is from my current manuscript, Larkin’s Story. It’s a historical fiction set in rural Ontario in the late 1800s. The story begins with a Coroner’s Inquest into the suspicious deaths of two [...]
Ingredients: 4 eggs 1 cup sugar 2 tsp grated lemon peel 1 tsp lemon extract 1 cup plus 4 Tblspn all-purpose flour 1 cup unsalted butter, melted (icing sugar to sprinkle on the top after they are [...]
Visualize a raw turkey breast in the grocery store: white-dimpled skin covering a rounded, fleshy chunk of poultry. That’s what I thought my un-tanned legs looked like. I was reckless with my [...]
Ingredients Pre-made, small, frozen tart shells (24) Fresh raspberries Dried figs Bottle of Kirsch Brick of cream cheese (softened to room temperature) Tin condensed milk 1/3 cup Lemon juice 1 [...]
Although I consider myself a fairly accepting person, my views on the wearing of Lycra are perhaps best reflected in the following statement: “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.”
We are now living in our third house, having moved from our starter home to a sprawling farmhouse and now finally to this one, a downsized version closer to services, where we intend to grow [...]
When I first learned to type a letter in the Commercial Studies room at high school, we used manual typewriters and little strips of white powder-coated correction tape to fix our errors. We [...]
As we are all adjusting to the “new normal” and what that may mean for each of us, there have been a number of articles written on what we should be doing with our “spare time” while we [...]
Before COVID-19 began in earnest, one of the great pleasures in my life was spending a fair amount of time in kindergarten classrooms. And to my delight, I was once again reminded of the [...]
We are living in challenging and uncertain times. Many despair about those things that we are being asked to refrain from doing, and many of us are in self-imposed quarantine. But perhaps the [...]
Years ago, I taught a management course that worked towards the development of leadership skills using a variety of strategies that emphasized trust, collaborative decision-making, and survival skills.
In Gary Chapman’s book, The 5 Love Languages, he posits a theory that each of us has a natural inclination to express and receive love and affection in a particular way. He calls each of these [...]
Several years ago, when a family member was hospitalized and in a great deal of pain, I was striving to find something that would comfort her. In desperation, I picked up a Gideon Bible and began [...]
Like many others, I find that my life is rich and full and busy. There are an unlimited number of choices and opportunities when trying to decide how to spend time. The writing life can [...]
The giving and receiving of gifts is traditionally seen as a way of demonstrating affection, thoughtfulness, respect, and appreciation. Individuals often carry strong emotional feelings about [...]
I freely admit to being a glutton for punishment. I love to cook for a crowd. I love hosting dinner for friends and family, especially for important occasions and holidays. I recognize that this [...]
For many in our generation, the word history has, for the most part, often seemed rather benign. History was a subject taught in schools with battered textbooks and an endless droning of facts [...]
Something that I have noticed recently is that the sins of my youth have finally caught up with me: the sunburns, the lack of moisturizer creams, and the erratic cleansing routines. I am [...]
I freely admit that I am not a patient person. And while the expression “good things come to those who wait”
is commonplace, learning to wait is not easy. At least not for me. It seems to me [...]
Seasonal decorating is a source of much good-natured banter in our household. My partner does not understand my desire to change the door wreaths or to erect any number of attendant gee-gaws.
Like many women, I regularly check my appearance in the mirror before leaving the house. It doesn’t matter if I’m going to the symphony or the gas station—I check my hair and lipstick before [...]
Our current house was built in 1874 and was completely gutted and renovated approximately one hundred and ten years later. When we bought it five years ago, we promised each other that we would [...]
I am not a historian. I am, however, someone who appreciates the importance of histories, and believes that a conscious effort to preserve and express an understanding of all of the voices and [...]
Often at the end of a busy day, my partner will look at me and say, “We got a lot done!” Both of us have crazy work ethics, and the expression has become something of a private joke. We spent [...]
Critics and scholars will sometimes make reference to the heart of a story when they talk about writing. They may observe that: the writer failed to get to the heart of the story; or the real [...]
And they all lived happily ever after.Who among us doesn’t want a happy ending in our lives or in the stories we read? Why else do so many people share an affinity for Hallmark movies? There is [...]
In the rush of our lives, it does not often seem possible to squeeze in time to paint, draw, write, do crafts, or perform music. Between family commitments, the demands of work, and a nominal [...]
Birthdays for children are a time of excitement and pure joy: the anticipation of cake and presents and a party, sometimes a special outing or sleepover with a group of friends. Birthdays for [...]
I have had a room of my own for over twenty years. It is a tiny, delicious space filled with favorite books, mementos from childhood, souvenirs from trips and ephemera that speak to me. Above my [...]
Stories matter. A well told story can illustrate important life truths and allow us to develop strategies for coping with particular issues. Stories help us to develop our emotional reasoning [...]
Writing is, for many people, a solitary and private enterprise. Going public is a step that requires both good fortune and courage. The moment you allow your words, your stories, your ideas, to [...]
People at book club presentations have been asking me to explain the process I use for the naming of characters. Although I am certain that other writers have their own secrets for naming their [...]
The words we choose to tell our stories with reveal much about our training, our values, and our priorities. Each writer is going to have their own mental checklist of what matters most to them [...]
The words Once Upon a Time conjure a feeling of excitement for me. I know that a story is about to unfold and I prepare myself to be transported somewhere magical, a long, long time ago in a [...]
Award-winning story for OPEN BOOK TORONTO, Stories About North York, June 9, 2018 Lavish willow trees bordered Wilket creek and the ravines and streets where we lived and played. The trailing [...]
Although writing is seen as a creative process, good writing often involves research in order to support the work. The research component is much like the underpainting in a finished canvas – it [...]
Several people have asked where my characters come from. This seems to be something that people are curious about. I suspect that all writers have their own methods for creating or meeting their [...]
We have an oversized cast iron ladle in our home that was used for making maple syrup. I like to imagine the excitement of youngsters, cheeks rosy with the cold, standing in spring snow waiting [...]
He scratched the earth, meticulously plucking errant strands of green, removing the undisciplined growth that had strayed from his ordered lines. His arms and face and neck stained so dark by [...]
