Category Archives: Writing

Smorgasbord Christmas Book Fair 2022 – #Memoir #Cancer Miriam Hurdle, #Romance Ritu Bhathal, #Crimethriller Carol Balawyder

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Sally at the Smorgasbord Magazine features my crime novel, Just Before Sunrise alongside Miriam Hurdle’s journal as a cancer survivor and Ritu Bhathal’s amusing romance novel.
https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2022/12/21/smorgasbord-christmas-book-fair-2022-memoir-cancer-miriam-hurdle-romance-ritu-bhathal-crimethriller-carol-balawyder/
I am happy and honored to be part of Sally’s Christmas list. Thank you, Sally and Joyous Holidays to one and all.

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine

Welcome to the Smorgasbord Christmas Book Fair with a selection of books from personally recommended authors on my bookshelf I believe will make wonderful gifts for friends, family and for you.

The first book today is the poignant memoir by Miriam Hurdle…it is an inspiring read and I can recommend The Winding Road: A Journey of Survival.

About the book

In the summer of 2008, Miriam Hurdle was diagnosed with melanoma-an aggressive and invasive cancer in her internal organs. The survival rate before 2008 was low. Besides risking harsh treatments for a slim chance of survival, Miriam had hoops to jump through. By the time she received treatment at the beginning of 2009, her cancer had progressed from stage II to stage IV. It was a rough and uphill winding road. But alongside her was support and encouragement. Accompanied by the love of her family and community, this…

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ABOUT PERSEVERANCE

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While I was scanning through my TBR list on my Kindle for something that would inspire me in my writing I came across Lady By The River – Stories of Perseverance, coedited by Yvette Prior. 

I am a believer in chance and fate so it brought a smile to my heart when one of the essays was about writing and perseverance. Just what I needed to read.

Mabel Kwong’s: How I Found the Confidence to Chase My Passion and Made It A Reality is filled with heart warming advice about the struggles of being a writer.

An Australian Chinese-Malaysian writer Mabel Kwong is fascinated by issues such as multiculturalism, racism, stereotypes and identity issues. Her difficulties with her writing range from rejections and lack of support from a family where

artsy jobs are deemed riskier career choices and so are often frowned upon.

Mabel Kwong fought these obstacles.

When we push on and keep trying, we feel the flame of inspiration within us amidst growing confidence.

When we muster the courage and try our hand at what we are passionate about, we ignite the spark within us to put ourselves and our voice out there.

Following this story I was delighted to discover that it was written by Ana Linden, a fellow blogger whose writing and photography I greatly admire. I have read and enjoyed every one of her books. Her style of writing is raw and she is fearless in exposing her heart. This is especially true in her essay titled Present in the Past.

Ana Linden’s story is why for years she avoided going back to her childhood home and finally having the courage to confront the power of her past.  

 I had felt the effects of her (grandmother’s) manipulative, selfish and cruel nature at a time when I desperately wanted to believe nothing of that was real, because I loved her…You never get over certain things, but you learn to live with them, to control what they do to you.

When at 19 she finally left her home town, (F)uelled not by hopes and dreams of idealistic youth, I left it driven by anger and hatred.

Ana Linden’s writing is honest and bold at its core as she minutely describes her pain and mistreatment. She pushes on to simply survive my family and not become like them.

To quote Yvette Prior in her introduction to Ana Linden:

Ana processed her past with us, showing us how she turned pain and mistreatment into motivation, to then later dispense grace from a place of strength. 

The collection includes ten other moving stories where patience and friendship, determination, learning to embrace challenges, coping strategies and sharing all are part of the fabric of perseverance. In her conclusion of this collection and study on perseverance, Yvette Prior writes:

It takes an effort to endure, but it can pay off with an enriched you, and with an inspiring story to tell later.

Bau: Let me Know When It’s Over

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My Doggy Mom is still working on her book. Because she wants to change the title I am forced to endure hours lying next to her as she keeps searching for a suitable one. It’s enough to put a dog to sleep. I wonder if she spent that much time searching for my name.

Doggy Mom: Well, in fact, it was easier. You are of French origin and I wanted you to have a literary name.

Bau: As if I can read French!

Doggy Mom: I thought of Hugo, as in Victor Hugo, but I didn’t think that my daughter’s friend, Hugo, would appreciate me naming you after him.

Bau: He should have been honored.

Doggy Mom: So, anyway there was Baudelaire but that was too long. So I shortened it to Bau. Here in Montreal where almost everyone speaks French, when they ask what your name is, they think I mean Beau, which means handsome.

Bau: Oh, I quite like that!

Doggy Mom: Fits you perfectly. Anyway back to my book title.

Bau: Oh yeah (Yawn, Yawn). What was wrong with The Set Up? Lots of books have that title.

Doggy Mom: That’s the problem. I don’t want my book to get lost in the slush pile.

Bau: If that’s the case, you should have checked before wasting my time.

Doggy Mom: You’re right. Learn from my mistakes. Also the title gives the story plot away.

Bau: What about the cover?

Doggy Mom: Finally, I found what I was looking for. Now, I’m just waiting for the graphic designer to get back to me. Could be a few weeks. Of course there’s going to be the extra headache of formatting my book to fit Amazon standards.

Bau: Oh, boy! I think I’m going to go for a nap. Wake me when it’s over.

https://share.reedsy.com/Reedsy%20%E2%80%93%20Book%20Title%20Checklist.pdf?utm_source=mailparrot&utm_campaign=book_title_checklist_2020_04&utm_medium=book_title_checklist_2020_04_1

Bau: Can We Go For A Long Walk Now?

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My Human Mom tells me that there are a lot of steps she still needs to do before she’s ready to publish her new novel.

Here are some things which I secretly know about it:

It’s a Domestic Crime Novel (Apparently that’s her favorite type of crime novel along with Domestic Noir novels).

She tells me because there is a Femme Fatale in her novel it might also be categorized as Domestic Noir.

She’s likely going to launch it in May (That’s a long time in doggy days). That’s if all goes well!

The title is The Set Up.

Here’s a tentative blurb for it:

Homeless sixteen-year-old Maya has found the perfect summer job – getting a cottage ready to serve as a half-way house to delinquent girls. A summer job where she won’t have to wonder where she’s going to sleep for a while. Being by the lake in nature will give her time to grieve the death of her mother. Best of all, she’s met Charlie, the boy who lives in the cottage next door who gives her the attention she craves and the promise of a bright future if she sticks with him. But Charlie has a very dark side and Maya becomes involved in a murderous scheme. What will happen to Maya now that she is being blamed for the murder by the police? Who can possibly help her?

I love to listen to my Human Mom read her manuscript out loud, but honestly, I’m disappointed because I’m not even in it!

In the meantime, you might want to have a look at my Human Mom’s other books on her author page. (Every time you click on one of her books I get a treat).

Bau: Waiting

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Waiting in the Office

Waiting in the Bedroom

Waiting on the Sofa

I have been spending a lot of time waiting for my Mom to finish her latest novel. Frankly, it is all quite boring since she doesn’t have as much time to take me out for walks.

Bau: A Favorite Poem

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This is one of my favorite dog poems. It was written by Nobel Laureate Wislawa Szymborska.

 

 

Monologue of a Dog Ensnared in History

There are dogs and dogs. I was among the chosen.
I had good papers and wolf’s blood in my veins.
I lived upon the heights inhaling the odors of views:
meadows in sunlight, spruces after rain,
and clumps of earth beneath the snow.

I had a decent home and people on call,
I was fed, washed, groomed,
and taken for lovely strolls.
Respectfully, though, and comme il faut.
They all knew full well whose dog I was.

Any lousy mutt can have a master.
Take care, though — beware comparisons.
My master was a breed apart.
He had a splendid herd that trailed his every step
and fixed its eyes on him in fearful awe.

For me they always had smiles,
with envy poorly hidden.
Since only I had the right
to greet him with nimble leaps,
only I could say good-bye by worrying his trousers with my teeth.
Only I was permitted
to receive scratching and stroking
with my head laid in his lap.
Only I could feign sleep
while he bent over me to whisper something.

He raged at others often, loudly.
He snarled, barked,
raced from wall to wall.
I suspect he liked only me and nobody else, ever.

I also had responsibilities: waiting, trusting.
Since he would turn up briefly, and then vanish.
What kept him down there in the lowlands, I don’t know.
I guessed, though, it must be pressing business,
at least as pressing
as my battle with the cats
and everything that moves for no good reason.

There’s fate and fate. Mine changed abruptly.
One spring came
and he wasn’t there.
All hell broke loose at home.
Suitcases, chests, trunks crammed into cars.
The wheels squealed tearing downhill
and fell silent round the bend.

On the terrace scraps and tatters flamed,
yellow shirts, armbands with black emblems
and lots and lots of battered cartons
with little banners tumbling out.

I tossed and turned in this whirlwind,
more amazed than peeved.
I felt unfriendly glances on my fur.
As if I were a dog without a master,
some pushy stray
chased downstairs with a broom.

Someone tore my silver-trimmed collar off,
someone kicked my bowl, empty for days.
Then someone else, driving away,
leaned out from the car
and shot me twice.

He couldn’t even shoot straight,
since I died for a long time, in pain,
to the buzz of impertinent flies.
I, the dog of my master

 

Monologue of a Dog

 

WHAT MAKES STRONG WRITING

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In a recent interview with Natalie Portman and CBC’s Tom Power at the Toronto International Film Festival, Portman talked about the inspiration behind her critically-acclaimed performance in Vox Lux.

One of the reasons she so easily accepted the role was because the writing was so strong. Brady Cobert is both the director and writer of Vox Lux.

Brady Cobert

 Attribution: Georges Biard

That got me thinking.

What makes writing so strong?

EM Castellan, a writer of YA Historical Fantasy novels and winner of several Wattpad awards, provides pointers on what you need to make your writing stronger.

One of the most common reasons for agents and publishers to reject a manuscript is « weak writing ». Rather than listing here what makes your writing weak, I’d like to offer a few pointers to help you make your writing strong – or stronger.

To continue reading  click here. 

John Keats: Truth is Beauty

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In my early twenties, fresh out of university with a B.A. in English literature, I was lured to London where I spent the summer in the Bloomsbury District doing research at the British Museum Library in the mornings and in the afternoons I explored the city.

A favorite thing to do was to visit the homes of the great poets and writers who had lived in London. One such home was that of the poet John Keats, a great figure of the British romantic poets.

 
Fast-forward – almost fifty years – and I am in Rome where I stumble upon the Keats – Shelly Memorial House right next to the Piazza di Spagna.

Keats had travelled to Rome hoping that the warmer climate would cure his tuberculosis and that the view of the Piazza di Spagna from his room would uplift him.

Keats Window

But, at only 25, the uplifting view and the warmer climate were not enough and he died in this bed

Keats bed

and left behind a legacy of great poetry which two hundred years later is still being honored and read. One of my favorite lines comes from his Ode on a Grecian Urn.

Beauty is truth, truth beauty

 

 

 

 

 

Anneli Purchase: The Wind Weeps

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The Wind Weeps ​

A romantic fishing tale​​​​​​​​​

Although knowing practically nothing about fishing, Andrea accidently finds herself in the hard-working sub-culture of commercial fishing. She painfully learns the ins and outs of fishing from preparing the boat for the season to the camaraderie within the fishing community and its inevitable human tensions.
The setting is exquisite, wild and beautiful and the author has the talent to create vivid, emotionally packed images.

Annel photo

photo source

In her attempts to redefine a life for herself Andrea is forced to face the complexities of her abuse and their devastating effects on her romantic relationships.
This is a story about survival: physical survival, moral survival and survival of the soul.

 

Anneli

The Wind Weeps, is a must-read for any woman who has been or is trying to get out of an abusive relationship. But it is also a man’s story as it involves the rugged world of commercial fishing on the gorgeous coast of British Columbia.

Click here for more details on Anneli Purchase’s books.

 

 

 

 

 

How To End With A Bang

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To finish the novel is one trick, but to end your story is quite another. C. Patrick Schulze.

This was on one of the slides in a webinar I recently listened to.

The class was given by Dr. Barbara Henderson as one of the Penquin Random House Writers Academy Masterclasses in which she discussed aspects of writing a crime novel, including such topics as keeping the plot tight and how to end your novel with a bang.

Barbara Henderson

 

A good ending must feel right. Finish with a sentence that has impact and leaves your reader thinking. Make the ending satisfying to the reader. Satisfying the reader not just intellectually but emotionally.

 

If you’re interested in listening to the entire class here it is. It runs about 50 minutes. I picked up some good tips and found it to be an excellent reminder of what crime fiction is about. Many of the tips though can be applied to writing in general. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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