Archive for August, 2009

If you were a baked good…

Friday, August 21st, 2009

The other day, my friend Kim announced that if she were a baked good, she’d be a scone. I’m not entirely sure why or how this occurred to her. Since she moved to Ontario, I haven’t been connecting with her nearly often enough. Kim, BTW, is the witty brain behind the unpredictable periodical piece.ca.

As usual, Kim’s musings got me thinking. If I were a baked good, what would I be? I’d like to say a cupcake, but honestly? I’m often rather disheveled. The cupcakes around these parts are seriously high maintenance. I asked P for his input, and he answered, without hesitation, that I’d be an oatmeal cookie. I took exception to this. Oatmeal cookies are by definition dull and stodgy. They’re the old standby at your great-aunt Margaret’s house. (P, BTW, would be biscotti. No doubt about it.)

I’m leaning toward carrot cake. Gluten-free, of course.

And you?

Think about it.

Posted in General Musings | 1 Comment »

Bad Blogger

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

I have been a neglectful blogger lately. And sadly, I’m not gonna improve any time soon. I’m a little swamped, see. In between tackling rewrites for the sequel to The Ship of Lost Souls and trying to finish a ginormous freelance project, I’m planning an adventure. In two weeks, I’ll be taking off to France for nearly three weeks of exploring! I’ve been meaning to visit France for ages, to brush up on my French and take in the country of mes ancêtres. So I’m very excited to go. I have romantic notions of myself cycling along the rugged coastlines of Bretagne, sipping wine in a Parisian café, and riding a spirited (yet reliable) Camargue horse through saltwater wetlands in Provence, flanked by pink flamingoes. Oh France, I love you already.

So please don’t fault me for not blogging. I promise to tell good stories when I return.

But! Here’s a fun piece of news. On Sunday, September 27th I’ll be reading at the fabulous Word on the Street Festival in Vancouver. If you haven’t been to WOTS, you MUST check it out. Basically, it’s a great big book and magazine fest held in cities across the country, and author readings take place all day. In Van, it’s held at Library Square. I’ll be in the Kids Tent at 2:40 pm. Come say hi!

Et maintenant, I must run. I’ve got novels to rewrite and hostels to book. À bientôt!

Posted in About the Book, Appearances, News | No Comments »

Creative Writing at Place des Arts

Sunday, August 9th, 2009

I know it’s too soon to be thinking about fall. The evenings are still long and light. The park outside my window is still chock-full of tourists. Heck, it’s still blueberry season! (I actually picked about eight pounds of them at a farm in Richmond today. A blueberry-almond cake is bubbling in the oven as I type.)

But let me focus on fall for just a moment. Then we can go back to sunbathing and reading chick lit. I want to spread the word that this fall I’ll be teaching two creative writing courses at the fabulous Place des Arts in Coquitlam. Place des Arts, in case you don’t know, is an art and music school that offers every course imaginable, from clayworks to banjo lessons. Most are for children and teens, but there’s a good selection for adults as well.

My writing courses are for 9 to 12 year olds and 13 to 16 year olds. I’ll be posting some information on the website soon, but for now, you can check them out here.

C’est tout. Now get back to your backyard badminton or lemonade stand. Time’s a wastin’!

Posted in News, Teaching writing | No Comments »