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I appreciate your interest in my writing and would like to hear from you.
Well, the debating is done and the voting is complete, and although Autumn, One Spring is not the winner of this year's Manitoba Reads, the book had a great wave of support and was a close runner-up. I so appreciate all those who took the time to vote both over the summer and for the final decision. Rosanna Deerchild did a terrific job advocating for the novel and it was my pleasure to meet her at the opening night of Thin Air (the Winnipeg International Writers Festival). Thanks to festival organizers, as well as CBC Radio, McNally Robinson, and my publisher, Turnstone Press.
One of the best things about Manitoba Reads? The itch I now have to read my fellow authors' books.
With a lot of voting support Autumn, One Spring has made the Manitoba Reads Short List for 2012!
Along with the scorching summer heat has come some good news for Autumn. Autumn, One Spring has made the Manitoba Reads Long List for 2012. A public vote will decide the Short List of 4 titles, which will then be debated at the Winnipeg International Writers Festival this September. Some of that debate will air on CBC Radio and then the public will have another wave of voting to select the winner. A wonderful way of celebrating Manitoba books and authors! Here's the link if you would like to check out the site and vote.
You can vote daily (and be eligible for prizes from the Festival, CBC and McNally Robinson) until August 12, 2012. Autumn thanks you, as do I.Doodles, Dog Walks and Drains: Desperately Seeking Inspiration. The Writer's Collective and the Millennium Library are hosting this '100 Minutes with an Author' event Thursday, April 19th, 7:00 p.m., Carol Shields Auditorium, Winnipeg Millennium Library. I will be discussing various aspects of my writing life, including the elusive nature of inspiration as it applies to my work. The event is free with no registration required. I hope you can join me.
I will be conducting a Short Story Blue Pencil Session for the Manitoba Writers' Guild on Saturday, March 3, 2012, in Winnipeg. Participants will be sharing their own work as well as doing a little 'Circuit Training for the Scene'. If you are interested in this or any Blue Pencil Sessions, you can contact the Manitoba Writers' Guild (see my links).
I was so honoured to be included with the other inspiring and talented Fictionista authors. Pictured here, we enjoyed partaking in the lively discussion generated by host Alison Preston and audience members. Kudos to our publishers and McNally Robinson Booksellers.
Fictionista Tour...due to an unexpected author cancellation for this year's Winnipeg stop on the Fictionista tour, I have been asked to step in this Wednesday, November 23, 2011. I will be joining Canada Reads finalist Angie Abdou, debut novelist Sue Sorenson, and mystery writer Janice MacDonald at McNally Robinson, Grant Park, 7:30 p.m. for a fabulous Fictionista evening. Readings, chats and door prizes! Please join us.
Please come by to visit me in November. I will be signing copies of my novel Autumn, One Spring in Winnipeg book stores.
Chapters, Polo Park. Sunday, November 6th, 1 – 3:30 p.m.
McNally Robinson Book Sellers, Grant Park. Sunday, November 20th, 1 – 3:30 p.m.
Also, Turnstone Press and select authors will be at the Forks Market in Winnipeg on Saturday, November 19th and 26th, 2011, for chats and book signings. I will be in attendance from 12 noon to 3 p.m. on both Saturdays. Whether you're out for holiday shopping, great dining or strolling the picturesque Forks walkways, please come say hello! We'll be in the tower area of the main building on the main floor.
Reading from Autumn, One Spring on the evening of the Summer Solstice was a whimsical event in itself, but to be in Gimli, Manitoba made it all the more magical! Lorna Tergesen and Joanne Liang of Tergesen's General Merchant were wonderful hosts. Readings from fellow authors, Dale Barbour and Sheila McClarty, provided informative and intense entertainment. And afterwards, we had the opportunity to chat with appreciative audience members over refreshments. The elongated solstice evening was capped off with a stroll along Gimli Beach on Lake Winnipeg.
For parts of the remainder of this summer, I will be tucked away in cottage country (with limited internet access), hopefully committing some chapters of my next novel to memory stick. Until the fall . . .
I'm craving summer, and so I'm looking forward to taking part in a literary event in Gimli, Manitoba this month. The event is being hosted by Tergesen's General Merchant and I will be joining fellow authors Sheila McClarty (High Speed Crow) and Dale Barbour (Winnipeg Beach: Leisure and Courtship in a Resort Town, 1900-1967) for an evening of readings, book signing and refreshments. If you love books and the beaches of Lake Winnipeg, please join us on Tuesday, June 21st, 7:30 p.m. at the A-Spire Theatre, 76-2nd Ave. in gorgeous Gimli. It promises to be an entertaining evening and a great opportunity to stock up on summer reading.
Manitoba Book Awards Gala. The Manitoba Writers' Guild and the Association of Manitoba Book Publishers presented the awards on April 17, 2011. See more.
Although my nominee status wasn't upgraded during the award presentations (a creative way of saying I didn't win), I thoroughly enjoyed the Manitoba Book Awards Gala. Congratulations to all the nominated and winning authors. Of special note, I am pleased that my publisher Turnstone Press was recognized with Michelle Berry's win of the Mary Scorer Award for Best Book by a Manitoba Publisher. I am also thrilled that my good friend, Sheila McClarty (with me above), won the Eileen McTavish Sykes Award for Best First Book. It was a wonderful celebratory evening of Manitoba's literary scene.
Book signings...I will be signing Autumn, One Spring one evening and one afternoon!
Chapters, St. Vital Centre, Winnipeg
Wednesday, April 13, 2011, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
&
McNally Robinson, Grant Park, Winnipeg
Saturday, April 16, 2011, 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Aqua Books hosts an evening of readings with the nominees for The Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction on April 7, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. See more.
Manitoba Book Awards Nominees announced. Autumn, One Spring has been nominated for The Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction and the Mary Scorer Award for Best Book by a Manitoba Publisher. Manitoba has such a strong literary community and I am deeply honoured to be included with this year's nominees.
The Writers' Union of Canada group signing at McNally Robinson Books. On March 12, I spent a very enjoyable afternoon meeting readers and visiting with other Writers' Union members.
I was invited to Chapters in Regina, January 22, 2011, to read and sign from Autumn, One Spring. I was reminded why January road trips down the #1 highway are always an adventure. Blowing snow, transports in the ditch, black ice and br-r-r. All turned out well in the end.
Breakfast Television Book Club chat on December 15, 2010. A live on-air chat with Jenna on Breakfast Television's morning program was very exciting. We talked about the quirky characters and the small town setting of Hematite in my novel.
On December 7, 2010, I attended my first book club meeting as a special guest with Autumn, One Spring. I was pleased that all the members had completed reading the book. Along with their questions and interesting observations, I thoroughly enjoyed their hospitality and enthusiasm.
I was delighted when I heard that
Autumn, One Spring was chosen as Citytv's Breakfast Television Book Club choice for November. The spotlight on local and Canadian writers is a wonderful aspect of this morning show.
I journeyed to my home town in Northwestern Ontario where I was treated to a wonderful literary welcome by both Voyageur Books and the Atikokan Public Library. A luncheon/reading session at The Bistro started off the celebrations, followed by a signing at the book store. The next day, a fireside chat and a reading from Autumn, One Spring were on tap at the Library. Throughout the weekend, I was able to catch up with many friends I hadn't seen in years.
Turnstone Press and Aqua Books teamed up on November 6th for a Homecoming event which featured David Arnason, Ken Kowal and me reading from our new releases. Ken and my husband, David, provided some musical interludes as well! A very enjoyable evening!
The rest of November was jam-packed with appearances/signings at various book stores in Winnipeg, including McNally Robinson, Chapters and Coles. A big thank you to all the book sellers who support our work.
Launch of Autumn, One Spring at McNally Robinson Booksellers. After all the work was done, the final edits completed, I found myself in a place I love (McNally Robinson), accompanied by my wonderful publisher (Turnstone Press), and surrounded by my family and many friends for the official launch of Autumn. It's hard to describe the thrill of it.
The following week, I was treated to a wonderful reception of friends at the Red River North Regional Library in Selkirk, where a reading, signing and Q & A took place. Blaine's Books was on hand to once again show support for my work. My gratitude to all!
Fictionista Tour. I was so fortunate to be chosen to join the Fictionista Tour in Calgary and Edmonton prior to the official launch of Autumn, One Spring. In both cities, I was in the company of other wonderful women writers from across the west. It was my first taste of a book tour and it left me craving more.
St Norbert Farmers' Market readings. The Association of Manitoba Book Publishers sponsored this event on a lovely fall day in the midst of freshly harvested veggies and hand-crafted wares. It was my first opportunity to read from Autumn, One Spring, and although the book was getting its final touches at the printers, a sampler was available. Months later, a woman approached me at a book store and said she had received the free sampler that day at the Market and subsequently bought the novel. I was delighted to sign that copy for her.