Peggy Dymond Leavey- Canadian Writer

Unblocking Your Creativity

2012-01-25T11:50:00.000-08:00

Are you looking for a way to unblock your creativity? Perhaps you are between creative projects and looking for inspiration. Of all the books on writing I've read, the one I most often return to myself and always recommend is Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. It comes as no surprise to me that I often hear it referred to by other writers.

According to Julia Cameron, one of the two basic tools to unblocking creativity is the writing of "Morning Pages." The second is the "Artist's Date," which I'll blog about at another time.

Now that I am between books, I've gone back to doing Morning Pages. This involves sitting down first thing every morning and producing three pages of longhand, stream-of-consciousness writing. You should write whatever comes into your head, in whatever state you are in at the time: grouchy, feeling sorry for yourself. Even if all you write is the fact that your brain is mush and your feet are cold. Just keep writing till three pages are filled.

Why are you doing this? Because, as Cameron explains it, "All that whiny, petty stuff you write down in the morning is what stands between you and your creativity." Are you feeling resentment towards another artist? That's a sure sign, says Cameron, that you are creatively blocked. You need to get rid of all that "drek" by putting it in your morning pages.

Back when winter was WINTER and snow was fun.

When you're doing the pages, don't stop to think that what you're writing is drivel, or that you're wasting your time. There's no wrong way to do Morning Pages and therefore, the opinion of that pesky, internal editor doesn't count. Your internal editor is just another blocking device.

Why not give it a try? There's nothing to lose and all that natural creativity to unleash.

Write on!

One Family's Literacy

2012-01-17T08:08:00.000-08:00

Photo taken by me of my family on a camping trip in the old Nash Rambler.

The youngsters I talk to in the schools are sometimes surprised when I tell them there was no television in our home when I was growing up. Not that there was no such thing, just that my parents didn't think it was something we needed. I remember when television came to Winnipeg, how my friends and I stood and watched it for the first time through the storefront windows of a shop on Academy Road.

My parents didn't think we needed to be entertained. We were all read to as tots and went on to become avid readers and, in my case, writers. We played board games like "Snakes n' Ladders," "Parcheesi," and later, "Scrabble." There were paper-and-pencil games too, word games like Hang Man or the old party favourite where you tried to make as many small words as you could from one long word like antidisestablishmentarianism. (I can't believe my Canadian dictionary doesn't even recognize the word!)

Ours was a family that sang when we took car trips—between endless games of I Spy. We warbled along to folk songs like "Swanee River" and "Jimmy Crack Corn." And there were the camp songs, because we all went to camp, like "Down By The Bay" that required each one of us to come up with an original, outrageous chorus to every verse.

I'm privileged to speak on the occasion of Family Literacy Day at a local school next week. It's always fun to talk to children; I find their enthusiasm contagious. And I hope to share with them some of my personal experiences of family literacy.

Mary Pickford Visits the "Bomb Girls"

2012-01-08T09:24:00.001-08:00

Picture from the Archives of Ontario

Whenever I hear Mary Pickford's name mentioned anywhere, my ears naturally perk up.

I was watching the first episode of Global Television's new series, The Bomb Girls, when Mary's name came up in the dialogue between the actors. The setting was a munitions plant, presumably in Toronto, early in World War II. The female employees were chatting about the possibility of Hollywood movie star Mary Pickford paying a visit to the plant. The women in the show are employed in the making of bombs that will be used against the enemy overseas, serving a role every bit as important as the soldiers themselves.

A strong supporter of the Canadian war effort, Mary did visit the General Engineering Company's munitions plant in Scarborough on May 24, 1943, when the above photograph was taken. She spoke to a large crowd of enthusiastic women workers—real-life "bomb girls"—in the plant's cafeteria.

Her visit to her Toronto was under the auspices of the Lions' Club and the Gerrard Businessmen's Association, co-sponsors of the Mary Pickford Bungalow project. You will find more on that project and the story of Mary's life in my book Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart.

A Year Filled with Writing

2012-01-01T11:05:00.000-08:00

I can't remember if anyone wished me a Happy New Year last December 31st and a "year full of writing." If they did, that's exactly what I got—a year of almost non-stop writing.

After six months work, the manuscript of my book Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart
was delivered to the publisher at the end of March, 2011. Almost immediately I began reading biographies of other Canadian women, looking for another subject I might write about. But none engaged me the way Mary Pickford had. She had seemed a good fit for me, and I believe the fact that she always maintained strong ties with Canada has made her especially appealing to readers in this country.

Early in June 2011, my publisher asked me if I'd be interested in writing the life of Laura Secord, another in Dundurn's Quest Biography series. Laura Secord wasn't a person I would have chosen; her story began all the way back in 1775. But I said I was up to the challenge, and I'm glad now that I did. Over the weeks and months she too came to life for me—a real flesh-and-blood woman with a loving husband and seven children, living amidst the turmoil of the War of 1812.

I began researching Laura's life while I was still working on the copy edit and proofreading for Mary Pickford. That book was released in mid-September and launched officially on November 5th while I was still furiously writing Laura Secord. At times it was hard to switch from one subject to the other. But on December 29th, I delivered Laura Secord, Heroine of the War of 1812 to the publisher, right on time. A Bicentennial Book, it will be released in May, 2012. There is lots of work to be done before then.

So, wish me a year full of writing for 2012, and if you're a writer I wish for you the same: a year filled with joyous writing!

The Real Laura Ingersoll Secord

2011-12-12T09:01:00.000-08:00

The book is finished. I've written the beginning, the mid-section, and the end. I've completed the bibliography, the chronology, the prologue, and the epilogue. Now, it is "jelling."

I turn my mind to Christmas preparations -- hang the wreath on the front door, start the gift shopping, and plan the menus.

The "jelling" period is, for me, as vital as any other part of the process of writing a book. It is now that I see the project as a whole. Now while I have the time, I think of what I learned about Laura Secord, and how she started becoming a real person to me.

She was just an ordinary housewife living in pre-Confederation Canada. She gave birth to seven babies -- at home -- her last when she was forty-two. Sources tell me that Laura Secord also"did needlework," but obviously that went beyond embroidery because she also sewed clothing for her family.

Long after she died, an elderly man recounted how he used to shovel snow at Laura's house in Chippawa when he was just a boy. His family was very poor, he said, and Laura knit him the first pair of mittens he ever owned.

I imagine her standing at her window, watching the boy clear the snow from the walk to front door. Perhaps she sees him stop and blow on his cold, red hands before he takes up the shovel again. I think it was that act of knitting mittens for that boy, more than any other event I read about, that made me see Laura as she really was. Someone I wanted to know.

A Book for Christmas

2011-12-03T08:07:00.001-08:00

It's not likely that you have someone on your gift list who can remember the days of silent movies. But if you know someone who is a movie buff -- especially old movies -- or someone who loves to read about celebs (and Mary Pickford was the first movie superstar!) then I recommend my latest book, Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart.

Of course, there lots more to Mary's story than just the movies. She began her career at the age of eight, on the stage of the Princess Theatre in Toronto where she was born. Determined to provide for her fatherless family, she spent years barnstorming, riding the rails from one town to the next, until she landed, finally, in a Broadway production.

She and her second husband, the dashing Douglas Fairbanks, became Hollywood Royalty, and their magnificent home in Beverly Hills, dubbed "Pickfair," was the centre of Hollywood society.

But the story of the most important woman in the history of film-making also has its share of laughter and tears. Mary was, after all, only human. You might even want to read her story yourself!

The good news is, there's still time to order it in time for Christmas. If you can't find it on the bookstore shelves, it can be ordered online. www.amazon.ca says that if you order it today, you'll have it as early as December 5th. Check it out!

Laura Secord Country

2011-11-24T06:25:00.001-08:00


Laura Secord's House in Queenston

This is a familiar scene to anyone on the trail of Laura Secord. She and James and their family moved here in 1803, shortly after their third daughter, Harriet, was born. They'd lived in St. Davids for the first few years of their marriage.

The Secords lived in the Queenston house until 1835 when Laura and James moved to Chippawa. The Laura Secord Candy Co. bought the house in 1969 and after restoring it, donated it to the Niagara Parks Commission. The NPC maintains the homestead as a tourist attraction. During the War of 1812 Bicentennial celebrations in 2012-2014, this will be the scene of numerous events.

Scene of the Niagara River from Queenston Heights

The first thing I wanted to do after arriving in Queenston early in November was to take the short drive (four miles) to St. Davids. I wanted to see where Laura went on the first leg of her walk. She left her house before dawn on June 22, 1813 to walk to Beaver Dams and warn the British of the Americans' plan of attack. She apparently took "a circuitous route" to St. Davids, wanting to avoid any American sentries on the road. I could imagine her staying down where the land is low, below the escarpment.

Also at Queenston, where we saw Mackenzie's Printery, we toured the park atop the Niagara Escarpment, Queenston Heights, and saw Brock's Monument as well as the one to Laura Secord. I was amazed at the height of the escarpment which Laura had to climb in order to find her husband, James, who had been seriously wounded in the Battle of Queenston Heights on October 13, 1812. That was no small feat.


Sculpture of British General Drummond at site of Battle of Lundy's Lane

The second day of our tour we visited Lundy's Lane where the bloodiest battle of the War of 1812 was fought, and where both Laura and James are buried in the Drummond Hill Cemetery.

After a picturesque drive along the Niagara River, we arrived in Chippawa, the village that became the Secords' last home. James was the customs collector here from 1835 until his death in 1841. The lived in the Customs House, but later Laura bought a small house on Bridgewater Street, now a private residence. She died at home in 1868, a grand old lady of ninety-three.

I'll tell you the whole story in Laura Secord, Heroine of the War of 1812. Look for it in stores in June, 2012!

Tracking Laura Secord

2011-11-16T07:43:00.001-08:00

View across the Niagara River from Niagara-on-the-Lake

Last week we were in the Niagara peninsula, on the trail of Laura Secord, the subject of the biography I am working on. I wanted to spend some time in the locales that would have been familiar to her, to soak up some of the atmosphere. I believe it worked: I do feel as if I know her a little better.

Display case at the Niagara Historical Society Museum

We arrived in Niagara-on-the-Lake on an almost summer-like afternoon. The trees that lined the streets were shedding leaves the colour of gold, and one could smell the oak as we walked along the sidewalks.
At the wonderful Niagara Historical Society Museum in the town I found a display of some of Laura's personal possessions: a copper kettle where she is said to have hidden some doubloons from the Americans, a coverlet, handmade by Laura and her granddaughter, a small trunk, some teaspoons, some sugar tongs, and other small items.

This museum also has an extensive collection of artifacts from the War of 1812, and since that was the backdrop for much of Laura's story, I found it most interesting.

I was delighted to find in one alcove in the museum a sculpted bust of Laura, a smaller version of the one that sits atop her monument in the cemetery in Lundy's Lane.

Bust of Laura Secord by Mildred Peel

Because we arrived on a week day, historic Fort George was not open this time of year, but we did stroll around the property and take a few pictures. All along the scenic Niagara Parkway people were walking, cycling, and basking in the early November sunshine.


Fort George, Niagara-on-the-Lake

Now, onward up the river to Queenston. Stay tuned!

Pictures from Book Launch

2011-11-13T10:39:00.001-08:00

Here are a few pictures (in no particular order) taken at the launch of my latest book, Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart.

My cousin and two of my three sisters came to congratulate me after the launch. It was great to see them.

After viewing one of Mary Pickford's silent movies, The New York Hat, the crowd heads to the refreshment table and the line-up along the far wall where they wait for me to autograph their books.

This is me, reading one of the sections I chose from the book. I was thrilled at the size of the turnout, and sorry for those who ended up having to stand. Thank you to everyone who came to show their support, and to the Quinte West Public Library (Trenton) for hosting the event. Book sales were handled by Kathy Collins from J&B Books in Trenton.

The book is available from your favourite book store. If you don't see it on the shelf, they're happy to order it for you.

Book Launch Success

2011-11-07T10:07:00.000-08:00


Mary Pickford, Canada's Golden Girl

On Saturday, November 5 at the Trenton Library we launched Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart in fine style. I couldn't have asked for a better turnout.

We had expected about twenty-five (with my fingers crossed!), and we easily doubled that number, having to set up extra chairs. In the end, it was standing room only. Obviously, Mary Pickford still draws a crowd!

This is the way the program went. After a brief introduction I read several short selections from the book, tossing in a bit of necessary detail in order to link the pieces. A few questions and a bit of discussion followed.

Afterwards we showed The New York Hat, one of Mary's short silent films, available now on YouTube. It proved to be a big hit, with plenty of chuckles over the rather predictable plot. It is, after all, almost 100 years old. The film is considered to be one of Mary's best shorts, and was the last one she made for Biograph. It proved to be a good example of Mary's acting style, the way she used subtle, natural body movements.

The library generously provided the crowd some light refreshments while they stayed to chat, and I was kept busy autographing books and smiling for the camera.

So, the book is now officially launched! Go, Mary!

Human Library Project

2011-10-25T16:47:00.000-07:00

A view of my nook in the Colborne Public Library where I was a Human Book this past weekend.

Call it a Human Book or a Human Library, these programs are popping up in libraries across the country. The event I was participating in was hosted by the Colborne Public Library and the Spirit of the Hills Art Association to celebrate "October is Arts Month" in Northumberland County and Canadian Public Library Month.

In most cases a Human Library presents the public with the opportunity to consult, for one half hour, people who are of different ethnic backgrounds, who work at unusual occupations, who live on the edge of society, or who are simply interesting people with a life story to tell.

At the event last weekend, we were all engaged in creative work. There was a children's book illustrator, a sculptor, an artist, a man who specialized in Chinese calligraphy, a photographer, and a writer. We each had a corner of the library where we could set up the tools of our trade and where visitors could come and ask us questions.

So what did the patrons who consulted me ask? Which of the books in my display was my first? How do I submit a manuscript? What drew me to write Ivy's story (Growing Up Ivy)? Do I have any input when it comes to the cover art? What can you tell me about the importance of editing? And it was inevitable: what do you think about e-books?

This event was a first for Colborne library. I've since heard that all the participants enjoyed the experience. There are a few kinks to be ironed out, but everyone is willing to take part next year.

Write on!

One Day in the Life of a Writer

2011-10-20T06:40:00.000-07:00

Early in the morning my writing day seems full of promise. I will accomplish a lot this day because there are no scheduled interruptions -- no meetings, no appointments, no luncheons (as pleasant as that might be).

I will write 1000 words, email some updates to a couple of associations where I have a web page, send out more invitations for my upcoming launch of the new book, prepare some advertising posters, and do final revisions on the first two chapters of the next book.

A good plan. But, mid-morning, when I turn on the computer to re-read the biography of William Lyon MacKenzie that I need for the present writing project, I get distracted. I read my email, reply to those that need some response, forward a couple of emails that make me laugh, and take a look at what's going on with Facebook while I'm there.

So, how did I do, overall? I managed to write more words than I planned, I looked after most of the updates, emailed more invitations. But in order to do that I had to phone a couple of friends for email addresses and we got talking . . .

Another brand new day. This morning I finished those revisions on the first two chapters. And here's that blog post I promised. Now I need to plan for what I want to accomplish today. It's good to have a plan.

Such is life. For this writer, anyway.

The War of 1812 on Video

2011-10-06T08:46:00.000-07:00

http://www.pbs.org/wned/war-of-1812/

The War of 1812 provided much of the background for writing the life of Laura Secord. As my research for the book continues, I know I'm going to enjoy watching this PBS video that will be on television on Monday night. From what I've seen of the previews, it should be very interesting. Click the link above to see a short clip. We can never know too much Canadian history.

Be sure to watch for Laura Secord in the movie!

Focussing on Your Characters

2011-09-27T08:16:00.000-07:00

I recently shared with the members of the writers' group I belong to an article I'd read in the United Church Observer (September, 2011), an interview with theologian Marcus Borg, author of several books of popular theology. He's just written his first novel, "Putting Away Childish Things," and the interviewer was asking Borg how he found the new experience of writing fiction.

Borg admitted that for a long time writing the novel was a struggle. He found he couldn't get past the first few chapters because he didn't know what the plot was. I can relate to that.

After putting the novel aside for ten years, he decided to try a different approach: he'd start by focussing on the characters. He wrote a page about each one, who they were, where they were, what they liked, etc. Then he put them in a setting to see what would happen. "It was the breaking of an ice jam," Borg said, "and I finished the book in eight months."

He likens writing non-fiction, his usual field, to carpentry work. You know the sequence of the subject matter, and you know what topics you'll cover in each chapter. Then you just fit it all together.

I agree with what he has to say. By focussing on the characters in your fiction you know how each one will react in whatever situation he finds himself. You don't have to think about plot; the characters will help that to unfold. Then you can go back and make sure that it moves along as it should.

Write on!

Interview with Defining Canada

2011-09-20T11:42:00.000-07:00

The books have arrived! Soon they will be on the way to a bookstore near you. I hope you'll look for them.

Last week I was interviewed for Dundurn Press's Defining Canada about the writing of the book. Here is the link to that interview:

http://www.definingcanada.ca/2011/09/12/qa-with-peggy-dymond-leavey-author-of-mary-pickford/

I hope you will enjoy reading my responses to the interviewer's questions. Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart will be on the shelves in your favourite bookstore very soon.

"Yours till Niagara Falls"

2011-09-13T16:03:00.000-07:00

Can you remember when autograph books were all the rage? Those smallish books filled with the invitation of blank pages? We were in public school, likely grades 5 to 8, when collecting the autographs of all your friends was popular. The little books proliferated near the end of every school year.

You didn't just sign your name, either. You tried to come up with a little poem or bit of nonsense verse to go along with it:

"Yours till the butter flies."

"If by chance this book should roam, just box its ears and send it home."

At one time, my mother showed me her high school or teachers' college autograph book. Some of the entries there were quite philosophical:

"The road of life lies before you
Like a path of driven snow.
Be careful how you tread it
'Cos every step will show."

What struck me most about the autographs in my mother's book was the beautiful handwriting.

By the time we got to high school, autograph books seem to have disappeared. Maybe the school year books took their place.

What got me thinking about all of this was how often I wish I could come up with something original to sign, besides my name, at a book signing. There often isn't time to ponder what to write, but when there is, why can't I be clever? Or is "best wishes" enough?

Making History Interesting

2011-09-05T12:10:00.000-07:00

Happy Labour Day! Tomorrow all the students will be going back to school. This always seems a better time for New Year's than January 1st. Time for new beginnings and for making resolutions. A few years back I used to resolve to make writing a priority in my day. Then, lo and behold, it happened!

I now write an average of eight hours a day, largely because I'm under contract for two biographies, with only six months to deliver each one. Laura Secord is proving to take many more hours to write than Mary Pickford did. There's so much history to research. Laura was born during the American Revolution, and her feat of heroism took place during the War of 1812. I used to love history back in my student days.

What am I saying! I'm still a student, learning something new every day.

For instance, did you know that in February 1813, during the War of 1812-14, two hundred American soldiers and some volunteers crossed the frozen St. Lawrence River from Ogdensberg, N.Y. and freed a group of American citizens held in the Brockville jail. Before they fled back across the ice, they seized arms, supplies, and forty-five of Brockville's most prominent citizens.

The good news is that those prominent citizens were soon set free, but it conjures up some interesting pictures in my mind. Were those people snug in their beds when the Americans came calling? Or in formal dress attending a fancy event? They definitely were not planning on a stroll in the dark across the frozen St. Lawrence.

That is the kind of tidbit that makes history come alive for me!

Bringing Laura to Life

2011-08-23T17:47:00.000-07:00

What a relief to discover, as I begin the writing of Laura Secord, Heroine of the War of 1812, that Laura is starting to come to life for me. I need that to happen in order to make her real for my readers. I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to breathe life into her old bones.

As I write I imagine her as a child, growing up in war-torn Massachusetts during the American War of Independence. She waits at the front window for her father, a member of the state militia. I see her as a teen beginning the long journey to Upper Canada with her family, helping with the younger ones, comforting her stepmother who is expecting another baby.

Now she is a slim, vivacious, 21-year-old, working in her father's tavern in Queenston when she meets and falls in love with James Secord. Today I saw her at her wedding and imagined a lavish affair. Later she will go with James to begin married life in the little town of St. David's.

Behold, Laura lives!

Cover Art for Laura Secord

2011-08-17T06:02:00.000-07:00

This is the illustration that will appear on the cover of my latest project, a biography titled Laura Secord, Heroine of the War of 1812 (Dundurn Press, June 2012). The artist was Henry Sandham (1842–1910), a Canadian painter, photographer, and illustrator who was celebrated for his paintings and water colours of Canadian subjects.

I'm pleased that the publisher chose this piece of art from Library and Archives Canada for the cover. It's full of action and illustrates a pivotal scene in the book.

It also portrays a youthful Laura. She was only thirty-seven when she made her heroic walk in June, 1813. There appear to be no pictures of her in her younger years, and the best known pictures of Laura Secord show her as an old lady, near the end of her life, which I think is unfortunate. I intend to bring her back to life as the vibrant, courageous, and ever resourceful young Laura.

Stay tuned!

One Last Look

2011-08-07T09:42:00.000-07:00

Last week I saw the manuscript of my book, Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart for the last time. I had one final look at the edited proofs, reading for typos and checking the placement of the illustrations and their captions. I'm very happy with it! Matt Baker, the copy-editor, made my writing look very good.

And that's it! It will now be scrutinized for a week by an in-house proof-reader at Dundurn Press, and then it's off to the printer.

I first accepted this project on September 21, 2010 -- and all going well -- one year and 48,000 words later it will be on the shelf at your local bookstore.

I hope you'll look for it and let me know what you think.

The Next Project: The Life of Laura Secord

2011-08-01T17:35:00.000-07:00

Now that I've signed the contract with the publisher for my next book, I can share the news. I am writing another biography in Dundurn Press's Quest Biography series. This one, to be released in June 2012, will be about Laura Secord, the only female heroine ever mentioned in the narratives of the War of 1812.

And no, she didn't start the candy company that goes by her name.

Stay tuned!

Blogging in Summer

2011-07-24T12:14:00.000-07:00

For the first time in months I missed posting to this blog last week. Even through the long days of writing Mary Pickford's story, I posted a weekly entry.

But now that summer is here with a vengeance, with extraordinary heat, my energy has disappeared.

We've packed up and moved to the cottage for a few days. It's not a lot cooler out here, but there is usually a breeze to be found on one side of the cottage or the other. And when the temperature becomes unbearable we can refresh ourselves with a dip in the always-refreshing water of Lake Ontario.

There is no Internet access out here and I miss that. But that's no excuse not to work on my research notes or compose a few new blog posts.

Write on! And happy vacationing!

Reviewing the First Copy Edit

2011-07-12T11:46:00.000-07:00

I have just finished my review of the first copy edit of Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart. Because I'm used to writing fiction, I was surprised by how thorough the editing was and how long it took to go over every point the editor made. It was not just a case of reading and accepting his better choice of phrase; there were numerous queries to reply to, points that needed to be clarified. By the time I sent it back, my notes filled seven pages.

Every manuscript can benefit from a professional editing, but in the case of non-fiction it's crucial. There were several spots where what I'd said was unclear. That comes from being so close to the project that you lose your objectivity. I was grateful for the opportunity to make the story a better one.

This was my last chance for any re-writing. The pages go to the design department next. There will be one last chance to review the final copy edit, to make sure we didn't miss any typos, but it will be too late to do any rewriting at that stage. Then it's off to the printer.

Look for the book in September!

(The photo above is of my lilies last year, minus the red beetles that polished them off this summer!)

A.K.A. Gladys Smith

2011-07-05T12:02:00.000-07:00

Who was she?

She started life as Gladys Louise Smith. Born to poverty in Victorian Toronto, she made her stage debut in 1900 at the age of eight, determined to provide for her fatherless family.

After years of demoralizing road tours and out of economic necessity, she went to work in the fledgling motion picture business.

In 1920 she married actor Douglas Fairbanks, pictured here with her on their honeymoon voyage. Who was she?

She was Mary Pickford, actor, director, producer, and film executive, one of the founders of United Artists and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and the most important woman in the history of motion pictures.

For the full story, look for my upcoming title, Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart, available in bookstores in September or for preordering now by clicking on the link, or by contacting the publisher at www.dundurn.com

Allan Dwan, Silent Movie Director

2011-06-28T06:47:00.000-07:00

Allan Dwan, born in Toronto, Canada, April 3, 1885 was another contempory of Mary Pickford. "Joseph Aloysious" Dwan moved with his family to the US when he was eleven. He attended the University of Notre Dame, studying engineering. He went to work for a lighting company in Chicago, and it was there that he developed an interest in the brand new motion picture business.

When Essanay Studio (Spoor and Anderson) offered Dwan a chance to come on board as a scriptwriter, he jumped at it. In 1911, he began working in Hollywood. A number of movie companies had relocated to the west coast in order to take advantage of a 360 days of sunshine per year.

Allan Dwan directed both Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks in a number of their early pictures. He directed Pickford in A Girl of Yesterday in 1915, the film that made Mary the first actress ever to fly in a plane in a movie.

In 1922, Dwan directed Robin Hood, starring Douglas Fairbanks. In an interview the year before Allan Dwan died, he said of Fairbanks that the actor was athletic, "but not always smart." Once while Dwan was directing, Fairbanks insisted on leaping off a balcony onto a horse. Dwan told him that the idea was insanity. But Fairbanks did the leap -- and ended up in the hospital.

Dwan admired Douglas Fairbanks Sr. According to the famed director, unlike Faribanks's son Doug Jr., who had a reputation as a ladies' man, Doug Sr. was "devoted to Mary." Well, for a few years anyway.

Allan Dwan died in Los Angeles in 1981, at the age of 96.

Mary Pickford and the Nickelodeon, Part II

2011-06-21T12:46:00.000-07:00

It was Mary's mother, Charlotte, who broached the subject of her eldest daughter applying for work at Biograph, the leading film company in New York in 1909. The Biograph studio was sending two reels of film every day to the exhibitors, and word had it that the company was paying five dollars a day for actors in their movies.

"Would you be very much against applying for work at the Biograph studio, Mary?"

Go into the movies? Mary was incredulous. How demeaning! She was a Belasco actress; the flickers were beneath her dignity.

But a job in moving pictures would mean the four members of the Pickford family could stay together in New York for the summer, and Charlotte wasn't long in pointing that out.

Charlotte wasn't above a little bribery either. If Mary would agree to try her luck at Biograph, her mother would allow her to wear a pair of silk stockings for the first time. And a pair of high-heeled shoes.

Because she always did as Charlotte told her, Mary swallowed her pride. She dressed in her navy blue serge suit, striped shirtwaist, and a new, rolled brim straw hat, and boarded the streetcar to West 14th Street.

Mary had planned her route to the Biograph studio very carefully, in order to spend only one nickel on the cross-town trolley. Why waste precious money on such a pointless trip, anyway? She would step inside the hated studio, pay the call she'd promised her mother she would, and get out of there as quickly as she could.

The above is an excerpt from my upcoming book, Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart.
Look for it in bookstores in September, or preorder now, online.

Mary Pickford and the Nickelodeon

2011-06-14T11:50:00.000-07:00

Seventeen-year old Mary Pickford believed that nice people didn't go to nickelodeons. In 1909 there were thousands of these makeshift theatres in America, showing the latest rage -- motion pictures -- and they were often housed in converted storefronts, the plate glass windows covered over. Most stage actors like Mary, considered moving pictures, or "the flickers" as they were often called, beneath them.

Nickelodeons were so called because the price of admission was usually a nickel. For that price, one might see three reels of motion picture film and an illustrated song. Tickets for a Broadway show or vaudeville were expensive, out of reach of most of the working poor. But nickelodeons were affordable.

Often located in downtown neighbourhoods, nickelodeons were potential fire traps, cramped and fetid, the seating a collection of rickety old chairs. A piano player or violinist would be seated at the front next to the screen (usually a white sheet hung up) to provide musical accompaniment to match the action in the silent film.

The stock stage companies of which Mary had been a part and which had provided her and her family with a living, shut down for the summer months because the theatres got too hot. But the voracious appetite for motion pictures created by the nickelodeons meant the film studios were busy year round.

And Mary Pickford was looking for work.

TO BE CONTINUED

The King of Comedy

2011-06-05T09:32:00.000-07:00

Mack Sennett, founder of Hollywood's Keystone Studio and hailed as the "King of Comedy," was another of Mary Pickford's contemporaries. Like Mary, Sennett was a Canadian. He was born January 17, 1880 in Danville, Quebec, the son of a blacksmith. The family moved to Connecticut when Mack was 17.

Although he originally hoped to become an opera singer, the story goes that it was meeting Marie Dressler, the Canadian-born star of vaudeville, that led him to New York in search of work on the stage. Dressler was appearing in The Lady Slavey in Northampton, Massachusetts in 1898 when Sennett told her he wanted to break into show biz. Marie Dressler wrote a note to David Belasco, famed Broadway producer, on Sennett's behalf.

After appearing in burlesque and vaudeville shows, Mack Sennett apprenticed at the Biograph studio in New York from 1908-1912. This was where he first met Mary Pickford. They were both appearing in the early silent movies directed by D. W. Griffith. Both Sennett and Mary were also writing screen stories and having friendly competitions with each other to sell their work to Griffith.

There's an amusing story in my soon-to-be-released book, Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart, about how Mack wanted to put Mary's name on one of his scenarios because he thought Mary's writing was being accepted only on account of her long, blonde hair.

Mack Sennett became a producer and director himself, founding the Keystone Studio where he became famous for his slapstick comedies, including the zany Keystone Cop series. During his career, Sennett directed most of the well-known comedians of the silent film era. He has to his credit more than 1000 silent movies as well as a number of talkies. Sennett died in 1960, just before his eightieth birthday.

The World's Top Three Movie Stars

2011-05-29T11:29:00.000-07:00

I love this picture of the happy trio, the three most popular movie stars in the world in 1919 when, along with director D.W. Griffith, they founded United Artists in order to produce and distribute their own films.

Sitting on the shoulders of the ever-athletic Douglas Fairbanks Sr. are Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford. Their fans came to expect antics like this of the three. So much so that when they formed U.A. some wit was heard to say, "Now the lunatics are running the asylum." How wrong they were!

Melbourne Spurr, Celebrity Photographer of Silent Era Stars

2011-05-23T11:20:00.000-07:00

I recently came across a Facebook page devoted to the work of Melbourne Spurr, another of Mary Pickford's many photographers. Spurr arrived in Hollywood around 1917 and went to work for noted photographer Fred Hartsook (see my previous blog post). Spurr, who happened to be deaf, took many exquisite portraits of Mary, and his work so impressed her that she helped launch his career. By the 1920s, he had become one of the top celebrity photographers in Hollywood.

One of Mary Pickford's Favourite Photographers, Hartsook Studios

2011-05-16T10:04:00.000-07:00

During the course of researching and writing Mary Pickford, Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart, I often came across portraits of Mary that had been taken by Hartsook Studios. I was interested in knowing more about this chain of portrait studios which, in 1921, was the largest photographic business in the world.

Fred Hartsook was born in Indiana in 1876, into a family of photographers and studio owners. Although trained as a civil engineer, Fred became a wandering photographer after he and his wife, also a photographer, arrived in California, about 1906. They travelled the state taking pictures and using a team of oxen to pull Fred's homemade darkroom.

Eventually, Fred opened a photographic studio in Los Angeles and did so well that he was able to expand into other cities along the west coast of the U.S. He became famous for his portraits of celebrities, including many of Hollywood's stars of the silent films such as Mary Pickford and Lillian Gish.

Hartsook was also able to take up life as a rancher, and he and his wife became resort owners, developing Hartsook Inn on 37 acres of California redwood forest. The inn became a favourite of many Hollywood celebrities, including Bing Crosby and Mary Pickford. Fred died of a heart attack at the age of 54. His widow continued to operate the inn until 1938.

The photograph above is my favourite Hartsook photo of Mary. Let me know if you have favourites of your own.

The Writer While Travelling

2011-05-11T05:33:00.000-07:00

I suspect, like any writer, I'd be lost away from home without some writing supplies. I'm never without the pocket-size notebook anyway, the one that comes in handy in my day-to-day routine, to pass the time during long waits or to jot down sudden insights. This is where I record the current trip, hour by hour: the miles we cover, at what time we set out each morning, the stops we make along the way, the weather, the scenery, even the traffic flow. All this is useful for future reference, providing us with the most reliable way of knowing exactly how long it takes us to get to Myrtle Beach, or elsewhere. And it's entertaining to look back at these notes during cold Canadian Marches, if only to remind us of where we were a year ago.

One of my lined yellow scratch pads comes along on the journey too. In fact I used it when drafting this post to my blog. I also pack my regular daily journal into my bag. This is where I'll record any particularly remarkable days we spend, a place or an event that deserves preserving in the best way I know how.

And because I'm usually in the process of writing or editing something, this time the Mary Pickford biography, I take my notes for that along. I also made sure I had the manuscript on a flash drive, in case I heard from my editor.

Because I never want to be caught without some paper and a pen, I make sure my writing supplies go into the suitcase along with the bathing suits and walking shoes.

Happy trails!

Mary Pickford Postcards

2011-04-26T12:57:00.000-07:00

Ever since I began work on my book, Mary Pickford: Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart (Quest Biography), my cousin, who collects vintage postcards, has been on the look out for cards featuring portraits of Mary. The other day I was delighted to receive in the mail a package of several postcards from my cousin.

I never paid much attention to postcards before this, except to enjoy those sent by friends and family visiting far away places, or those I purchased myself to augment my own vacation pictures. But collecting postcards -- buying, selling and trading them -- is right up there with collecting stamps and coins as a popular hobby . I decided I should learn a little more about this fascinating pastime.

The collection and study of postcards is called deltiology. When the first postcards to use real photos appeared around 1900, many featured portraits of entertainers or family members. For a while, in the "undivided back" era (December 24, 1901 to March 1, 1907), anyone sending a message on the card had to write over the picture on the front. The back was reserved for the address and postage. After March 1, 1907, postcards came with a divided back, allowing space for the message. That fact could help to narrow down the year a particular postcard was printed.

Mary Pickford was just one of a number of early film stars to be pictured on vintage postcards. And now I'm going to pay a little more attention to the postcards I come across.

A Postive Review

2011-04-19T06:36:00.000-07:00

Just when I was wondering how much longer this cold, wet spring can last, and if there will ever be any good news, along comes a glowing review of my latest novel, Growing Up Ivy
Four stars out of four; highly recommended! To read it, click on the following link:

http://www.umanitoba.ca/outreach/cm/vol17/no32/growingupivy.html

One always hopes someone out there will take the time to submit a review of the book. After all, the publicity department sent out all those lovely, advanced reading copies.

The only thing worse than a bad review, they tell me, is no review at all. That would lead one to think his book fell into the proverbial black hole. Did no one read it??

But a good review in a well-respected journal does wonders for the writer's morale. And it was just what I needed during this less-than-springtime season.

Write on!

Another Canadian Star of the Silents

2011-04-10T13:29:00.000-07:00

It was interesting to discover, while researching the life and times of Mary Pickford for my upcoming book, several other Canadians who were working in the silent picture industry at about the same time.

One who preceded Mary as "The Biograph Girl" was Hamilton-born Florence Lawrence. Born Florence Annie Bridgwood on June 2, 1886, she was billed for her earliest theatre performances as "Baby Flo, the Child Wonder Whistler."

Six years older than Mary, Florence was already a member of the permanent company at the Biograph studio in New York when seventeen-year-old Mary Pickford arrived, looking for work in the "flickers."

Unfortunately, Florence Lawrence's story has a tragic ending. She was seriously burned in a staged fire that got out of control at another studio in 1915, and as a result, she was in shock for months. Although Florence had already made hundreds of movies, she never fully recovered from the trauma and was never able to regain her previous stature as a star. She took her own life by ingesting ant paste just after Christmas, 1938.

Look for mention of Florence Lawrence in Mary Pickford: Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart, available in September, 2011.

Discovering Ways to Improve the Writing

2011-04-04T13:23:00.000-07:00

As I often do when I am between writing projects, I've been going back through my writing file and re-reading some of my early, unpublished pieces. I'm looking for ideas that might be worth salvaging, but what I'm really finding is one of the reasons why these stories didn't work.

In some cases, they weren't stories at all, but rather little slices of life. In real life, we may accept our fate and do our best to carry on. That's life perhaps, but it's not the stuff of novels. I realize now that there wasn't enough happening in the stories to keep my (the writer's) interest, let alone the reader's. That's probably the reason they were left unfinished. I made the mistake of letting things happen in the story by way of coincidence or lucky accident.

There wasn't enough tension in these stories either, because I didn't give my character a big enough problem to solve. He needs to have a enough of a stake in the problem that he'll be moved to take action.

So now, it's back to square one. At least I'll have lots to keep me busy till we start the copy edit on Mary Pickford.

It's Rejection, However You Say It!

2011-03-28T16:54:00.000-07:00

I recently acquired some books that had belonged to a dear writer friend of mine. Among them was The Writer's Chapbook, A Compendium of Fact, Opinion, Wit and Advice from the 20th Century's Preeminent Writers.

It's the kind of book one picks up from time to time, and reads little tidbits from. Here, from the book, is a rejection letter unlike any one I've ever received. Maybe it's just as well!

"We have read your manuscript with boundless delight. If we were to publish your paper, it would be impossible for us to publish any work of lower standard. And as it is unthinkable that in the next thousand years we shall see its equal, we are, to our regret . . ."

It is a rejection from a Chinese economics journal.

Write on!

Into the Home Stretch

2011-03-21T06:22:00.000-07:00

I'm in the home stretch now, reading the manuscript from the computer screen, chapter by chapter, aloud, so that I can "hear the story." Above all, I want to make my version of Mary Pickford's biography more than a collection of facts.

As I read, I search out typos, move paragraphs to improve the flow, and delete unnecessary words. You know the gremlins -- adverbs and cliches.

The books bibliography is finish, the illustrations chosen, the index entries ready, but I've been having trouble getting the chronology into two columns. The dates for "Mary and Her Times" have to align with the dates of events in "Canada and the World," including the world of film-making.

I was fortunate on the weekend when I asked for suggestions from my writers' group that one of them, Helen, not only emailed me a table I can use, but also provided me with instructions for how to add to it.

Before this, I was entering information into both columns, only to have it move to the next page and into the wrong column. I was getting nowhere, and the deadline for submitting everything to the publisher was closing in.

That's the thing about writers' groups. Someone is sure to be able to help you out, but better yet, will be willing to share her knowledge. No one is holding his trade secrets close to his chest.

Write on!

Choosing the Right Illustrations

2011-03-14T12:04:00.000-07:00

It's time to choose the illustrations for the biography I'm writing. There are so many photos to choose from -- thousands of portraits, movie stills, and personal photos. Mary Pickford's portraits are all beautiful, many of them back-lit to give her hair a halo-like appearance.

But in my opinion, it's the candid shots that are the most interesting. In the one above, she's obviously on the set, re-applying her lipstick, while someone holds a mirror for her.

Mary always liked to be photographed from the left, believing that was her best side. She was critical of her looks, claiming her head was too large for her tiny body. It's not something I've been able to see, any more than I can see the side of her face that she considered less than her best.

Tell Me, Mary Pickford.

2011-03-06T11:32:00.000-08:00

I'd love to be able to call up my friend, Mary, and have her answer some of my lingering questions. Or better yet, drop in on her one afternoon and chat for a while.
After all the reading I've done about her, there are still a number of things I'd like to know -- little details that I've never seen in my research.
If only I weren't thirty-two years too late. It's like the regret we feel after a parent is gone, and we think of all the things we never talked about.

For one thing, how did a little girl, who spent her first eight years living in the Victorian slums in downtown Toronto, learn to horseback ride? When did that happen? And where?

We know she rode horses in her films. But before that, she had spent her childhood riding the rails, barnstorming across the States, appearing in plays in every little town that had a theatre. So, who taught her? When did she find the time to learn?

In her autobiography Mary mentions that she loved to read. As she thought about retiring from show business, spending more time with Buddy, her third husband, pictured with her here, she looked forward to relaxing at home and reading. What, I wonder, did she like to read?

Although she'd had no more than a few months' formal education, and her mother taught the three children while they were doing road tours, Mary always insisted that she'd learned to read from watching the billboards from the windows of the train.

I'm afraid that one question would just lead to another, if ever I'd had the opportunity to talk to this fascinating woman.

Now Available to Pre-Order

2011-02-27T12:47:00.000-08:00

What a pleasant surprise! The other day I got an email from an old friend at one of the libraries in Prince Edward County where I used to work, congratulating me. Why, I wondered?

Apparently, my upcoming book is listed in the spring 2011 catalogue of books the Library Services Centre is calling Solid Sellers. Not just listed inside, but pictured on the front cover for everyone to see. Needless to say, that "made my day!" I'm hoping that solid seller moniker is prophetic.

Mary Pickford: The First and the Best

2011-02-20T10:32:00.000-08:00

Anyone researching and writing the life of Mary Pickford, as I am, can't help but be struck by the number of FIRSTS she accomplished:

She is called the first star of American cinema,
the First Lady of the movies.
She was the first actress to make $1 million and
the first actor to have her name on a theatre marquee.
Mary was the first female movie star to fly in a plane in a movie,
the first female star to head her own independent movie company, and the first actor to achieve international fame and recognition among millions in the world.
She was truly the world's first Super Star.

So much about Mary's film career is mentioned in SUPERLATIVES:
She was the highest paid woman in the world in her time, making more money than the US president.

She was the most powerful woman in the history of motion pictures,
the biggest box-office draw in the world, and the most famous woman in the world in her time.

She was the most popular and financially successful woman in screen history.

I hope you'll enjoy meeting her in Mary Pickford: Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart.

Watch for it in September!

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T10:31:00.000-08:00

I keep a little, hardbound book where I save bits of poetry and prose that speak to me. Because today is Valentine's Day, I'd like to share this poem that I clipped some years ago. Unfortunately, I no longer have the author's name to pass on with it. It's not my work, but I'll call it Love Poem

Whiskers in the sink?
Why complain? It would be silly.
They belong to my guy.
Soggy towels on the floor?
I pick them up and say nothing.
Socks and shorts that didn't quite make the hamper?
I quietly put them where they belong.
Crumbs in the bed? Hey, where's my pillow?
Newspapers strewn all over the place
As he sits and watches hockey and baseball on TV.
But what do I care?
I am not alone --
That messy guy belongs to me.
He bought our house.
He loves our kids.
He zips me up and pats my behind.
He keeps me warm and smiles a lot.
He's faithful,
And he loves me.

To My Own, Special, Smiley-Eyed Guy.

A Mary Pickford Silent Movie: "The New York Hat," 1912.

2011-02-06T16:47:00.000-08:00

This is the last picture Mary Pickford made with director D.W. Griffith at the Biograph Company in 1912. She was 20 years old. A silent movie, I think it's a clear illustration of Mary's remarkable ability to express emotion without using exaggerated gestures. Her career was just beginning.
Enjoy!

Writing the End

2011-01-31T07:21:00.000-08:00

"I pleased my own generation. That's all that matters." (Mary Pickford.)

I've come to the end of Mary's story. This is proving to be the hardest part of the book for me to write. Mary Pickford's last years were not happy. When the age of silent films ended, and she had trouble adjusting to talkies, she tried to re-invent herself. She did some writing, turning out a couple of books, she spent some time doing radio broadcasts, and she worked tirelessly fundraising for her many charities.

But she was grieving the loss of her youth, and with it her adoring audiences. Her fans weren't interested in seeing "Little Mary" play more mature roles. She tried, but after two unsuccessful pictures, she bowed out.

From the first time she'd felt the love of the audience, as a tiny child on the stage at the Princess Theatre in Toronto, she knew it was something she needed. But the public wanted her to keep playing young girls, and that became impossible as the actress grew older.

If she had conquered talkies, and then been allowed to grow old in front of the camera, as her friends Lillian and Dorothy Gish had, things might have been different.

Instead, Mary retreated inside her beloved Pickfair where, starting to show signs of heart disease, she eventually she took to her bed. Her leg muscles atrophied to a point where she could no longer walk. She became a recluse, seeing only a handful of friends and family. And then there was the tragedy of her alcoholism, the old Pickford/Smith family curse.

How to write this part without excusing her excesses. A biographer must tell the truth. Mary was grieving the loss of her youth, her beauty, and the love of her life. Her husband Douglas Fairbanks Sr. had left her for a younger woman. One of her friends described the fifty-year-old Mary as extremely handsome. What woman, whose youthful beauty had been called "dazzling," would later want to be referred to as handsome?

I can't sugar-coat the truth. This is the way Mary's life ended. I am required to tell it as it was. But now I can go forward to record her legacy, all that Mary Pickford meant to the world of motion pictures, and of her philanthropic work, and I can end on a triumphant note.

Writing Because it Matters

2011-01-22T13:05:00.000-08:00

There are a number of books about writing that sit on the shelf above my desk, books that I return to again and again. Now that I am working on writing a biography for the first time, I took another look at Creative Nonfiction: Researching and Crafting Stories from Real Life, by Philip Gerard.

Gerard poses an important question for the writer of nonfiction: Why am I writing this? The answer should be, "because it matters."
It's the writer's job to show the reader why it matters to him, in hopes that it will begin to matter to the reader. That is my goal in writing about the life and times of Mary Pickford. I want you to "give a darn!"

More specific to writing biography, Gerard reminds the writer that he cannot invent dialogue, nor can he present the inner life of characters. "A good biography is founded on truthfulness."

This is one of my favourite quotes from Gerard's book: "Your writing is just black marks on the page until it happens in somebody else's head."
Write on!

A Sneak Preview

2011-01-15T12:49:00.000-08:00

I signed the contract with the publisher this week for a biography titled, Mary Pickford: Canada's Silent Siren, America's Sweetheart.

Ever since I first decided which Canadian woman would be the subject of my next book, I have immersed myself in everything Pickford.

The above illustration is a collage my eleven-year-old granddaughter created this afternoon, while she was showing me how to select and save images on the computer. The subject, naturally, is Mary Pickford.

It amazes me how easily today's youngsters adapt to the new technologies. I'm lucky that my grandchildren are willing to share their knowledge with me.

In The Midst of Writing

2011-01-09T10:49:00.000-08:00

When I first started writing this blog, back in August 2008, I intended that my posts would be a journal of my writing life, all the exciting things that fill the days of a Canadian children's writer.

But there are long stretches where nothing much seems to be happening, writing-wise, at least. That is usually because every day finds me at work on my latest project. I had promised myself from the beginning that I wasn't going to resort to blogging about what I ate for breakfast or the state of my digestion.

I am currently in contract negotiations with my publisher for the biography of Mary Pickford, and that's exciting. But otherwise, the work continues. Until I happened upon a book in the library that a writer friend of mine has just released, I had read nothing that wasn't related to Mary Pickford since I began the research, back in September.

What else can I tell you? It is a cold day. I have a pot of homemade soup simmering on the stove. Through my window I watch the birds visit the birdfeeders, before they dive down under the shrubs where the snow has provided a sheltering cave for them. It is lightly snowing.

Now, back to work on Chapter Seven.

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T09:10:00.000-08:00

In only a few hours 2010 will become part of history. I hope it will hold many pleasant memories for all of you.

If you are a writer, I hope the New Year will prove to be a productive one, one where you get to spend as much time as you want putting words on the page.

For me, I'm sure I'll be working on the Mary Pickford biography right up to the March 31st deadline. But look for me to post something here weekly. At least, that's one of my resolutions for 2011.

Write on, with joy!

Holiday Gift Idea

2010-12-12T09:59:00.000-08:00

If you're looking for a holiday gift for a young person, someone in Grades 6 to 9, I would like to suggest a copy of my latest novel, Growing Up Ivy. It is the story of two teenagers -- a girl, Ivy, and a boy, Charlie, growing up in the 1930s. Unbeknownst to either of them when they first meet, is a secret connection that they share.

I'm finding the book is also popular with readers over 50, especially those who enjoy fiction with an historical setting, in this case, the Great Depression.

I was asked by the publisher's Sales and Marketing department to tell them, in a few words, what the book is about. This is what I came up with:

Ill-prepared for life in the real world by a mother who plays games of make-believe, teenaged Ivy Chalmers learns some hard truths about some members of her family. Loving them just as they are shows that she is the real grown-up.

In its review of the book, The Record.com says, "(Peggy's) inclusion of crisp, historical details makes this book believable. It is a suitable read for a middle grade (Grades 7 & 8) reader who enjoys a sweet story about an intelligent girl." http://news.therecord.com/article/785789

Happy Holidays to you from me!

Joyful Writing

2010-12-04T07:35:00.000-08:00

I want to write with joy and abandon. I want to write purely for the love of it, the way much of Growing Up Ivy was written.

I don't want to care if what I write is ever published, or if the right people find it worth reviewing. I want to write to satisfy something inside me, and I call that JOY.

The business end of writing can be miserable. Everyone knows it's not for the the easily-discouraged. But it is also competitive and can destroy optimism. There are aspects of the business that bring out the worst in me.

Be gone, I say! Who wants to be mean-spirited? Life's too short for that.

Write on, with joy and abandon!

Everything Old is New Again.

2010-11-25T06:42:00.000-08:00

Like most other writers who started writing before the days of computers, I have file folders and bankers boxes filled with old manuscripts. A few of these efforts were eventually published, many were not. Probably twice as many went into the garbage where they belonged.

But every few years, something will cause me to browse through those old sheets of paper (Note to self: replace metal paper clips with plastic!)

Today, I'm looking for a Christmas story that I wrote many years ago. It actually made it to Peter Gzowski's show on CBC Radio, where it was read by the inimitable Shelagh Rogers.

I have no time to create something from scratch, and I need a seasonal story for my next writers' meeting. If I look hard enough, I may find more than one reusable idea in those boxes.

Looking For Symbols

2010-11-14T08:36:00.000-08:00

At some point during my early drafts, if I am writing fiction, I'll look for symbols in the story. If I find them, and if they are significant to the story, I will work at reinforcing them.

I learned more about the use of symbols from the college English Literature course I took this past summer. One thing that was stressed was, beware of finding symbols where none were intended.

Last weekend, at a reading by author Jane Urquhart from her latest novel Sanctuary Line, someone asked her what was significant in her use of cut glass in the book. It seems to come up frequently in the story.

Jane replied that she really didn't know. She recalled that a few members of her family collect cut, or pressed glass. Its appearance in the book must have come from her sub-conscious. It seems it isn't a symbol at all.

Jane is sure that one day, however, some clever reviewer is going to be able to see its significance. And then she'll know what it means!

A delightfully honest answer. I'm not going to worry too much about symbols. They could signify nothing!

Write on!

(The photo above shows sunrise over Lake Flower, in late October. It was taken from our favourite little motel in Saranac Lake, NY.)

Book Trailer for "Growing Up Ivy"

2010-11-06T09:33:00.000-07:00

Time to Begin

2010-10-30T12:25:00.000-07:00

The books on the subject of my latest project, a biography of Mary Pickford, are still coming in on inter library loan. Today I picked up the eighth of these. I've been reading, and making copious notes, almost non-stop since I was first offered the project, on September 21st.

My dining room table holds piles of notes on the lined, yellow pads I use, each stack labelled as to its source. I've bought myself a used copy of Mary's autobiography, Sunshine and Shadow, published in 1955. I've also ordered a copy of the best of the books I've discovered so far. I know I'll want to refer to it again and again.

I've reached the point in the research now where I am finding nothing new. Soon I must start writing. A 45,000 word biography seemed a gargantuan task at first, but now that I've made an outline (I never write fiction from an outline) and divided into chapters the topics I must cover, the project is starting to take a manageable shape.

Monday is November 1st. That seems like a good time to begin. The beautiful young girl above will be my muse.

Write on!

Small Audiences

2010-10-20T16:20:00.000-07:00

There is something to be said for small audiences. On the weekend, I gave a presentation for children at a local library. The group I spoke to numbered no more than six (including two parents).

I've been doing this for a while, so I don't let anything faze me. Once, I gave a writer's workshop to one young lad and his mother. As long as there is someone interested enough to show up, I will be there with them.

A small group provides an opportunity for everyone to be more comfortable. The children are able to crawl forward on their carpet squares, get a good look at the books, pass around the articles I've brought to show them, see the visuals up close.

I am able to answer questions as they occur to the kids (and to their parents). The atmosphere is relaxed and chatty. Last week, because I was adapting the session as I went along and had shortened it up a bit to accommodate the age of the audience, there was even time at the end to read them a special story.

Note: the photo above is by Cassandra Davidson, photo journalism student at Loyalist College, Belleville, Ont.

Till next time.

Stumped!

2010-10-10T10:04:00.000-07:00

Last week I had one of the best visits I've ever had with a group of school children. My audience, at the Trent Hills Public Library, was made up of two classes of Grade 4/5 students, their teachers and a couple of parents.

As soon as I entered the library I was greeted by the sight of a colourful banner that extended the length of the second floor gallery. "Welcome Peggy."
The children had painted it and each of nine sections was a scene from one of my books. Needless to say, I was delighted!

Then the children trooped in. They sat around me on the floor in the sun-filled hall at the top of the stairs. To my surprise, some of them were in costume, other were carrying props. All would later be revealed, I discovered.

I loved that these kids were already familiar with my books. The teachers had read, or were in the process of reading, Treasure at Turtle Lake to them, and I had geared my presentation to that book and its sequel, Trouble at Turtle Narrows. Many had gone on to read other books of mine and had earlier emailed me their questions and comments. It seemed as if we were already friends.

At the end of our time together I gave them a little quiz, ten questions about Treasure, obscure questions like what size sneaker Matt Penny wore. They were enthusiastic about taking part in the quiz and they did very well.

But they had a surprise for the author. Remember the costumes and the props? The twenty-six students in one of the classes had each taken on the role of a character in my books, even including the latest, Growing Up Ivy. The teacher told me it was the first time he'd been able to find enough different characters for each one of his students to have a role.

Each child could give me three clues, and I had to try to guess which character he or she was. It wasn't easy! Often I could recall the character, see him in my mind's eye, even the book he came from. But his name? That was another matter. They even included villains like Victor Govier, and Bus Guy/Eddie (the stringy, grey wig and the shovel should have given him away), as well as the more likeable characters. More than once the children had to resort to a "name rhymes with" clue.

Imagine being stumped by your own characters! It was great fun and we were all wearing wide grins by the time it was over.

Keep on being excited by reading, kids!

A Celebration of the Arts

2010-10-05T05:38:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I attended the Conference for the Arts, held at Sir Sandford Fleming College in Cobourg. (Added bonus: a long drive through the brilliant fall colours.) The organizers called their conference "Living the Arts: celebrating creativity in our lives." I came away thinking that there is much to celebrate.

Although there were few writers in attendance and the sessions were geared toward the visual and performing arts, I was still able to glean a lot that would be useful for those of us involved in literary art.

The keynote address was delivered by famed Canadian tenor, Michael Burgess, star of television, film, recording and performance. Along with his many entertaining anecdotes, Michael reminded us of the need for artists to keep challenging ourselves. Even on the toughest days, he said, we need to just show up, because nothing ever happens if we don't show up.

I attended a session on developing and teaching workshops, learned the things to consider when setting one's fee and how best to promote the event. Another interesting session was called "Marketing to a Moving Target." I know that the information on how to use social media to get the word out will be most useful to me.

The best thing about events like this conference is the opportunity they present to spend time with creative people. And I am always grateful that so many of them are willing to share contacts with me.

Latest Project

2010-09-26T08:54:00.000-07:00

I have begun to do research on the life of Mary Pickford. The Encyclopedia of World Biography calls her, "the first star of American cinema. Immensely popular in the silent era of motion pictures, Pickford was also a shrewd businesswoman and the first female movie mogul."

Born in Toronto, Canada, in 1893, she started stage acting at an early age. Here and in the U.S. she worked her way up the theatrical ladder until, even to this day, more than thiry years after her death at the age 86, we still remember her as "America's Sweetheart."

Her marriage to the swashbuckling actor, Douglas Fairbanks Sr., was dubbed "the marriage of the century," and the couple's adoring fans considered them Hollywood Royalty.

Mary was very proud of her Canadian roots, and today she has a star on Canada's Walk of Fame. I love this photograph of her, writing, and I know I'm going to enjoy getting to know this rare woman.

Memoir Writing

2010-09-19T09:04:00.000-07:00

Anyone interested in writing a memoir was given plenty to think about at our monthly "Spirit of the Hills" writers' meeting on Saturday. Our speaker was Pat Calder, one of our own group and someone who taught creative writing for thirty years.

Pat shared with us some of what she had learned from a workshop on memoir writing that was presented by Judith Barrington, as part of the San Miguel Writers' Conference in Mexico in February of this year.

The most important thing, we were told, was to get the memory down. Just write! The art comes later, in shaping it. If part of the memory has become lost, keep writing around it. You may find a new memory. The more you write, the more you will remember.

Someday I may decide to write my memoirs. I've been collecting anecdotes in a file for years, fleshing them out a little whenever the spirit moves me in that direction. These stories from my life aren't in any chronological order, as they would be if I were writing an autobiography. Yesterday I learned that memoir is driven by theme, rather than by a sequence of events.

Defining a theme could prove to be difficult because, to this point, I've gone off on all sorts of tangents. A reader might find that boring. I can see now the importance of narrowing it down, in "finding the linkages that give resonance to the chaos of life."

Judith Barrington says there's no such thing as a fictionalized memoir because memoir is true. She says that the best way to learn how to write memoir is to read the good ones. We came away with a list of recommended titles. Right now, I'm going to track down a copy of Barrington's Writing Memoir: from Truth to Art.

Write on!

Keeping the Story Alive

2010-09-12T13:21:00.000-07:00

I know that the story I've been working on is incubating because it comes to me when I wake in the night. It is still there. Even when it's been several days since I've been able to work at it, it's alive in my subconscious.That's comforting, at least.

I've been busy writing press releases about a book signing I'm doing in two weeks, sending off announcements about events I have coming up in the next six weeks, selecting audience-appropriate readings to give, preparing a presentation for two school classes early in October, and getting around to all the area bookstores and signing their in-stock copies of Growing Up Ivy.

It's all part of the business, but I can't help feeling that I should be writing. Better days ahead!

Back to Basics

2010-09-07T06:30:00.000-07:00

One last weekend at the cottage. Our retreat is pretty rustic, but occasionally, I find that is a good thing. There are times when I need to get away from all the distractions technology brings about. We have no television at our cottage, no Internet and therefore, no social networking (my biggest time waster). There is no telephone either, except for our cell phones, with a limited number of people on the other end who have access .

The quiet at the lake allowed me to sort out some of the complications in my novel-in-progress. How much information would the man who ran the village art gallery have about the two women in the house across the alley? One was an artist; he'd sold a painting for her once. But neither of their names matched the one on the watercolour.

How was I going to make this work? What a muddle I had created! I had written myself into a corner in more scenes that just this one.

Over the weekend, I sat down with my lined, yellow notepad and listed what the problems were, which changes had to be made to the story in order to bring about the outcome I need. It would be back to the noisy world soon enough.

Write on!

Making Connections through Story

2010-08-30T09:42:00.000-07:00

On Friday, I accepted an invitation to read selections from Growing Up Ivy to a group of men and women who could themselves have been characters in the book. My audience was the Book Club at a nearby retirement residence.

I was fully prepared to have one or two of them get up and wander off while I was reading. In fact, I'd been warned that this could happen. It didn't. Everyone listened with great interest, and when it was over, several of the group contributed memories of their own about life in the Great Depression.

A couple of residents recalled a man who used to sharpen knives around the countryside. He used to travel from place to place in a horse-drawn caravan, similar to the one Ivy spent the summer months in, with her father.

One woman, who had lived as a child next to a golf course, identified with Charlie collecting golf balls and re-selling them at the golf course. Someone else recalled getting paid to shovel manure from the street after the delivery horse had gone by.

Many in the audience told me that they used to go everywhere on their bicycles. And soon we were all laughing with one gentleman's tale of learning to ride a bike, how he forgot to look ahead rather than down at the road, and ended up ploughing into a woman crossing the street. The poor soul had cursed him out soundly in Yiddish.

It was a very pleasant afternoon, and I was delighted that these elderly people felt a connection to Ivy's story. That, after all, is why we write.

Real Settings for Fiction

2010-08-22T06:48:00.000-07:00

I first saw this house out of the corner of my eye as we drove past it last year. Since then, it has become part of the setting for the novel I'm working on. The large, log house on its high foundation of fieldstone stuck in my mind. It was perfect.

Last weekend we drove north to visit family, and I tried to find "my" house again. It wasn't where I thought it should be. We took a different route home, and suddenly, "That's it!"

Turning around, we went back to get a closer look. I was surprised to find the place deserted, the big front door padlocked, and the grounds overgrown. But that afforded me the opportunity to photograph it from several angles, without fear of being run off the property.

This isn't the first time I've gone looking for a real setting for one of my works of fiction. I was inspired by a spooky-looking mansion, set among tall trees, in deep shadows at the end of a long driveway for the mystery, The Deep End Gang (2003).

I kept a picture postcard of the massive rock at Bon Echo on Mazinaw Lake, Ontario, above my desk when I was writing Sky Lake Summer, back in 1999. It kept reminding me of what my characters were up against in the story.

For Treasure at Turtle Lake (2007), I needed to count the number of steps in an outside staircase that led from an alley to a flat over a store. There were twenty-two.

It was a "belvedere" I was after for Trouble at Turtle Narrows (2008), a room at the top of a house, with windows on all four sides that "perched on the rooftop like a little glass hat." I found just the right architecture in some of the older houses in northern New York State.

Write on!

Where Are They Now? Life Beyond "The End."

2010-08-17T06:19:00.000-07:00

What happened to the characters in Growing Up Ivy, after the end of the book? To Ivy and Charlie, to the seemingly uncompromising Maud, and the irresponsible Frannie?

Because Ivy is still so real to me, I like to speculate, at times, about what happened to all these characters in the succeeding years.

Authors have to present the idea of an ending to their stories, but I know that life went on for Ivy, beyond the end of this book.

In one of the early versions, I began Growing Up Ivy with a flash forward scene. Ivy, Charlie and their adult children are sitting in the front row of an auditorium. The occasion is a ceremony where Ivy is to be presented with a distinguished award for literature.

The Master of Ceremonies is on the dias, giving his opening remarks, when the door at the back of the auditorium opens slowly. An older woman -- a faded beauty, you might say -- takes a few tentative steps inside. An usher hurries up the aisle toward her, hoping he can find a seat for her at the back as quickly as possible, so as not to disrupt the procedings.

"Is Ivy Chalmers here?" the woman whispers.

"Of course. She's the guest of honour." The usher has a firm hand under the woman's elbow as he attempts to steer her to the nearest seat.

"Could you point her out to me, please?" The small woman stands her ground. "It's been so long, I might not recognize her."

The woman is, of course, Frannie, Ivy's mother. I never used this scene because I thought it gave too much away. But it lingers in my mind. It suggests one way Ivy's personal story might have gone.

Why I Chose the Setting I Did

2010-08-08T17:24:00.000-07:00

If you're reading Growing Up Ivy, my latest book, you may be wondering where you might find the town of Larkin, the main setting for Ivy's story. You'll have no difficulty finding some of the other Ontario locations mentioned in the book: Toronto, or Brockville, or the other towns on Frannie's summer theatre circuit. But you won't find Larkin. It's a fictional town, the same way Dillfield and Port Clear are.

Using a fictional setting gives me the freedom I prefer. I don't have to worry about whether or not there was a pants factory in town in 1931, or where the railroad tracks were, in relation to Arthur Road. When I'm working on a novel I'll often draw myself a map of my setting, so that I can remember where the fourth concession intersects the highway and which end of Main Street I located the school on. I get to design the layout of this mythical town the way I want.

When I was writing Growing Up Ivy, I was picturing Larkin being in Prince Edward County, Ontario. I was a librarian in the County for almost seventeen years and got to know it well. Larkin could easily be any one of a number of small towns there.

But in the end, I had to transport Larkin elsewhere, moving it somewhere east and north of Toronto. The re-location was necessary in order to get the Pechart River to flow in the right direction (south, to Lake Ontario), and because Ivy and Gloria made the journey from Toronto to Larkin on foot. They say that the average person walks about three miles per hour (forget metric; this was 1931). So, if Ivy walked for six hours from, say, Birchcliff, she would have arrived somewhere between Pickering and Ajax.

Still, the canning factory, the ball diamond where Charlie Bayliss played softball, the one-room school, the shops in town, the river, the strawberry fields -- they are all "the County" in my mind.

Signed by the Author

2010-08-03T07:30:00.000-07:00

Last week I did my own mini-book tour, visiting the independent book stores in the neighbouring communities and offering to sign any copies of my new book that were in stock.

I've discovered that store managers are very receptive to this idea. I get to introduce myself as a (somewhat) local author and meet the people who are responsible for ordering the books they'll carry. Now they'll have a face to put with my name. Often the signed copies get a special sticker on them, indicating that they are "autographed by the author."

As an added bonus, these books are usually given a more prominent location on the shelf. At the lovely Furby House Books in Port Hope, Ontario, Growing Up Ivy is now shelved -- cover out -- right next to books by Farley Mowat; or just "Farley," as he's affectionately known here. Now that's pretty stellar company to be in!

Fiction Set in the Past

2010-07-24T07:14:00.000-07:00

My latest novel for young readers, Growing Up Ivy, is labelled Historical Fiction by the publisher. But is it? Canadian author Joan Thomas, writing in Quill & Quire (July/August, 2010), suggests that a story like mine, (and her own two, by her own admission) is instead, "fiction set in the past."

According toThomas's article, Avrom Fleishman outlined, in the 1970s, certain criteria for historical fiction: that the story be set at least two generations prior to the writing of the book, and that it be about real people in history.

Ivy's story, set in the 1930s, would not make the cut by either count. Ivy Chalmers never lived, except in my imagination and, I hope, on the pages of the book. To tell her story, nonetheless, involved considerable research about life in Ontario during the Great Depression. But I think I like calling it "fiction set in the past." It's a term both of us can live with; Ivy and I.

Book Signing Success

2010-07-17T12:08:00.000-07:00

We woke yesterday to thunder and the sound of heavy rain overflowing the eavestroughs. This is not something you want to hear on the day you're scheduled to do a book signing in the out of doors.

There's an old adage that goes: rain before 7; clear before 11. I tried to focus on that as I got ready to leave. And sure enough, by 9 a.m., a brief glimpse of sun, and there was not another drop of rain after that.

Yesterday was the first time I signed copies of Growing Up Ivy for the public. The signing went very well. So well, in fact, that the store ran out of copies, and we had to use some of my own stock that I'd brought with me (always a good idea, I have learned).

The only advertising we had was a no-cost announcement in the Community Events column on the back pages of the local newspaper the day before. The secret to our success was to coordinate the book signing with an event already taking place, one where we knew there'd be lots of people, people who had not left their wallets at home.

This weekend is the annual summer sidewalk sale in the city, so I was guaranteed a steady stream of people strolling by my table. I was also very lucky that the shop owner's wife sat with me under the sun umbrella, and she's a friendly, outgoing person. While I would say, "hi," to anyone looking in our direction, Kathy would say, "Good morning. How are you today?" and invite them to come and meet a local author. And a number of them did, and stayed to buy a book and have it signed.

I had a good time. It was vastly better than sitting alone at a table in a bookstore, watching customers try to avoid me, and hoping my family would soon show up.

I've decided that everyone should have someone like Kathy as part of their PR team.

The Joy of Poetry for Children

2010-07-10T05:12:00.000-07:00

My father read poetry to us when we were little. Years later, I still hear his voice when I come across these old poems again.

Dad loved A Child's Garden of Verses, by Robert Louis Stevenson.

"How do you like to go up in a swing,
Up in the air so blue?
Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing
Ever a child can do."

When our two youngest grandchildren were staying here a couple of weeks ago, they'd been looking for a bedtime story from among the children's books we keep in the spare room. To my delight, I found the oldest was reading to her younger brother from a book of poems by A.A. Milne.

"Whose book was this, Grandma?" Its pages now are quite thin and discoloured, and some long-ago child had scribbled on them.

How could I resist reading a poem or two, the same ones I'd read to their mother?

"They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace --
Christopher Robin went down with Alice.
Alice is marrying one of the guard.
'A soldier's life is terrible hard,'
Says Alice."

Or, my favourite:

"James James
Morrison Morrison
Weatherby George Dupree
Took great
Care of his Mother,
Though he was only three.
James James
Said to his Mother,
'Mother,' he said, said he;
'You must never go down to the end of the town, if
you don't go down with me.'"

How could you not share poetry with a child?

Feeding the Muse

2010-07-03T10:20:00.000-07:00

It often feels as if I write in a vacuum, not getting any feedback, but not asking for any either. So every once in a while it's important for me to climb out from my desk and spend time in the company of other like-minded people.

One day last week I joined three other members of CANSCAIP (Canadian Society of Authors, Illustrators, and Performers) for a get-together over lunch. My companions were Martha Newbigging, a talented illustrator of numerous children's books; lian goodall, children's book reviewer, author, biographer and editor; and Colin Frizzell, author of two YA novels, a teacher of creative writing, poet and screenwriter.

I was only one one of the group who does not live in Prince Edward County. I feel a stong connection to it though, because I live practically next door, and because I worked for the Prince Edward County Library for many years.

Our lunch date was a fun occasion. Over veggie burgers at the Tall Poppy Cafe in the picturesque village of Wellington, we talked about our trials and triumphs, showed off our latest creations, shared our hopes for future projects, and persuaded our amiable waiter to take our picture.

I came home feeling energized and ready to get back to work. We'll do it again sometime soon. In the meantime, it's comforting to know the others are out there. I know I can count on their encouragement and support. And that works both ways.

Write on!

Staying Healthy

2010-06-27T12:50:00.000-07:00

You may already know that Ernest Hemingway used to stand to do his writing. That could explain the raised typewriter in the photograph.

Lately, I've heard it said that sitting for long periods of time has adverse effects on one's health. That could be bad news for us writers. Maybe Hemingway was ahead of his time. I know of several Canadian writers who have recently invested in treadmill desks, which allow them to write and walk at the same time.

Personally, I try to get up from my chair and move around, after about an hour of sitting at my desk. And recently I've even tried standing while I write.

At first, I had trouble finding a place that was the right height for me to work at. A podium would be perfect, if I had such a thing. But I've since discovered that the pass-through between our dining room and kitchen works just as well, and it has a wide enough surface that I can spread out my work. So, I'm alternating now between sitting and standing.

I know I'm not getting the exercise I would if I were walking, but a brisk walk is part of my daily regime anyway. And I prefer to do that outdoors.

Write on!

It's Here!

2010-06-22T15:56:00.000-07:00

Here it is, folks, Growing Up Ivy. And here's what it's all about.

It is 1931. Ivy Chalmers is almost thirteen, living in Toronto with her mother Frannie, an amateur actress. When Frannie abandons her for the New York City stage, Ivy goes to live in the town of Larkin, with the grandmother she has never met.

Ivy truly believes that her mother will one day return.

But in the meantime, her long-lost father shows up. Instead of being the fairy-tale Prince she has always imagined, the man is an illiterate peddler. He arrives with an old grey horse and a wagon filled with shoes for sale. When he agrees to take Ivy with him, she starts to unravel some of her family's secrets. Not the least of which is her connection to Charlie Bayliss, the boy she finds herself increasingly attracted to.

Enjoy!

How to Get Noticed

2010-06-19T13:30:00.000-07:00

Could the young woman in the photograph be reading a review of your lastest book?

We had a special guest speaker at our Writers' Breakfast this morning. Debbie de Groot is someone who makes her living as a professional publicist. Needless to say, for a writers' group, publicity is a very hot topic, and our guest was well-peppered with questions. We all wanted to know the secret to getting our books noticed by the media, in order to reach our intended readers.

There are over 300,000 books published in Canada every year. If that's not mind-boggling enough, just imagine all those authors trying to get attention, counting on the media to get the word out.

It would be too expensive for most of us to go out and hire a publicist. To give us an idea of what a publisher might budget for publicity, Debbie told us it's about one dollar per copy. For a print run of 3000 copies, the publicity budget would be around 3000 dollars.

So what can an author do to increase her chances of getting an interview, or an article written about her book? Debbie says we need first to decide who our reader is. Is it a 14-year-old girl, a middle-aged woman who loves to quilt? What is her demographic? Then, we have to decide how best to reach her. There are four major channels of communication: TV, radio, print, and online.

The most important thing for us as writers to decide is what it is that we want to tell the reader about this book of ours. And we need to be able to do it in 30 seconds. Any longer, Debbie says, and the reader has lost interest.

So, that's my homework for the weekend. What can I say, in 30 seconds, that will make someone so eager to read Growing Up Ivy, that they will go out and buy a copy?

Till next time.

Imagine This

2010-06-09T16:43:00.000-07:00

Readers of this blog (April 30, 2010) will know that there's a rum bar and grill on Sanibel Island in Florida that is named for Doc Ford, the protagonist in the popular novels by Randy Wayne White. Sanibel also happens to be the setting of several of these novels. Fans of White's books can drop in to the bar and grill, have a meal or a drink and pretend that the man at the table in the window is Doc Ford, in the flesh.

It's a cute idea. It's been done before (think Green Gables in Cavendish, PEI, or Rick's Cafe in Casablanca), but still, it leads me to imagine what businesses one might find in Larkin, Ontario, the setting of my new novel, Growing Up Ivy.

Let me give you a bit of the background. The last time we met Ivy and Charlie and Albert, it was 1934 and they were still in their teens.

Albert Coon, Charlie Bayliss's best friend from the old days, took over Coon's Grocery from his parents after WWII. His biggest competitor, Stickles' General Store, went out of business when old Mr. Stickle died, and shortly afterwards, the building became the home of Alva Chalmers' Shoe Emporium, named for a man who had, for a time, peddled shoes. He was the father of Ivy Chalmers, who has for many years been the editor and publisher of the Larkin Herald.

For a while, someone in town tried to run caravan tours under Alva Chalmers's name, but with the increase in traffic on the area roads it soon became too dangerous for the horses, and his daughter insisted that the business cease operations.

Outside of town, they finally put in flood lights at the Larkin Ball Park, home of the famous Townies and Farmers. The biggest and most coveted trophy presented to the champion softball team each year is the Bayliss Repair and Radio Shop cup.

You may still find, about halfway down Arthur Road in Larkin, on the street next to the tracks, a narrow house of grey clapboard called Maud's Place. There's a hand printed sign on the gate that advertises free range eggs for sale and pure strawberry jam, made from berries handpicked at Elders' berry farm.

I do hope to meet you there soon.

What Did You Read as a Teen?

2010-06-02T08:41:00.000-07:00

What did you read when you were a young teen?

Because my new novel, Growing Up Ivy, is meant for readers of that age, the interviewer's question was a valid one. I had to stop and think about my answer for a while, though. After all, it's been a very long time! (As witness the black and white photo above!)

But I do remember that by the time I'd reached my early teens, I'd read my way through the Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, and Cherry Ames series.

My taste in reading in those years was very much influenced by the books I was studying in school. I loved Moonfleet, by British author J. Meade Falkner, and was so intrigued by Cue for Treason that I went looking for everything else that Geoffrey Trease had written.

I'd fallen in love with Anne of Green Gables back when our teacher read it aloud to our Grade Six class in Winnipeg. Afterwards, I read all the other "Anne" books in sequence. Grade Nine "Eng Lit." introduced me to Whiteoaks of Jalna by Mazo de la Roche. I still can't understand why that particular book, from the middle of a series of sixteen, was chosen. But it did lead me to explore the other novels by this Canadian author. It came as a shock to me then that my mother had also read the "Jalna" books. Oliver Twist, which I studied in Grade Ten, fuelled my lifelong appetite for the works of Charles Dickens.

In those days, most of the books in my personal library had been gifts from my parents on birthdays and for Christmas. My dad, who was from England, chose British authors for me: Kenneth Grahame and Arthur Ransome (whose books I loved), as well as Jane Austen (whose books I found rather rough going). And of course I read what every other curious teenager was reading in 1957, Grace Metalious's Peyton Place, even if I did have to hide it under the mattress!

Happy summer reading!

Guest Author: Jill Murray

2010-05-26T10:33:00.000-07:00

I have a special guest on my blog today, the talented author and presenter, Jill Murray. Welcome Jill! You are the first guest I've had on my blog, and I'm delighted that you agreed to join me here and be interviewed.

Jill is the author of two YA novels: the critically acclaimed Break On Through (http://www.jillmurray.com/books/break-on-through/), and the brand new Rhythm & Blues (http://www.jillmurray.com/books/rhythm-and-blues/), both published by Doubleday Canada. In 2010, Jill created Y-Eh net, a blog tour for Canadian kid lit authors. That's how the two of us met, in fact. You can find out lots more about Jill at http://www.jillmurray.com/about-me/

Now, let's get on with our interview!

Peggy: In my latest YA novel, Growing Up Ivy, (Dundurn, June 2010), young Ivy Chalmers loves to write. Abandoned by her mother, struggling to connect with her father, and thwarted by her uncompromising grandmother, Ivy often turns to her writing as therapy. Is writing every therapeutic for you?

Jill: I'm not a big writing-as-therapy writer. In fact, I've even written things into books and not noticed how they related to my own life until years later when someone pointed them out to me. I approach writing more like a big puzzle-invention-experiment-exercise. It feels like it's good for my brain in the same way solving word problems can be, and when it's going well, it feels nice to be SO clever. But I don't journal and I'm not a writer who needs to vent or "let it all out" on paper. Hey, it takes all kinds to fill a library, right?

Peggy: Very true!

Peggy: Before Ivy's actress mother leaves, hoping to find success on the stage in New York, the two live rich imaginary lives, peopled by the characters from classic fairy tales and literature. Discovering a library near her grandmother's home is a dream come true for Ivy. How big a part did the availability of books and the pleasure of reading play in your growing up years?

Jill: Books were huuuge in my childhood. My mother taught my brother and me to read before we could even hold utensils, and I can't remember there ever being a week we didn't go to the library together and come home with two big stacks of books. Just the smell of a library can take me back to my early childhood in a way few things can.

Peggy: What do you like to read today?

Jill: Today I have to have something to read at all times. If there are no books I'll even read takeout menus and the backs of cleaning products if I'm stranded waiting for something. I read a lot of YA and non-fiction, with some grown-up literary fiction mixed in.

Peggy: As they move from one dismal rooming house to the next, engaging in "make believe," Ivy's mother lets the girl choose an imaginary setting for their latest home. Will it be Shangri-La? The land of Oz? Crusoe's desert island? Where in the world of fiction would you go, if you could?

Jill: I want to shrink down to palm size and run with The Borrowers, behind the wainscoting.

Peggy: When she comes to live with her grandmother, Maud's front porch becomes Ivy's favourite place for writing. Mine is my kitchen table. Where in particular do you do most of your writing?

Jill: I do most of my writing in cafes. I love cafes. As a teenager I used to imagine myself working in cafes all day, and now I often do. Some dreams are more easily achieved than others.

Peggy: Very true, Jill! Now, one final question before I let you go. Ivy's first short story is rejected by Maclean's magazine, which in the 1930s used to publish several fiction pieces in each issue. What advice would you give the young writer to keep her from giving up?

Jill: I think the aspiring teenaged writer should take advantage of teenhood to read as much as possible and try writing every outlandish creative thing that crosses her mind. I'd even suggest experimenting with producing web sites and zines and shows.

For me, the best part of being a teenager was the limitless possibility of a life not-yet-written. Everyone should take full advantage of that feeling before adult expectations start to creep in and cramp your style. Publishing can definitely fall into that second category, And all the creative skills I developed as a creatively-out-of-control teen serve me really well today.

Peggy: Excellent advice for today's young writers, Jill. Thank you for being my guest here today and answering my questions. Continued good luck with your fabulous writing!

Jill: Thanks so much for hosting me on your blog!

Par for the Course

2010-05-17T08:33:00.000-07:00

It seems to be a fact of life that when we have a lull in activities we immediately rush in to fill it. And then suddenly, deadlines loom and panic sets in. At least that's how it is for me.

A month or two ago the work on Growing Up Ivy was coming to an end, the latest novel was having its necessary "jell" time in the drawer, and summer and outdoor chores seemed a long way off. So what do I do? I join a weekly study group at my church and enroll in an online college course on understanding literature.

But now, as publicity for Growing Up Ivy ramps up, I have a list of interview questions from several sources requiring intelligent answers, and I have reading to do and assignments to submit, and the novel-in-progress is calling to me. Forget that the windows haven't been cleaned since last fall, and there are seedlings waiting to set out into the garden. I start to feel the familiar anxiety.

I have to remind myself that t'was ever thus. It'll all sort itself out in the end.
In the meantime, write on!

More Photos from M.K. Rawlings's Home

2010-05-06T13:16:00.000-07:00

Here I am on the front porch steps of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings's home.

This gives you an idea of the tropical growth surrounding the home.

A tranquil scene of Cross Creek.

On the Trail of the Novelist. Part II

2010-05-06T12:51:00.000-07:00

My visit to Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings's home at Cross Creek, in Florida, was a highlight of our recent holiday. After a long drive, in and out of sudden drenching rain showers, we came quite unexpectedly upon the grounds, hidden away on a heavily forested road.

The property is part of the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park and although well-kept, the surroundings are very natural. Three people were sitting quietly fishing in the creek beyond a plank dock. At the gate, a tour bus was loading passengers, ready to leave.

Although we arrived on a day when the house itself was closed to the public, the very amiable guide welcomed us onto the grounds and told us the things we would be able to see. He even encouraged us to peek though the windows of Rawlings's house.

It seemed as if every time we had a question, he appeared, crossing our path to feed rose petals to the baby ducklings or to rake out the chicken coop. The heart of Rawlings's farm was her citrus grove, and there are still a few orange trees around. Besides her large Cracker-style house, there is also a barn, a kitchen garden, a tenant house, and a yellow, 1940 Oldsmobile parked in the breezeway.

I was fascinated to see Rawlings's typewriter on the table in her screened-in front porch. This was where she wrote the Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Yearling. The heavy vegetation -- lush trees draped with Spanish moss, orange trees and palms -- was varied and I took several pictures before I left. There was an atmosphere of tranquility about the place. I came away feeling very calm and more connected to the author than ever.

On the Trail of the Novelist. Part I

2010-04-30T06:32:00.000-07:00

It was the mystery novels of P.J. Parrish that first got me interested in visiting Sanibel and Captiva Islands in Florida. The books' protagonist, Louis Kincaid, lived in a rundown cottage on the beach on Captiva.
Then I discovered Randy Wayne White's novels set among the same barrier islands in south west Florida. My fascination grew.

Driving over the causeway toward Sanibel last week, I found it hard to believe I was finally here. The water beyond the white sand on either side of the causeway was a creamy turquoise colour.

The islands were much less rugged than I had imagined, although I'm sure parts of them are. The magnificent homes on Captiva are anything but rustic.

The narrow main street on Sanibel, called Periwinkle Way, was a steady stream of sightseers in cars, or people of every age leisurely peddling rented bicycles (the ideal way to get around). One lone traffic cop at the four corners kept everything moving smoothly.

The air was warm and moist, the vegetation tropical. Cactus and palm trees abounded, and the hibiscus bushes were in full bloom.

On Sanibel there is a bar named after Randy Wayne White's fictional character, Doc Ford: "Doc Ford's Sanibel Rum Bar & Grille." That definitely deserved a visit.

I can tell you now that the crab cakes there are simply scrumptious. The proprietors also sell White's books and souvenirs. I kept expecting to see Doc Ford come though the door. His endearing, hippie sidekick Tomlinson too, I hoped.

Writing With Abandon

2010-04-10T07:50:00.000-07:00

One of the best things about keeping a journal is being able to look back at it from time to time. Now, as Growing Up Ivy moves down the production line at the publisher's, from copy edit to design, I read an entry that I made two years ago in my journal.

I had just started some early scribbles toward a new book, and I was working from the angle of the child I'd heard about who spent her summers with her peddler father, living in a horse-drawn caravan. As I mentioned in an earlier post, this was where the inspiration for Growing Up Ivy came from. Here is that journal entry:

I want this next book to be brave and daring. I want to write with abandon, to tell a fantastic story without letting my inner editor loose too early. I have a picture in my head of a girl and her mother escaping out the window of their room as the landlord hammers on the door. The mother is footloose, irresponsible, dreaming of being on the stage. The child thinks that everyone lives this way -- fleeing angry landlords, eating in diners, moving from one rooming house to the next, and attending school when it suits her.

Whether or not this will be part of what I'm calling the "caravan story" remains to be seen. But this new creation is taking me along on it's own course. I don't know where or when it will end.

I remember telling the others in our writing group that the book, in its early stages, was writing itself. I stood back and let it go.

In the end, the two parts of the story did come together. Ivy's mother, Frannie, is the would-be actress who abandons the child, and her rescuer is her father, Alva, who takes Ivy with him in the caravan for the summer.

Working with the Copy Editor

2010-04-03T09:29:00.000-07:00

The copy edited version of Growing Up Ivy arrived by email on Thursday, and I've been spending what time I can going over it, while also preparing for our family's Easter celebrations. I'm reading the manuscript out loud, slowly, as I look for any typos that may have been missed.

Aside from the editor's queries, which appear in the side margin, the other changes are mainly for punctuation or a word I've used too often. These minor changes appear on the page in coloured font so that they can be easily picked out. If I make any changes of my own, they appear in a different coloured font.

The most frequent correction has been for problems in usage. I have used the word "further" throughout the manuscript, where the publisher prefers "farther." The same goes for my use of the word "towards" instead of the preferred "toward." My dictionary says the words are often used interchangeably, however these days the word "farther" should be reserved to describe physical distance. You see what you can learn?

So far, I'm liking all the editorial suggestions. I think my editor is making me look pretty good!

Fresh Eyes

2010-03-30T08:23:00.000-07:00

Later this week I'm scheduled to receive the copy edited pages of Growing Up Ivy from the publisher. I will have one week to review them and to respond to any queries the editor has. Since that week also includes Easter, it's going to be a busy time!

I'm interested in seeing the editor's suggestions. A writer tends to lose objectivity when she's been this close to a project for a long period of time. (In my case, usually about two years.)

Before the file arrives in my email inbox, I'm trying to finish the latest revisions on the novel-in-progress. When that's done, I plan to put it away for a few weeks. It needs to "gel." And I need some distance from it, so that the next time I see it, it will be with fresh eyes. The same as I'll have when I get to read "Growing Up Ivy" this week.

What is This Book About?

2010-03-26T12:47:00.000-07:00

A few years ago an editor, who was working on one of my early manuscripts that was scheduled for publication, told me that I had too much going on in the story. I needed to select one theme (out of several) and work at developing it, following its thread through to the end.
It turned out to be very good advice and something I try to follow with each new book. Because my method of writing, in the early stages of a story, is to let the characters take me wherever they like, I often end up going in too many different directions.

The truth is, I submitted that novel before I should have; it was not ready to leave the nest. I've learned to take my time. It's often several drafts before I can sort out the book's most important theme. And it often means tossing out some minor threads in order to beef up the major one.

Currently I'm taking a good look at the latest novel-in-progress. Does it lack direction? What is its main theme? How can I develop it fully? And the key question: Can I tell someone in one sentence what this book is about?

In case you're wondering, the photo above is a candid shot of my office.

Raising the Stakes

2010-03-22T16:23:00.000-07:00

A writer has to make the reader care about the outcome of a story.

In my novel-in-progress two kids, Delia and Sam, suspect a former neighbour of having murdered his wife. They set about to uncover the truth. It wasn't long before I began to have doubts about the strength of this story. Why would the kids even bother? Why would they care?

When I began to ask myself these questions, I realized that kids themselves needed a stake in finding the answer. How could I make solving the mystery a matter of life and death for these youngsters?

In order to answer that question, I had the boy's aunt, a young woman who plays an important role in the lives of both kids, begin to date the man with the deadly secret.
Now Delia and Sam had a reason for wanting to get at the truth.

To ratchet up the tension, I had the kids discover that the man had had not one, but two wives, who had died violent deaths. It became more urgent than ever that they act quickly to save the unsuspecting Aunt Esme from a similar fate.

Now, I can get on with the story.

The Tax Man Cometh

2010-03-20T17:45:00.000-07:00

I got a lot of useful information from our writers' group meeting this morning. After each one at the table had given his/her own bit of news, we had a speaker talk to us on the subject of Income Tax for Writers -- a very timely topic. Afterwards, the most popular question seemed to be which expenses we could claim as deductions when filing our income tax. It was suggested that if we are in doubt about whether or not an expense is eligible, we should ask ourselves honestly if the expense is related to our writing, and whether it is the kind of writing we do, or plan to do.

Our tax system in Canada is based on the honour system. That said, we must keep all our records for a period of seven years (six plus the current year) in case of an audit.

I have always kept a book which I call a general ledger where I enter, on the day that they occur, all the expenses and income from my writing. I know that's the old-fashioned way and that it is not necessary today. All the Tax Man wants are the receipts for our expenses and the slips we've received for income.

I store all my receipts in an accordian-style file folder with labelled tabs for office, car expenses, advertising, etc. But still I find my ledger helps me keep all those bits organized. I also find the ledger useful for tracking trends over the years.

Before we left the restaurant this morning, our speaker reminded us to save the receipt from the breakfast each one of us had paid for at the meeting. We can claim fifty percent of it as a legitimate expense. You learn something new every day!

Book Signing

2010-03-15T07:05:00.000-07:00

I've just spent an interesting weekend, representing the Spirit of the Hills Writers' Group with a table at the Warkworth Maple Syrup Festival. I was the only writer there, surrounded by vendors selling crafts and baked goods. It was a weekend of people-watching and non-stop smiling.Everyone was friendly.

There were plenty of children visiting the festival with their families, and it was rewarding to have a number of them recognize the books on my table. "Oh, we have that one, Mommy!" or "We read that one in school."
The three books that had been part of the Silver Birch reading program in the Ontario schools reminded the youngsters of the fun they'd had reading the books on the list that year, and finally voting for their favourite. I assured them that the authors whose books had been selected for the program had as much fun as the kids.

"I know you," one girl said. "You came to our library last year." Then she picked out all the books on the table that she could remember.
I enjoyed talking to a number of school teachers who happened by, a couple of whom were already familiar with my work and who expressed an interest in having me visit their classrooms.

To pass the time I scribbled notes on future posts for this blog and worked on a scene I'm writing for the novel-in-progress. I signed books that were going to a classroom in Nova Scotia and to grandchildren as far away as Texas. There was one lovely man who bought two books for his granddaughter, Maia, who lives in Bermuda. He came back later to take a picture of me to send to Maia along with the books. You've got to love that!

The Inspiration for "Growing Up Ivy"

2010-03-10T11:31:00.000-08:00

"Where did you get your inspiration for this book?"

This is a frequent query I get from students when I visit their classrooms. I recognize it as one of the questions the teacher has suggested they ask the visiting author. If the kids got to choose the questions, it would more likely be, "Do you have any pets?" or "Why don't you write horse stories?" or "How old are you, anyway?"

Most often, the inspiration for my stories comes from weeks of free writing, of letting whatever enters my mind pour out onto the page. There's very little I can salvage from these "morning pages," but they help me to keep writing. Besides, I know that one day I'll start to see a connection between all the loose ideas on the page, or a character will begin to emerge, someone with whom I'd like to have an adventure.

But in the case of Growing Up Ivy, I have a definite answer to that question about what inspired me to write it.

Years ago, when I was researching my first book, a work of non-fiction called The Movie Years, I started corresponding with a woman in California. Her husband had been a cameraman on Carry On Sergeant! the biggest movie ever made here in Trenton and about which I was writing. Later, the husband became a cameraman for Universal Studios.

Besides providing me with some useful information for the book, the woman asked me if I could help her write her memoirs. I agreed to do what I could. Subsequently, she sent me several long letters about her life.

When she was a child she used to spend time with her father travelling around the countryside in a horse-drawn covered wagon. He was a peddler. I found her description of how the two of them lived in that wagon fascinating. It seemed such a unique way of life that it stuck in my mind. I loved the idea of those idyllic, barefoot childhood summers.

Twenty years later, I began to write Growing Up Ivy. In my book, when Ivy's father comes into her life in 1931, he arrives in a horse-drawn caravan, "all fitted out inside, so's a body can live in it." And wonder of wonders, he agrees that Ivy can spend the summer with him, wandering down country roads, peddling shoes.

And what do I tell the middle school kids who ask how old I am? "I'm as old as my pinky finger, and a little bit older than my teeth."

Write on!

Schedule of Production

2010-03-06T08:14:00.000-08:00

Although I've had nine books published, this is the first time I've been given a schedule that shows me how the latest book, Growing Up Ivy, will proceed down the production line. I'm enjoying being part of the process.

The manuscript, submitted in February of last year, was accepted for publication last October, and the contract between the publisher and myself was signed the end of that month. June 21, 2010 was given as the publication date.

The first item on the schedule was the Manuscript Due Date. My final version of the manuscript, as well as all materials that were going into the book -- dedication, acknowledgements etc. -- had to be in the publisher's hands by November 30th. Since then, the cover has been chosen (it had to go into the spring catalogue), and lots of advertising copy written.

Last week I met my editor, via email, and got the dates for the next stages in the book's development. I was happy to hear that the editor will now begin the process of Copyediting the Manuscript. This is a meticulous task and will take a month to complete.

I will have from April 2nd to April 9th to respond to any of the copyeditor's queries. This is called the Author Review, and it will be the last opportunity to make any changes before the book goes to Design. It is very costly to make any major changes after the book has been designed.

It will be in design from April 16-23rd. After that, I will receive the designed page proofs and have a week to review them and submit any corrections. This is referred to as the First Proof Review. All this must be done before May 7th.

When the final design work is complete (it takes anywhere from 1-4 weeks), I'll be sent a set of page proofs, along with the front and back cover designs. This will be my last chance to look at the book before it goes to the printer.

Look out world, here comes Ivy Chalmers!

Journal Writing

2010-02-27T10:11:00.000-08:00

I started keeping a journal in 1976. It was one of the suggestions made by the instructor of the writing course I was taking. The idea was that it got one into a habit of regular writing.

Over 34 years, you can imagine how many journals I've filled. I don't profess to write in the journal every day. Sometimes whole weeks go by, especially when my creative writing is zipping along. But if something significant happens in my life, both private and professional, I write it down.

Over the years I've found journal writing helps to focus me. Too often my brain seems to run in every direction -- things to do, deadlines to meet, talks to prepare, commitments to home and family. But taking a few minutes to write about what I'm feeling, how I'm coping (or not) slows me down. I close my journal, promising myself to do one thing at a time, and to do it mindfully.

I enjoy looking back at my journal to see what was happening last year on this date. Or 20 years ago. It has even served to settle the odd argument!

Just for fun, here's what I wrote on this day in 2005. (I was still working at that time.)

Monday. The one day in the week when I get to stay home. Ideally, it would be the day I spend 8 hours, writing. In fact, I write between laundry loads and trips from room to room with the vacuum cleaner.

There's a winter storm watch in effect. We could get more than 15 cms. of snow tonight and tomorrow. Sometimes these watches are overblown. With temperatures just below freezing, it may not be too bad. I only hope none of this happens two weeks from now -- when we are en route to Myrtle Beach. That trip this time of year has always frightened me.

We enjoyed having Z. (our 5-year-old granddaughter) with us overnight Saturday. Yesterday, we drove to Barcovan Beach to see the swans. There were dozens of them, and we were all thrilled when they swam right up to see us.

Z. had a full agenda of what she wanted to do when she was here: play a game with Grandpa, make a craft with Grandma, help with the cooking, watch her movie, have a bedtime story, and go to church( a special joy for me). She's such a happy little girl, well-behaved and polite, but not in the least timid. It's wonderful how much confidence she has.

Write on!

"Cross Creek," the movie

2010-02-21T16:16:00.000-08:00

I love movies where the main character is a writer, especially one that has to struggle for success.

Last night I watched Cross Creek, a movie I'd seen before (it was made in 1983), but one that has stayed with me because of the main character's determination to become a writer.

In 1928, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings left her husband and New York state for a piece of real estate she'd never seen -- a rundown house with an orange grove in the bayou country of central Florida. She wanted to write a Gothic novel, a genre that was very popular at the time. She planned to work at it for a minimum of eight hours a day. Although ready a freelance writer, she had never been able to publish any of her short stories.

In Cross Creek, in spite of holes in the roof, mosquitoes, and her neighbour's marauding hogs, Marjorie sat at her typewriter till she finished that Gothic novel.
When the novel was rejected, it took a while for her to get over her disappointment. Can you relate?

Eventually, she took her editor's advice and began to write about what she was familiar with, to tell the stories of the simple, honest people of Cross Creek, of the wonders of the natural world around her. With renewed determination, she went back to work and found herself so engrossed that she was writing twelve to fourteen hours a day. It's interesting to note that Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, this Pulitzer Prize winning novelist, said that for her writing was agony.

I found the movie, Cross Creek, very inspiring. Surely, I should be able to shut out all the daily distractions and get to work.

Marjorie Kinnan Rawling's Cracker-style house, her orange grove and vegetable gardens are today open to the public. We plan to visit Cross Creek when we go to Florida later this spring. I'm sure that historic place will feed my writer's soul. I can't wait!

Till next time.

Time to Print

2010-02-18T08:40:00.000-08:00

I wonder if there's anyone out there who writes his/her entire novel on the computer?

I've reached the stage with my latest manuscript where I know I must print myself a copy. It's only about 29,000 words, and there is much more work to be done on it. But, for me, it's time.

I realize that this shows my age, but sometimes it bothers me that my novel is stored inside a computer, where I can't even see it unless I turn on a machine. I'm at the mercy of the hydro company whether or not I'm going to work on it!

Okay, that may be a bit of a stretch. The truth is I want to be able to hold the pages in my hand as I read. I want to spread those 100 pages out, sort through the scenes, make notes in the margins, even cut and tape sections, if necessary. Once I go back to the computer those changes will be easy to input.

I'd never want to go back to the"olden days" when I plunked away on the typewriter, re-typing draft after draft, trying to fit revised chapters in, without having to repaginate. I love the word processor's ability to move whole paragraphs to better positions or delete them altogether.

It all boils down to the fact that I can't see the whole thing on the screen. It's not easy to flip back to see what I said about something in Chapter Three and stay consistent in Chapter Eight.

I'd love to hear what you think.

A Letter From the Grave

2010-02-13T06:01:00.000-08:00

I wrote a letter this week to Delia Moffatt, the main character in my new story, from her dead mother. The mother does not appear in the story, having died when Delia was five, eight years before the story begins. But I wrote the letter as a means for me to understand the complicated relationships between some of my characters.

"Dearest Delia,
I am sorry that I can't be there to see the delightful young girl you are today. How relieved I was that Grandma moved back in with you and Daddy after I left. You have Esme too, remember -- my lifelong, closest friend. She means it when she says she will do anything for you. Don't let Daddy be too proud to ask her . . . "

The letter goes on, but you get the idea. This little exercise has helped me to get more of the back story straight.

It's not necessary for the reader to know where Delia's and Sam's parents came from, but I need to be aware of these details as I write. The letter will not appear in the book, and I will use only a small part of the back story, but in order for me to tell the story, I have to have a sense of what happened before the opening scene.

Write on!

Writer/Reader Recognition

2010-02-07T07:11:00.000-08:00

Anne Lamott (Bird by Bird: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1995) talks about "life being a recycling centre." It's true, isn't it? Everything has happened before.

Don't you love it when suddenly you recognize your own life in something you are reading? You know exactly what the author is saying. He's been there, done that.

That's something we writers should strive for -- that ability, as Lamott calls it, "to turn on the light for the reader."

Write on!

When the Writing Goes Well

2010-02-02T11:25:00.000-08:00

I love it when the writing goes well, when the hours fly by and I look up to discover it's already past noon. That's the way it was for me this morning.

Now that I'm nearing the end of my novel-in-progress, the pieces are starting to come together more quickly. This morning I was working on the dialogue between four characters, hearing their conversation as if I were with them in Alicia's sunny living room. The words just started to flow. I didn't bother with dialogue attributes (I'll go back and fill them in later, where necessary). I knew who was speaking by what they said. Besides, I didn't want to interrupt the flow of conversation.

I felt exhilarated by the time I stopped writing, had lunch and went for my usual walk. But the characters didn't stop talking. Their conversation continued in my head. There's still a lot of writing to do, but we need days like this to keep us slogging ahead.

Cheers!

A Best Book for 2009

2010-01-26T16:36:00.000-08:00

Sometimes it feels as if that book you worked so hard on got sucked into a black hole after it was published. No fanfare, no award nominations, and few reviews.

That's why it was such a pleasure to learn today that the book I'm referring to, Trouble at Turtle Narrows, is on Resource Link's "Year's Best for 2009" list. Hooray!

Resource Links is Canada's national journal devoted to the review and evaluation of Canadian English and French resources for children and young adults.

Write on!

The Write Style

2010-01-23T10:56:00.000-08:00

I recently bought myself another book on style. The editors at Dundurn, the publishers of my up-coming book, Growing Up Ivy, use a combination of their house style guide, The Chicago Manual of Style, and The Canadian Style (Toronto, ON: Dundurn Press, 1997).

It's the latter book that I purchased, in a revised and expanded edition. I have other style books on my reference shelf, as well as books like Eats, Shoots and Leaves, by Jan Truss, a witty approach to punctuation. But this one should help me when I'm working with the editor.

The Canadian Style is designed so that you can quickly access the topics you need. But from time to time, I also pick it up just to read. The chapters include everything from abbreviations to revision & proofreading. There's even a section on frequently misspelled words, although they left out two that I always have trouble with: refrigerator and cemetery.

Do you know your publisher's stand on the use of the serial comma? Do you know whether to write out the numbers 1 to 100? Or how to express exact amounts of money; or how to use punctuation with quotation marks?

It's a good idea good to familiarize yourself with the style book your publisher uses. That way, you can correct many errors in usage before submitting the final manuscript.

Till next time.

Writers' Groups

2010-01-16T10:42:00.000-08:00

I am a member now of two writers' groups -- one that I've been part of for several years; the other, for just a few months.

I was reluctant to join any writers' group, at first. For one thing, I never share my stories in their early stages. The first couple of drafts are just too fragile. They might crumble into nothing if edited too closely. For another thing (and this is a biggie), I'd rather be writing!

With the first group, the smaller one, we are all primarily interested in writing for children, each one a member of the Canadian Society of Children's Authors, Illustrators, and Performers (CANSCAIP). We all have stories to share about publishers, editors, school visits -- the good, the bad, and the ugly. We've grown to be good friends, supporting and encouraging one another. Between meetings, we email news of our successes and disappointments.

I no longer feel as if I'm not contributing to the group if I'm not ready to read my work. It's okay to simply listen and enjoy spending time with a group of like-minded people.

If you are fortunate enough to have a writers' group in your area, why not give it a try? You're the only one who can decide whether or not it's a good fit for you.

I'd love to hear your experiences.

Till next time,
Peggy.

Good-bye, Bella Stone

2010-01-13T06:40:00.000-08:00

After two drafts and almost a year of writing, I find I have to rename one of the main characters in my novel-in-progress. This character, a fifteen year old girl, has turned out to be rather immature and gullible. She's naive and easily led. It is this personality that gets her into trouble.

I've been calling her Bella Stone. That's a good solid name, a no-nonsense kind of name. But as the story goes on and Bella's personality develops, that name keeps getting in the way. It just doesn't suit the girl who is emerging.

I need a more light-weight name for her. Maybe something like Daisy Feather? To me, a name like that suggests airiness, a bit of fluff. I imagine a dandelion seed, drifting like a tiny parachute, trusting her fate to the wind.

Hello, Daisy Feather. Now, that should help me get on with the story.

Write on!