GOOD NEWS: Had a great time during our annual rental cottage vacation. Pretty sure I’ve found a title I like for The Witch Novel. BAD NEWS: My husband developed plantar fasciitis so the trip to Italy we were to leave for on Saturday is now cancelled. Ah well, Italy will still be there in 2028. […]

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Well, sort of. Though I do enjoy this YouTube channel. But I’m working on a project I’ve named for this. It might be procrastination (ok, it’s probably procrastination) and avoidance of the topic of what exactly I should do with the Witch Novel (it’s definitely that), but I figured it might as well try to […]

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It’s been a hot, unproductive summer here in Toronto but, as I remind myself daily, at least everything’s not on fire. I’ve had “write something about your vacation on the blog” for weeks now, so the time has come and I must do it. In June, my husband and I flew to Moncton, New Brunswick, […]

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I picked up my pace a bit, though I’m definitely not breaking any records this year. I had several DNF (did not get past the first page or two), which is rare for me. Those shall remain unnamed. Still, here are some of the notable things I read between April and June. FICTION Kalpa Imperial, […]

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I’m not good at titles. More precisely, I’m not good at finding them quickly and easily. I actually like the titles for all my stories and novels quite a bit, but discovering them was a struggle. I usually find my titles in songs or poems. I’ve been writing the thing I call “The Witch Novel” […]

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I felt like I started the year rather more slowly than I usually do on the reading front. Not sure why – it certainly wasn’t that I was spending the time writing. I had more DNF so far in 2026 than I do over the course of most years. Anyway, here’s the usual quick wrap-up. […]

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I made another thing. It look a long time, but I finished my first pseudo-kawandi piece created around a fish kite image from a piece of Japanese fabric. Other elements include: old table runners, several dresses, obi fabric from Japan, and an old decorative pillow case. I’ve now started on the second one, featuring a […]

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Two weeks ago, my flamenco teacher, Elena Mamais (known as Elena La Comadre) died. Last week, her family, friends, and students buried her. I think she would have appreciated the aesthetic of the scene: the white snow coating the trees at Mount Pleasant Cemetery, the black coats of the mourners, the red flowers we threw […]

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I read a total of (roughly) 136 books this year, of which 43% were non-fiction. My audiobook count went up a bit this year, driven partially by what version was available through the Toronto Public Library and partially because I went to Spain and wanted to be able to look at scenery while still reading! […]

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I’ve had a little flurry of emails from ‘book marketing specialists’ offering to feature my novels in their special book club communities. The emails are clearly written by AI and describe my novels in the most glowing terms. Too bad it’s all a scam, because I would definitely use parts of these as promotional material! […]

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