Posts Tagged ‘writing’
Guest Post: Darlene Foster
Posted on: May 5, 2021
- In: Books | Dreams | guest posts | Writing
- 17 Comments
I am pleased to be a guest on Pete’s wonderful blog. His posts are varied and always interesting. Check them out.
I am delighted to present a guest post from the lovely blogger and author, Darlene Foster.
Here is her short bio.
Darlene Foster grew up on a ranch in Alberta, Canada, where her love of reading inspired her to see the world and write stories about a young girl who travels to interesting places. Over the years she worked in rewarding jobs such as an employment counsellor, ESL teacher, recruiter, and retail manager, writing whenever she had a few spare minutes. She is now retired and has a house in Spain where she writes full time. When not travelling, meeting interesting people, and collecting ideas for her books, she enjoys spending time with her husband and entertaining rescue dogs, Dot and Lia.
Never Too Late To Become A Writer
by Darlene Foster
A goal without a plan is just a dream.
Many of us dream of being a writer. After…
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The Sue Vincent Rodeo Is Live
Posted on: February 3, 2021
- In: contests | People | short stories | Writing
- 19 Comments
Following up on my previous post I am reblogging a post by Geoff LePard that explains the fundraiser contest. I’ve started writing my 99 word story based on the prompt. I hope some of you will join in as well, in whatever way you can.
The Sue Vincent Rodeo Is Live
Posted on Feb 2, 2021 by TanGental
Yes it’s here. it’s a lovely idea and it’s got a prize attached. Read on…
It’s time to saddle up and get in line, because the Sue Vincent Rodeo Classic is happening NOW at the Carrot Ranch! Writers will have the opportunity to support Sue Vincent, a stalwart center of our blogging community, as well as compete for a $100 prize! That’s right – we’re trying to make this the biggest writers’ Rodeo yet and celebrate Sue Vincent’s work and writing in the process. On the Rodeo Classic page, you can find a beautiful photo (from none other than Sue herself) to serve as a prompt. Write a story of 99 words or a poem of 99 syllables – no more, no less – based on the prompt photo on the Rodeo page. Also on the Rodeo page is an entry form where you can put up to two entries for the contest. And don’t worry, entries will be anonymized – everyone’s on an equal playing field at the Carrot Ranch, even if you get some TUFF bulls to ride or horses to break! But don’t lollygag – you only have until February 19th to get on your bull and ride out the chute.
There are many ways to participate in the rodeo. Every Rodeo has multiple events, and the Sue Vincent Rodeo Classic is no different. In addition to participating in the contest and donating to the cause, we have multiple events you can participate in!
- The Sue Vincent Reblog Barrel Race – Check out Sue’s website or the website she shares with Stuart France. Find a poem, essay, or photo that speaks to you, and re-blog it. Feel free to include links to the contest and make sure to include a comment on the re-blog!
- The Great Book Parade – Buy and read one of Sue’s books. If you’re feeling adventurous, leave a review or publish it on your blog!
- The Comment Riding Contest – The prize for this one is a fuzzy good feeling and the sharing of community. Like and/or comment on Sue’s posts, whether new or old.
- Snack Stands – Share the contest on other social media such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or others! You can definitely follow Sue Vincent on Twitter.
- The Prize Ceremony – Winners will be announced on March 21st, 2021. It could be you, but even if not, come see what Sue’s prompt invoked.
See you on the Carrot Ranch circuit, cowfolk!
A Special Blogger – Sue Vincent
Posted on: February 1, 2021
- In: contests | friends | People | short stories | Writing
- 39 Comments
Sue Vincent is one of those special bloggers and writers that inspire people all over the world. Readers have long been captivated by her posts about mythology, ancient ruins and medieval churches, and her daily #midnighthaiku. Many have participated in and grown as a result of her #writephoto prompts. She is a person of considerable talents, and in addition to posting her prompts, Sue has tirelessly supported bloggers by hosting guest bloggers and sharing blog posts. She has 19,000 and counting followers.
I’ve not met Sue in person but feel I know her through her wonderful blog posts and consider her a friend. She has taken me the width and breadth of Great Britain, to places I would have never got to myself, providing amazing historic details and wonderful photographs. To appreciate just how talented and wise Sue is, pop over to her blog. I particularly love her outlook on life. Here is a link to a recent post that I found to be extremely insightful: https://franceandvincent.com/2021/01/31/rooted-in-earth/ Her sweet dog Ani has his own cute blog! https://thesmalldogs.blog/
Recently, Sue has been faced with a new and difficult challenge: lung cancer. You can follow her blog to find out more directly from her. The Covid pandemic has served not only to pose a specific threat to a person with a severe respiratory illness, but it has caused the loss of human connection through self-imposed quarantine. Those that follow Sue know that she has been a carer for her son, who gained several disabilities due to a vicious attack, and cancer has made it impossible for her to continue in that role. Because she’s been a carer for so long and not made as much money as she could have otherwise, the core group of the Rodeo Organization Team has decided to hold this fundraiser.
It’s time for Sue to receive something back from the community she’s been a cornerstone of for a decade. Let’s bring the Rodeo into Sue’s house through her computer, and let’s come together with hearts full of joy. Join us for the Sue Vincent Rodeo Classic at the Carrot Ranch – a contest, parade, and celebration all in one!
I am pleased to be one of many bloggers sharing The Sue Vincent Rodeo Classic.
There are many ways to participate. One is to visit the prompt image, “Hidden”, at the Carrot Ranch. The prompt image and entry form will go live on Monday, February 1st, 2021. Enter a flash or a poem by Friday, February 19th, 2021, and you could win either $100 or a copy of one of Sue’s books. The form will allow you to give a small donation for Sue and her family, and a link can be found on the contest page. The winning entries will be announced at the Carrot Ranch on March 22nd, 2021.
If you’re not ready to rodeo, there’s always the “Parade”. Reblog one of Sue’s posts from any of her sites (Daily Echo or France and Vincent) with a comment about why you found it special. Follow her blogs. Read one of her books, then leave reviews where you can. Several people are already gearing up for the parade – so feel free to check out other people’s blogs for suggestions.
Also, go ahead and reblog, tweet, Facebook, or somehow otherwise share the contest! 99 word literary art is a fantastic way to celebrate a blogging hero and a very deserving person.
The Sue Vincent Rodeo Classic begins tomorrow, February 1st. There is a request for donations that will go directly to Sue and her family, and Charli Mills has graciously set up a PayPal functionality on the Carrot Ranch post that will give the cash directly to Sue.
Saddle up, everyone! It’s time for a Carrot Ranch Rodeo like none ever held before. The Sue Vincent Rodeo Classic begins on Monday, February 1st, and it’ll be a TUFF prompt to fit within 99 words.
I hope to see you at the Ranch, buckaroos!
Visit Sue’s Links:
- https://scvincent.com/
- https://scvincent.com/2021/01/06/the-inconvenient-walking-dead-covid-cancer-carers-lockdown/ (this is the most recent post on the Echo about Sue’s recent adventures)
- https://franceandvincent.com/
- https://franceandvincent.com/books/
- https://carrotranch.com/
- https://twitter.com/SCVincent
- https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6551588.Sue_Vincent
Giddy up folks to the rodeo and show support for our dear friend!
- In: guest posts | Writing
- 56 Comments
It´s launch day for Molly Ringle´s latest book Lava Red Feather Blue. Don´t you just love the cover!!
The Blurb:
Awakening the handsome prince is supposed to end the fairy tale, not begin it. But the Highvalley witches have rarely done things the way they’re supposed to. On the north Pacific island of Eidolonia, hidden from the world by enchantments, Prince Larkin has lain in a magical sleep since 1799 as one side of a truce between humans and fae. That is, until Merrick Highvalley, a modern-day witch, discovers an old box of magic charms and cryptic notes hidden inside a garden statue.
Experimenting with the charms, Merrick finds himself inside the bower where Larkin lies, and accidentally awakens him. Worse still, releasing Larkin from the spell also releases Ula Kana, a faery bent on eradicating humans from the island. With the truce collapsing and hostilities escalating throughout the country, Merrick and Larkin form an unlikely alliance and become even unlikelier heroes as they flee into the perilous fae realm on a quest to stop Ula Kana and restore harmony to their island
What people are saying about the book:
“Come for the Sleeping Beauty allusion, but stay for the incredible world-building! Fans of fantasy, especially anything fae-related, will find this a very rich, satisfying read.” –Brett Hartinger, Author of Geography Club and Three Truths and a Lie
“Lush and imaginative–an epic fantasy for a new generation, full of love, vengeance, redemption, and forgiveness.” –Pam Stucky, Author of The Universes Inside the Lighthouse
About the Author
Molly Ringle was one of the quiet, weird kids in school, and is now one of the quiet, weird writers of the world. Though she made up occasional imaginary realms in her Oregon backyard while growing up, Eidolonia is her first full-fledged fictional country. Her previous novels are predominantly set in the Pacific Northwest and feature fae, goblins, ghosts, and Greek gods alongside regular humans. She lives in Seattle with her family, corgi, guinea pigs, fragrance collection, and a lot of moss.
Buy links:
Paperbacks via Indiebound: https://www.indiebound.org/search/book?keys=author%3ARingle%2C%20Molly
Ebooks via Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?query=molly%20ringle&fcsearchfield=Author
Print and Nook via B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Molly%20Ringle%22?Ntk=P_key_Contributor_List&Ns=P_Sales_Rank&Ntx=mode+matchall
Print and Kindle via Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Molly-Ringle/e/B003OSSOF8?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1609448504&sr=8-1
I´m pleased to have Molly here as a guest on this special launch day as I have been a fan of hers for a number of years. Learn more about this intriguing author.
- Tell the readers about yourself, including something quirky.
I’ve lived in the Pacific Northwest almost my whole life: born in Oregon’s Willamette Valley and grew up there, and moved to Seattle as an adult. The only major exceptions, not counting vacations, were three years of grad school in Davis, California, and three months of working abroad in the UK in 1996, spent mostly in Edinburgh, Scotland. And speaking of Scotland, I suppose one quirky thing is that I genuinely do like haggis! (I’ve found that if you like meatloaf, you can handle haggis. It’s not as scary as it sounds.)
- You are a very diverse writer, how do you manage moving from one genre to another?
I’m glad it seems diverse from the outside! To me it feels like I usually write variations on a few themes: there’s always a love story; there’s NEARLY always a gentle, hopeful, even humorous tone; and there may or may not be paranormal elements, but even if the story is real-world, there’s still something of a fairy-tale feel in that remarkable events take place. When looking to start a new project, I usually decide what I most feel like writing at that time in my life—fantasy or real-world, epic scale or more intimate scale—and then proceed to figure out the characters and their goals and obstacles.
- Where do you get ideas for your stories? What inspired Lava Red Feather Blue?
The ideas can come from anywhere—dreams, random thoughts, retellings of myths, mashups of various elements that interest me. I write the brief thoughts down in a story idea file if they seem good enough to someday become a book. One such note was the idea of creating a new country, a large island somewhere off the west coast of North America. I also liked the idea of it having royals (because to an American that can be a bizarre yet intriguing feature). And when I needed to pick a new story to write in early 2017, I settled on that one, and furthermore, decided I wanted to do more with the idea of humans living alongside fae, which I played with in The Goblins of Bellwater. So Lava Red Feather Blue eventually became all of that: humans and fae living on an island country in the Pacific. Plus a hint of a Sleeping Beauty retelling.
- If you could choose a fictional character to be your best friend, who would you choose and why?
Hmm, that’s a question whose answer could change for me from day to day! But today the one who comes to mind is EIinor Dashwood from Sense and Sensibility. I love the whole Dashwood family and would be happy to visit with all of them, but Elinor seems the most steadfast and (to use the book’s title) sensible of the lot. Plus maybe being her best friend would mean I’d always have a place to stay in England, which I would find quite appealing as a perk.
- If you could personally see one natural phenomenon that you have never seen, what would it be and why that one?
Fireflies. I have never seen them in person! We don’t have them in the western states, and I haven’t happened to be anywhere that does have them. (I did visit NYC in late May and early June one year, but the fireflies were stubborn and did not light up for me in Central Park.) I love bioluminescence, so I want to experience them some magical night. Until then, I’ll have to settle for the lovely sea sparkle that we get in Puget Sound on the occasional warm summer night.
- Tell us about your next writing project.
I’m returning to Eidolonia, the island from Lava Red Feather Blue, but with a new set of characters. As such, it isn’t really a sequel, but I expect it will overlap in time with Lava Red Feather Blue and will reflect some of the same major events. Mostly, though, it will be about characters in a different town than those visited in the first book, and it will focus on the frictions between fae and humans there, and the ways love and magic complicate their lives. I have a lot to figure out yet, but that’s likely to be the vague outline of it!
Follow Molly on the following social media sites
Blog: http://mollyringle.livejournal.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MollyRingle/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2905269.Molly_Ringle
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writermollyringle/
Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/mollyringle/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mollyringle
Website: http://www.mollyringle.com/
A selection of Molly´s books.
My review of the Goblins of Bellwater
I am a huge fan of Molly Ringle’s novels. The Goblins of Bellwater didn’t disappoint and proved the versatility of this talented writer. Set in the picturesque Pacific Northwest, there is plenty of magic, romance, and action to engage any reader. Ms Ringle’s vivid descriptions take the reader into the unbelievable world of goblins – believably! Her portrayal of the contemporary human characters living in a small town and their relationships are very realistic. Can a mechanic, who is also an artist, a dedicated environmentalist, a talented chef and a barista/aspiring artist be able to withstand the power of a goblin’s spell and return to their normal lives? This page-turner will keep you guessing as they race against time and the elements to release an age-old evil spell, that is affecting all of their lives. And not in a good way.
Check out Molly’s books for a real treat.
2021 – A New Year, A New Page
Posted on: January 3, 2021
- In: Books | Dreams | quotes | Writing
- 78 Comments
For many years I have set goals for the coming year. They help to keep me focused and be productive. This year I was reluctant to set any goals because it is hard to make plans when things are still so uncertain. But then I decided the best thing is to just carry on as usual. Goals are not written in stone. They can always be adjusted or carried over to the next year. So before I went to bed on January 1st, I wrote down some goals. I also believe goals need to be shared in order to be effective. Here they are!
Goals for 2021
- Come up with innovative ideas to market Amanda in Malta: The Sleeping Lady
- Plan a trip to Canada to launch Amanda in Malta: The Sleeping Lady
- Visit family and friends in Canada as soon as it is safe to do so
- Finish writing Amanda in Spain: Fire in the Cathedral
- Read and review at least 40 good books
- Visit new places in Spain
- Continue to help other writers
- Organize computer files
- Attend conferences and workshops on line
- Do podcast and video interviews and presentations
- Visit schools digitally and in-person if possible
- Find markets for my short stories
- Adopt a buddy for Dot
- Stay safe and stay positive
In recent years, I have been encouraged by other bloggers to pick three words for the year. I really like this idea and usually pick the first three words that come to mind.
These are my words for 2021.
Strength
Love
Hope
My wish for everyone for 2021 is to be strong, share the love and never give up hope! And drink good tea and read good books.
- In: Books | guest posts | Writing
- 32 Comments
I am pleased to be featured on fellow Canadian author, Diane Tibert´s blog as a guest. Check out what inspired me to write Amanda in Holland.
Introducing children’s author Darlene Foster. She has several books in the Amanda series: Amanda in New Mexico, Amanda in Danube, Amanda in Alberta, Amanda in England, Amanda in Spain and Amanda in Arabia. Her Most recent book, Amanda in Holland – Missing in Acton, was released in September 2019. In this interview, she shares a little about it.
1) What is the title of your recent book? Is it a series, what genre is it and is it suitable for all ages?
My most recent book is Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action, book number seven in the Amanda Travels series featuring a young girl who has an exciting adventure wherever she travels. Although this a series, each book can be read as a stand-alone and does not have to be read in any order. The books are written for children between the ages of 7 to…
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- In: Books | reviews | Writing
- 31 Comments
Attention authors of children´s books! A great place to showcase your work and get the word out. Many thanks to Sally Cronin for putting this together.
Welcome to the new Children’s Cafe and Bookstore where authors with books suitable for ages up to 12 can share their work and reviews.
It is very difficult to market and books at the current time without physical launches, particularly for children’s books with many in print versions only.
The authors with books suitable up to 12 years old will have separate entries for their children’s books in this new Cafe but will still retain their entries in the main bookstore with a selection of all books they may have.
Getting into the bookstore
If you are already an author in the bookstore then I will automatically share your children’s books in this directory.
If you are not already in the Cafe and Bookstore please email me with the following to sally.cronin@moyhill.com
- Link to Amazon for the book( and even if you have one book please set up an…
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- In: Books | Writing
- 48 Comments
New Resource & Giveaway Alert
Hi everyone! Today I have something fun to share…a special chance to win some help with your writing. Awesome, right?
I love Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi of Writers Helping Writers, and have written about their amazing resource, The Emotion Thesaurus here. If you are familiar with this book, you know how great it is for developing a character and moving the plot along. Well, today these two awesome women are releasing a new book, and I’m pleased to be part of their street team.
I’m handing the blog over to them so they can tell you a bit about their Writer’s Showcase event, new book, and a great freebie to check out. Read on!
Certain details can say a lot about who someone is, like a character’s goals, desires, and backstory wound. But did you know there’s another detail that can tie your character’s arc to the plot, provide intense, multi-layered conflict, AND shorten the “get to know the character” curve for readers?
It’s true. Your character’s occupation is a GOLD MINE of storytelling potential.
How much time do you spend on the job? Does it fulfill you or frustrate you? Can you separate work from home? Is it causing you challenges, creating obstacles, or helping you live your truth?
Just like us, most characters will have a job, and the work they do will impact their life. The ups and downs can serve us well in the story.
Maybe you haven’t thought much about jobs in the past and how they act as a window into your character’s personality, interests, and skills. It’s okay, you aren’t alone. The good news is that The Occupation Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Jobs, Vocations, and Careers is going to do all the heavy lifting for you. You’ll be able to pick the perfect job for them and discover how to weave it into the very fabric of the story.
Here’s one of the jobs profiled in this book: FIREFIGHTER.
GIVEAWAY ALERT: THE WRITER’S SHOWCASE IS WAITING
To celebrate the release of a new book, Becca and Angela are running a giveaway from July 20th to July 23rd. You can win some great prizes, including gift certificates that can be spent on writing services within the Writer’s Showcase. Stop by to enter if you like!
Resource Alert: A List of Additional Jobs Profiles For Your Characters!
Some of the amazing writers in our community have put together additional career profiles for you, based on jobs they have done in the past. What a great way to get accurate information so you can better describe the roles and responsibilities that go with a specific job, right? To access this list, GO HERE.
Happy writing to all!
The Occupation Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Jobs, Vocations, and Careers
Guest Author Ann Eriksson
Posted on: July 13, 2020
- In: animals | Books | guest posts | Writing
- 47 Comments
I am pleased to present my guest today, fellow BC author, Ann Eriksson who has just released her latest book, Bird’s-Eye View: Keeping Wild Birds in Flight. A perfect book for anyone who loves birds and a great gift for a young person.
Ann Eriksson lives on Thetis Island, BC, in a waterfront house surrounded by ocean and trees and lots of amazing and beautiful wildlife. Ann is the author of five novels and two non-fiction ecological literacy books for children. When she’s not writing, working in biology, or helping protect the environment, she’s out exploring nature, on foot, or by boat. You can read about Ann’s work at www.anneriksson.ca. Ann’s novels and children’s books are available in print and eBook formats through your favourite bookseller.
Bird’s-Eye View: Keeping Wild Birds in Flight
From the dry deserts to the icy poles, wild birds are everywhere. We see them soaring overhead, paddling across water, flitting through trees, pecking at our backyard bird feeders and singing from fence posts. Birds contribute to the health of the planet and are enjoyed by many people around the world. But wild birds are in trouble. Today almost 200 bird species are critically endangered. They are threatened by habitat loss, invasive species, climate change, pesticides, human-made structures and other animals. Why are wild birds important? Why do they need help? And what are young people all over the world doing to take wild birds under their wing?
“Anyone, young or old, who wants to learn more about the birds that live in their neighborhood or on the other side of the planet will love this book.” – Trevor Herriot, naturalist and author of Grass, Sky, Song
“ A passionate and beautifully illustrated appeal to bird lovers of all ages.” – Bridget Stutchbury, author of Silence of the Songbirds and The Bird Detective.
What was the inspiration for Birds-Eye View?
I live on Thetis Island, surrounded daily by a wonderful and lively diversity of songbirds, woodpeckers, birds of prey and marine birds. And as a biologist and director of the Thetis Island Nature Conservancy, I know how impacted these beautiful and fascinating animals have been by human activities. I had already written Dive In! Exploring Our Connection with the Ocean as part of the Orca Footprints ecological literacy series and had enjoyed the experience immensely, so I pitched a book on birds and bird conservation to my editors at Orca Book Publishers. It ended up as an Orca Wild title.
I see that you have written a diverse collection of novels. What made you decide on the type of books you write?
I started out writing novels because that is what I love to read. I love being transported into different lives and worlds, and exposed to ideas, people and places I wouldn’t normally encounter. I took a break from fiction to write children’s non-fiction on invitation from Ruth Linka, my former publisher at Brindle & Glass, now at Orca Book Publishers. Both the novels and the non-fiction have combined my passion for writing with my interest in ecology.
How long have you been seriously writing?
I started writing novels in 2000, when I was a single parent with 2 school-age children, a dog to walk, a big old house and garden to look after and a contract job in biology. I began to wake up in the morning with a story complete with characters, paragraphs and sentences running through my head. I told it to go away, I didn’t have time. But it continued to tug at me until a friend invited me to join a fledgling writing group. I wrote my first novel, Decomposing Maggie, through that group of supportive women. I can’t believe it has been 20 years!
Where do you get your ideas?
I write about topics that interest me personally, which generally fall into the categories of ecological and social issues. In my fiction, I’ve written about grief, about disabilities, mental illness, homelessness, ocean pollution, marine ecology, killer whales, classical music, trees, forest ecology and habitat loss, climate change and even a little romance.
What is your writing process?
I call my process the ‘whenever’ school of writing. When I was first writing and still with young children at home, I wrote whenever I got some free time. I never procrastinated. I would sit down and start typing (although not always the most brilliant words). Now that it’s just me and my husband, also a writer, I tend to procrastinate more. But when I do get into a project, I stay focused, set my own deadlines if I don’t have external ones, and am quite productive.
Where do you do your best writing?
I have a beautiful bright loft above the kitchen, with a small deck and a view of the ‘Cut’, an ocean pass on which our home is located. I joke that I write with one eye focussed on the computer and the other on the nature going by outdoors. When I really want to concentrate, I head out to a small 100 square foot former children’s playhouse that we call the Dylan Thomas cabin. But the location isn’t so important (sometimes it’s the dining room table) as taking the time to write for periods long enough to get ‘in the zone,’ where hours can go by that feel like minutes. A wonderful place to be.
How long does it take you to write a book?
I’ve written 8 books in 20 years, so I guess an average of 2-4 years from research to publication. But it varies greatly. I wrote the first draft of my first novel in 6 months. I have a novel that’s been in progress now for 3 or 4 years. And a couple more partially finished manuscripts crying for my attention.
What kind of research do you do for a children’s book, and how long do you spend researching before beginning a book?
The kinds of children’s books I write, which are based on scientific information, take a lot of research. It’s important to me that the information in them is accurate and current. I read books and articles by scientists, I search the internet for interesting information, watch videos, interview experts and others, sometimes children, with knowledge and experience about the topic, and attend talks and conferences, for up to a year before I start writing. Then the process of turning it all into an engaging and interesting narrative begins. Once the text is written I have others, including scientists, read it and give me feedback. When the draft is ready and edited, my publisher then turns it into a beautiful work of art.
Tell us about what you are working on next.
I’m in the final stages of a non-fiction book for youth about the climate crisis, to be published in the fall of 2021 as part of Orca’s Issues series. After that, I’m planning another novel. Fiction is calling me.
You can connect with Ann here:
Website: www.anneriksson.ca
Facebook: Ann Eriksson Books
Twitter: @Ann_Eriksson
Instagram: annleriksson
Her Novels
Decomposing Maggie (2003, Turnstone Press) Note: Out of print
In the Hand of Anubis (2009, Brindle and Glass)
Falling From Grace (2010, Brindle and Glass)
High Clear Bell of Morning (2014, Douglas & McIntyre)
The Performance (2016, Douglas & McIntyre)
Her Children’s Non-Fiction
Dive In! Exploring Our Connection With The Ocean (2018, Orca Book Publishers)
Bird’s-Eye View (2020, Orca Book Publishers)
Please do check out these wonderful books and share this post with your readers.
Thanks, Ann for being a guest on my blog and sharing your love of the environment and its inhabitants.
- In: Books | guest posts | Writing
- 60 Comments
I am pleased to have as a guest on my blog, Debra Purdy Kong, who has just launched her 6th mystery novel. Debra has been a guest on my blog, here where she talked about how she gets her ideas and gives some great advice to anyone thinking of writing. Today she talks about her inspiration for the latest Casey Holland mystery, The Blade Man.
So, This Bus Driver Approached Me…
By Debra Purdy Kong
After my third Casey Holland mystery, Beneath the Bleak New Moon, was published, a local bus driver contacted me through Twitter to ask about my books. My series is set in and around Vancouver, British Columbia, which is where the driver and I live.
My protagonist, Casey, is a 33-year-old transit security officer who’s employed by a private bus company. She rides the buses, usually after a customer complaint, to deal with smaller types of issues that either evolve into or merge with larger crimes. By book two she becomes legal guardian to a teenager and has begun a romance with a bus driver named Lou, which makes her personal and professional life complicated and tumultuous at times.
My real-life driver offered to answer any questions I might have about the job. I jumped at the invitation and over several months, we met at Starbucks, where I learned that this driver had been assaulted by passengers on three separate occasions.
At that time, drivers had no protective shields. Their only line of defense was to press an alarm button which would notify the police and allow the dispatchers audio access to what was happening. Some of the buses had cameras but others didn’t. Depending on the situation, a supervisor might also be dispatched in a vehicle. The thing is, a lot can happen before help arrives.
Each time, the driver’s recovery took longer. After the third assault, PTSD eventually forced a change in careers. With two kids to support, it wasn’t an easy decision, but this person felt that drivers just weren’t sufficiently equipped or physically prepared to deal with attacks. On some levels, I could relate to this. Having worked in retail for five years and later as a security guard, I’d also faced hostile encounters, but none where I was actually struck.
Despite the attacks my driver experienced, this person had a surprising amount of sympathy for some of those angry, desperate folks. They weren’t drunk jerks, but people with serious mental health issues who’d been abandoned by the system. That revelation led to the inspiration for my latest Casey mystery, The Blade Man.
We live in a stressful world. Even before the pandemic arrived, medical experts expressed concern about the rise in mental health issues and the lack of resources to adequately cope with people who needed help. This is why I felt compelled to address the issue in The Blade Man.
While the villains are caught at the end, the larger mental health issue is not resolved. Even in fiction, the topic is too complex to neatly wrap up. Crime novels often shine a light on societal problems which, as a reader, I’ve always found compelling. I hope that my real-life driver feels safer now and that a happy ending evolved from all the pain and trauma.
Debra’s Bio:
Debra Purdy Kong’s volunteer experiences, criminology diploma, and various jobs, inspired her to write mysteries set in BC’s Lower Mainland. Her employment as a campus security patrol and communications officer provide the background for her Casey Holland transit security novels.
Debra has published short stories in a variety of genres as well as personal essays, and articles for publications such as Chicken Soup for the Bride’s Soul, B.C. Parent Magazine, and The Vancouver Sun. She is a facilitator for the Creative Writing Program through Port Moody Recreation and a long-time member of Crime Writers of Canada. More information about Debra and her books can be found at www.debrapurdykong.com or contact her at debra_kong@telus.net
Book Blurb for The Blade Man:
Who is the Blade Man and why has this mysterious loner been attacking Mainland Public Transport bus drivers? And who is trying to burn MPT down? The company’s president suspects an inside job and orders security officer Casey Holland to launch an internal investigation or face termination.
Convinced that she’s being set up to fail, Casey feels the pressure. With her and Lou’s wedding only weeks away, Casey desperately needs answers, but anger at work and on the streets thwart her efforts. Nor do the police welcome her help.
More employees are attacked, and the president forces Casey to take deeper risks. But how much is too much? How far must she go before facing off with him and MPT’s enemies? Find out in this explosive sixth installment of Casey Holland transit mysteries.
Links For the Blade Man:
Amazon: mybook.to/TheBladeMan
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/the-blade-man
Apple books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/id1495092401
Find Debra at:
Website www.debrapurdykong.com
WordPress blog: https://debrapurdykong.wordpress.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DebraPurdyKong
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Casey-Holland-Transit-Security-Mysteries/139005706175139
Here is my review of the first book in the series, The Opposite of Dark.
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/customer-reviews/RYL0T07XW90SM/
These books are great and don’t need to be read in order. Check them out!
