Like porcupine courtship, timing is everything
Every now and then, a fella happens to hit the sweet spot, even if it is more by good luck than good management. I rest
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Writer
A writer is someone who uses written words to communicate ideas.
Let be whatever may befall
To be, or not to be. For advocates of plain writing, Shakespeare’s most famous monologue is a touchstone. Its opening sentence consists of nine one-syllable
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The Northern Seduction
Sebastian Fricke and Rose Seguin share their journey, their “inner compasses” with us as they travel and write on their way through Alaska and the
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’Cause Writer’s block
Sometimes I can’t think And I can’t write in ink. When my mind is not bright I have nothing to write.
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Atlin Lit Up! lights up the Yukon writing scene
The Atlin writers’ festival not only offers music but also offers literature, readings and workshops.
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Art is in the eyes of the beholder
Some 30 years ago, as a way of managing his writer’s block, Murray decided to go out to the garage, turn his scroll saw on and put the scroll blade to work to carve away.
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Celebrating the Klondike’s Literary Legends
During the week that leads to the Discovery Days weekend, the Klondike Visitors Association, Parks Canada and the Writers’ Trust of Canada celebrate the writers
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Good Advice
Jamie Bastedo is not new to the Yukon. He first came to the territory 35 years ago as a biology graduate student. “Think Never Cry
Writing as a Full Time Profession
James Bernard MacKinnon, commonly bylined as J.B. MacKinnon, will be coming to the Yukon from Vancouver to be the Yukon Public Libraries’ choice as a
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A Mentor for Yukon Young Writers
Born in England, but transplanted to Newfoundland when she was very young, Kathleen Winter credits libraries with kick starting her interest in writing. “We moved
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Looking for the Next Margaret Atwood
Krystal McKenna, a Grade 1 teacher at Jack Hulland Elementary School, sets young authors off on a great writing adventure. At the beginning of the
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Rooted in the Yukon
Toronto-based poet Claire Caldwell’s role as writer-in-residence at the Berton House in Dawson City ends this month. Caldwell is no stranger to the Yukon. She
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Fresh Words and Deep Roots
Writing poetry since she was a child, Nova Scotia based author Shauntay Grant says she has always loved creative writing. “The oldest poem I’ve kept
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Mark Zuehlke and the Remittance Men
Mark Zuehlke grew up in the Okanagan, hearing tales of Remittance Men – those eccentric British immigrants sent here in the late 19th century by
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Literature in the Kluane Country
Kluane Country has long inspired writers. Three such writers will be doing readings in Haines Junction and Whitehorse on May 17 to 19. Whitehorse writer
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Nurturing Good Writing
Unlike many a published author, Saskatoon writer Sandy Bonny didn’t study to become one. It just happened. “I haven’t got an English degree,” she says,
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Converting Adventure into Books and Film
Dianne Whelan is an award winning filmmaker, photographer and author who lived, until fairly recently, in Vancouver. At the time of this interview she was
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Sal Capone: The Lamentable Tragedy Of
“The play was inspired by the shooting of a young man named Freddy Villaneuva,” Vancouver-based playwright Omari Newton tells me. “A young man that was
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A Very Literate Year (Part 2)
July: The Ballad of the Sad Cafe by Carson McCullers (American, 1951) Hopefully hopeless, Anna Karenina details the rise and fall of a Russian beauty
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Extra! Extra! Read all about it!
How do you like being told what to do? (Wait a minute … let me tune in to me telepathic powers …). You don’t? I
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Extraverts and Introverts
There are extroverts and there are introverts—equals in life, just with different ways of having their “batteries” recharged. The extrovert is energized in social gatherings
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The Craft of Storytelling
Three of the country’s best storytellers will soon descend on Whitehorse for the Northern Lights Writers’ Conference. The conference features Terry Fallis, author of Best
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Marching in remembrance of things past
Mark Zuehlke was a writer-in-residence at Berton House in 2003. At the time he had just finished several books on the history of the Canadian
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This place is in my blood
It’s a dark and rainy night, when Kate Williams finds an injured stranger on the Highway. She pulls over to help him, not knowing that
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Write from the Soul
What’s an English teacher to do once she retires: take a trip through the Northwest Passage? Ruth Armson did that, and wrote about it. Compile
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Off to Skagway to Explore Language
By the time you read this I’ll be “Exploring the Frontiers of Language” in Skagway, attending this year’s edition of the North Words Writers Symposium.
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Grief Writing in Dawson
Jacob Scheier wrote his first collection of poems about the loss of his mother; he was 20. She had gotten sick when he was in
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Mind Stretching Poetry
What does knitting have in common with writing poetry? Both must be done carefully. One mistake can ruin the whole image. Jamie Sharpe knitted a
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Some Writers
A voice in her periphery, one that was indelibly twisted into her memories, rose above the unfolding dialogue in her mind and, like the instinct
The Play’s the Thing
Any parent knows that watching offspring leave the nest unleashes a jumble of emotions: pride, relief, disbelief, grief, envy, nostalgia, apprehension. Sometimes abject terror. You
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Turning Her Life Into Stories
As a former English teacher, long time library patron, book reviewer, informal Berton House liaison, and editor of The Klondike Sun, it often falls to
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Ice fishing on Lake Baikal
A kilometre out on the ice, the motorcycle with its side-cart caught my attention, the olive drab silhouette contrasting sharply against the frozen surface of
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For starters, try eavesdropping
Rude? Normally, yes. Eavesdropping is never in vogue, unless, of course, you’re a writer. Eavesdropping involves observing, listening and perhaps inhaling details, without being obnoxious.
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Musing about the muse
The muse is a mysterious woman, pursued then waited for, enticed then pleaded with; until she is loosed in our imagination. She is sometimes elusive
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Metaphorically speaking, it’s like this …
In the days of LPs, when groovy was used to describe a wonderful feeling, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were also singing about a rare
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Vain jangling, a lullaby for readers
At about that time, Jack was learning that a stitch in time, saves nine. Although it’s an extreme example, the above sentence will no doubt
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When we find ourselves in the place Just Right
Ravens are laughing outside my window as I write this. The sun came up at 5:30. A river runs through my city and mountains to
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Easy as 1, 2, 3!
At What’s Up Yukon, it’s as easy as one, two, three. That’s right, this one’s about numbers. And … it gets complicated. Again, this is
More than a devotional (book is insight into community)
Northern Reflections, Desmond Carroll, paintings by Ted Harrison, The cover of Northern Reflections shows an inukshuk and a blazing sun over ice. One of Ted
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It’s better to give than to receive
Why is it that some people have an insane amount of money while others have very little? This question popped into my head when I
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Poets give ‘voice’ to women of the past
Nineteenth-century photographs of female lunatic asylum patients and Euripides’ play The Bacchae are the inspiration for two poets giving readings in Whitehorse at the end
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The long and the short of it
“Jesus wept.” That is the shortest verse in the Bible and one of the most powerful. It has a subject and a verb, and that’s
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Yukon writers pair up to perform
Yukon writers are pairing up to give a series of weekly readings at the Whitehorse Public Library starting Feb. 5. The readings begin with Al
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Take the lead
Nothing says “lead” like a top hat, white tie and tails, a walking stick and leather-soled taps. Nothing says “lead” like Fred Austerlitz (Fred Astaire).
A balancing act
In a world where imagination is the only contender and where the laws of physics are hotly contested—in the circus world—the act of balancing rivals
These are a few of my favourite things …
Before your vocal chords burst into the chorus from Julie Andrews’ “My Favorite Things” (dash it all, I hate to spoil your fun), I’m not
These are a few of my favourite things … Read More »
World of Words: A Poet shares her diverse sense of ‘Place’
Montreal poet and essayist Erin Mouré is an Albertan with roots in Galicia, Spain. “I think in three languages all at once and every day,”
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Theatre reviews go interactive
There are two types of people who read play reviews: those who want to see if the reviewer agrees with them and those who want
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From Ice to Ashes
An excerpt from Jessica Simon’s New Book Chapter One … Under the skiff of snow that blew across the parking lot, a row of footprints
World of Words: History as a Smörgåsbord
“Think of our history as a smörgåsbord, upon which there is more than you can possibly eat,” says Michael Gates, author of the new book,
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All I ever need …
Sometimes the muse doesn’t just find you; sometimes she follows you, haunts you, tracks your every move and invades your quiet moments, ticking away inside
2010 Condor Foreign Correspondent contest winner
Nathalie Ouellet was feeling the usual letdown after returning from a European vacation, when she saw an advertisement for the Foreign Correspondent Contest in What’s
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World of Words: Locals review great Canadian crime fiction
May is National Crime Writing Month, and in celebration, Yukoners have reviewed work by finalists in three categories. A Nominee for Best Crime Novel: Arctic
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World of Words: “Bodice Rippers” Evolve to “Flak Jacket Rippers”
Chasing trends is a tricky game for writers, says Selina McLemore, editor of Grand Central Publishing’s Forever romance line. “Some can use trends to their
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Ode to ‘Of’
How do I love thee, Of … There are so many ways … gee, let me count them I love thee about as deep and
World of Words: Science Is the best story going
Many Yukon book-lovers are familiar with Claire Eamer’s science series for children, Super Crocs and Monster Wings, Spike Scorpions and Walking Whales, and the latest
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Writing from Watson
Tor Forsberg writes from Watson Lake. Her publishing credits include “Me Yukon”, which won the 2009 LUSH short story competition sponsored by subTerrain magazine, a
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World of Words: On assignment with Luke Dittrich
If you’ve flipped through a copy of Esquire Magazine in the past four years, there’s a 50 percent chance you’ve read a story by Whitehorse
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Drum Roll, Please
Editors love – and hate – writing competitions. We love them because they give us a chance to discover how different writers approach similar subject
Playwright Sherry MacDonald shares her secrets to the creative process
Sherry MacDonald, the newest writer-in-residence at Dawson City’s Berton House, has a place secured in heaven. “There’s a special place in heaven for single moms
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An avalanche of words
An interview with C.R. Avery can be like getting lost in a maze with an avalanche of words descending on you. Sentences meander off in
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The story of bones
Being in Dawson City for a residence at the Berton House is a dream come true for Winnipeg writer Joan Thomas. This is not the
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A life on the edge
Ione Christensen, Yukon writer, mother, pioneer and politician, is writing an autobiography spanning three generations. The daughter of RCMP corporal G. I. Cameron and lay
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World of Words: No longer restricted reading
When graphic novelist and Grade 7 teacher Rebecca Hicks was in school, reading “comics” under the desk would have earned her a trip to the
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Begin, then begin again!
That’s right; the beginning (where else to start?). Let’s look at some creative, perhaps unconventional ways to begin sentences:
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Knowing when to begin again
If you were to write about the northern hairy-nosed wombat, each paragraph would reveal something new about it. A paragraph contains one facet of a
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It’s not just a part of it; it’s the heart of it
The heart continues to inspire us: it is the cornerstone of religious thought, the muse for artistic expression and the stuff—practical and otherwise—from which love stories are born.
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The colon: Abracadabra!
Rising just above the horizon, the moon appears larger than it actually is, much larger than when it’s overhead. The colon is like that—abracadabra!—appearing in a way that has a sometimes-magical affect.
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