Where Do Ideas Come From?
After the appointment at the office of my cardiologist a few months ago, the last such time as she would be retiring soon, she said she would like to ask one question about my writing.
Of course! I was curious!
Where do your ideas come from?
Ah, that question. A different answer pops up on each occasion that it arises.
Are you interested in writing when you retire? I asked.
No, she wasn’t. She went on to say that she wondered how creativity works, where the ideas come from, how they get put into a story so that people want to read it. I didn’t say that I wonder, too.
What interests you that you might do then? I asked.
She told me she always wanted to be a conductor of (not sure where she said that might have occurred, a symphony orchestra perhaps).
I can see you doing that. Perhaps not then, but at an earlier age. No doubt there were
some kinds of opportunities even then in the musical world for retirees as well. I thought of my sister-in-law with her wonderful untrained soprano voice who sang with the Winnipeg symphony in later years.
But thus far I had not answered her question. Where do my ideas come from? At the time I told her how my most recent character, Lyndsay Butt, woke me up at night.
“She insisted I write her story.” And that became the basis of the novel I am now working on. I didn’t mention two stories I wrote during the pandemic, one inspired by it called Dog Walker. Another called The Jewel Thief that started as the result of a visit to a jewellery store in downtown Toronto and grew into something else entirely.
Neither of the two stories are published yet. Although I am working on submitting short stories and on another short story collection. As well as the novel.
Where do ideas come from?
The question led to this piece of rumination.
I will end it now after saying that stories have come to me in many ways over the years. The first novel, Ile d’Or, plagued me for years in the form of a nightmare of a horse drowning in quicksand in a northern Quebec field. There were many other aspects of that time and place I wanted to write into the story, but that was the symbolic beginning of it. I was challenged to write the mystery, The White Ribbon Man, and to set it in a particular church in downtown Toronto. The other novel, Would I Lie To You?, was around a woman who gave up a baby for adoption as a teenager and how this impacted her life. I had heard many of these stories and from time to time felt compelled to write something.
So ideas emerge unwittingly and take over.
That is the short answer!
The long answer might turn into a full-length piece that I don’t foresee writing! Although I will likely read whatever you might write about it.
Asking for Feedback! May 2022 newsletter.
May 2022.
Once more, I am late. Time passes so quickly. I have missed you. Here's a brief update.
Yesterday, I submitted a non-fiction book proposal for the retirement book. It is not my first submission for this book, but I have revised both the manuscript and the proposal substantially. The book has a new title. "Dare to Dream; Make The Most Of Your Retirement." Q. What do you think of this title?
The Memoir of Lyndsay Butt; A Novel also progresses. It is now approaching a complete first draft. Lyndsay Butt is quite opinionated. Feel free to ask her a question. If she comes up with an answer, I will send it to you.
Take care,
Mary Lou Dickinson
Latest memorable reads:
Farzana Doctor. Seven
Hollay Ghadery. Fuse
Jesse Wente. Unreconciled
Elise Levine. Say This
And for some reason, I reread Ethel Wilson’s Swamp Angel.
So many other books in the pile waiting to be read! What about you?
Listening to Anna Maria Tremonti's Podcast. https://podcasts.apple.com/.../welcome-to.../id1606242135
I am listening to Anna Maria Tremonti’s podcast, “Welcome to Paradise,”
the story of her experience as an abused wife. She and her therapist
speak and we hear her story that includes also her recovery. So dramatic. This podcast
is such a service in the struggle against violence against women.
I know the therapist, Farzana Doctor, as another author. My respect for her,
already there as such, is even higher now. My respect for both women, Anna
Maria Tremonti and Farzana Doctor is immense.
This is a hard story to hear, but we need to hear it.
I worked for 20 years until 2002 as a telephone crisis counsellor on the
Assaulted Women’s Helpline. So many women suffer and suffered in silence –
the line supported (and supports ) them to recognize they weren’t (aren’t) to
blame – and on from that. This podcast captures it all. Take strength from it,
from this woman, Tremonti, we know to be so competent and strong. She escaped, she
recovered. But it took years of agony before she created this podcast. So brave.
Bravo!
New Fiction in 2022.
Although I had decided not to take on another novel, a pesky character decided otherwise for me. Her name is Lyndsay Butt and she has the nerve even to wake me up at night and tell me what to write. She started off by telling me her name. And that she would tell me about her adventures. So now evolving is a novel called "The Memoir Of Lyndsay Butt.; A Novel." How many people can claim that kind of amusement in the middle of a pandemic?
And I intend to finish this much faster than anything I have previously written. First draft by end of June this year? That’s the goal!
I hope 2022 is a better year for all of us.
Warmest wishes,
Mary Lou Dickinson
p.s. If you’d like to see a page or two, let me know!
Brockton Writers' Series. Nov. 10, 2021
Wednesday, November 10, 2021 – 6:30pm
Brockton Writers Series presents readings by:
Kelly Robson
Mary Lou Dickinson
Lisa Richter
Jael Richardson
—
Special note: As we adapt to current social distancing regulations, we’re happy to announce our event will be hosted by the wonderful ephemera series! They have already done their show online multiple times, so we are thrilled to benefit from their technical expertise, while also increasing collaboration within the literary community and growing connections between organizers, authors, and audience. You can attend the event by watching on the ephemera series YouTube channel. Please log in at 6:30.
The reading is PWYC (suggested $3-$5) and features a Q&A with the writers afterward. Books are available for sale.
Is this a poem?
TWO BLACK MASKS
Two black masks hang
side by side on coat hooks
one bigger than the other.
“Who are you going to wear tomorrow?”
the smaller mask asks.
“I’ll wear the same man again.
He was friendly with people.”
“Wasn’t he with a tiny woman I wore?”
“Yes,” replies the bigger mask.
“Smaller and quieter.”
“Did the inside of your shape
get wet from his breath?”
“Wet and soggy. “
“Disgusting to have to catch smelly
snot and steamy breath?”
“What would they do without us?”
“Get sick and die.”
“Snooze time.“
A Writer's Life. From One Particular Bunker In The Midst of a Pandemic
Hello there,
Welcome to new readers! To those of you who have been around for a while, you know that I have not sent an update recently. It is likely for the same reason that now affects all of us in one way or another these days − the pandemic. A few days ago in the hallway of my building, a masked neighbour who is working remotely, said, “The way we’re living has come to feel almost normal.” Well, almost!
It is certainly a time for reflection. The big issues have not gone away. Truth and Reconciliation. Black Lives Matter. Climate Change. Integrity in politics. How will we move forward into what could be a better world beyond this unprecedented time? What are you reading? I am about to start Desmond Cole's book. "The Skin We're In; A Year of Black Resistance and Power.”. On my list of books read, Carol Anderson's "White Rage" looks at the history and politics that underlie present day racicm in the US. There is systemic racism in Canada also. A course on Black History In Canada I took only a few months ago revealed the complicity of many early and prominent Canadians in the slave trade, a history neither widely known nor talked about until recently. We claim the Underground Railroad as a positive Canadian story. but often ignore that slavery existed in Canada as well as in the USA. And still affects attitudes, actions and policies to this day.
And what of those fires across the western USA and Canada? In failing to recognize climate change. what have we done to create the conditions for such destruction? In our rush for increased consumption, what can we do now to change this course we seem set on?These are questions that must be addressed. I have just put Thomas Homer Dixon's book, "Commandng Hope; The Power We Have To Renew A World in Peril" on my reading list.. Will this help me to move forward in some constructive way?
Yes, there are many reasons to despair. Nonetheless, I continue to write and revise, to attend Zoom meetngs and courses, to see a few "real people" (masked and distanced) outdoors. Platforms like Skype, Zoom and Facetime,have made this period somewhat palatable A real plus has been to reconnect with McGill grads I knew aeons ago, most of ttem in various parts of the eastern USA. You can bet we talk about politics and the upcoming American election.
I have written two new short stories this year, submitted my longer non fiction story, “Late Bloomer.” I think this last story is a testament to ongoing creativity at a later age and has the potential to inspire others to follow their dream/s. I also bake and gain weight, then stop that and take off the pounds. When the sun is shining, I often simply go for a walk. Winter will soon be here, so I soak up fair weather and the colours of fall while they last.
At some point, I realized that people are learning about aspects of themselves during the pandemic that could well be relevant to their thinking about retirement. Managing time and the dilemma of social isolation have become priorities in Covid19 time. So I pulled the retirement manuscript up onto the screen and found I could use the material I had amassedd with a slighlty different slant here and there.
This book, "The Stage Is Yours; Retirement In The Wake Of A Pandemic," will be useful especially for people in their fifties and early sixties on the threshold of transition into retirement. Retirees may also check it out to see if they have missed anything, Now the burning question is how to see it published fairly quickly so it will be available for those who will find it helpful as they transition into another stage of their lives.
On another note, I miss being able to visit with my grandchildren in person (in SW Ontario & Quebec’s Eastern Townships) but do have great telephone calls with Max (22) and lovely long Skype calls with Maurice (Mo)(6) & Emmanuelle (3).
There it is! Life from one particular bunker in the midst of a pandemic.
Take care! Stay safe!
Mary Lou Dickinson
ps. When I set out to write this missive, my intention was to make this short. Sorry, it didn't work. When I started to reflect, it just got longer. If you have read this far, many thanks! I also want to thank those of you who sent feedback on retirement after my request in an earlier post. What you shared has been very useful in writing the book mentioned above.
Upcoming reads: Farzana Doctor's new novel "Seven."
Mary Rykov's poems. "Some Conditons Apply."
Also looking forward to a book edited by Shirley Spaxman on spiritual philosophy and meditation
"Gratitude In The Time Of The Pandemic" by Ron Schafrick. Guest Post.
http://www.ronschafrick.com/blog/2021/1/5/thoughts-on-the-new-year (copied to this blog with permission).
GRATITUDE IN THE TIME OF THE PANDEMIC
After nine years of living in South Korea, I moved back to Canada for good in 2006. I’d grown tired of always being perceived as a foreigner; and as a gay man, I felt increasingly uncomfortable as my life came under greater scrutiny the longer I remained a “bachelor.” It was time to go home, time for a fresh start, and I looked to the future with excitement and optimism. What I didn’t expect was how difficult the subsequent years in Canada would be. I had not expected the extent to which I’d experience “reverse culture shock,” how financially difficult it would be, how deeply unhappy and, most surprising of all, how every bit of a foreigner I would feel in Canada. In short, those were “bad” years. And then I remember one Pride weekend, as I was negotiating my way through the crowded gay village in Toronto, when I heard a woman shout: “Yes! 2011 is the best year ever!” What news had she received that added to what sounded like an already wonderful year? I envied her, I remember thinking. Not that my own life by that point was all bad, but it certainly wasn’t as jubilant as hers. It was a year full of the usual ups and downs, just like any other. And although I can’t remember any specific high- or low-lights off-hand, I do recall resolving to stop dubbing years as either “good” or “bad,” a resolution that has unfettered me of a lot of unnecessary expectation and disappointment.
I bring all this up because I find it troubling how often I hear this collective condemnation of 2020. Don’t get me wrong; yes, 2020 was a year of tremendous suffering for many people: more than 15,000 Canadians lost their lives as a result of covid-19, half a million Canadians contracted the virus, a million others lost jobs, numerous businesses went bankrupt, and life, for most of us, became challenging in various ways. 2020 was also a year that saw large protests and tremendous violence around the world, especially so in the United States. But when I hear people like Justin Trudeau and newscasters—influential voices in society, in other words—saying how they can’t wait to bid goodbye to 2020, I find such blanket statements both discomfiting in their simplicity and naïve in their implied optimism for the future.
For one thing, such generalizations obviously can’t be true for everyone, and when our political leaders speak in such simplistic terms—as is increasingly the style for political leaders to speak—it only encourages a collective, herd-style nodding of heads that precludes any “varying shades” of broader truths, to rehash the language of Nietzsche. After all, not everyone experienced hardship—or only hardship. Just like in times of war, while some suffer, others profit. Apart from the obvious tech giants whose profits soared this past year, numerous entrepreneurs found a niche market that they were able to profit from. There were also stories of those who collected CERB and were earning more a month than they did when employed! And what’s often overlooked is that for many people, it’s precisely because of the pandemic that they discovered joy in things they ordinarily wouldn’t have, like reading, cooking, connecting with family (even if through Zoom), outdoor exercise, volunteerism, or political activism, and sometimes even alongside whatever hardships were imposed on their lives. Many of us, I think it might be fair to say, found strengths they didn’t know they had. And let’s not forget this past year saw Donald Trump defeated in the US election—that alone is cause for celebration!—something no one saw coming a year ago, and it took a pandemic to make happen.
But this habit of positing years as either “good” or “bad” also contains an element of the metaphysical in it that also makes me uneasy, something that was made bizarrely palpable recently in—where else?—New York’s Times Square on “Good Riddance Day.” Apparently, it’s been an annual tradition since 2007, in which every December 28th passersby are invited to write down their grievances of the past year (“Outstanding bills”; “Lost my job”) and put them in a paper shredder or to smash piñatas with the soon-to-end year inscribed on them. In his On the Genealogy of Morals, Nietzsche writes that man must find meaning for his suffering in order for it to made tolerable; and religion, Nietzsche says, has always provided us with that meaning: we suffer because the gods must be angry with us; we suffer because it is a test of our faith; that those who suffer are the blessed ones, the chosen ones; and that our suffering will be relieved in the afterlife. For what is more intolerable than suffering itself, Nietzsche says, what is more frightening is what he calls the “fearful void” of nothingness, that there is no reason or meaning for our suffering, that there is no divine punishment or karmic balance or the wiles of fate. It just is. (It’s what the eponymous protagonist of Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilych realizes by the end of the novella.) And what is all but completely forgotten nowadays—and one cannot underestimate how prevalent this concept was right up until the turn of the last century—was the accepted belief that the whole point of life was to suffer; and again, for the Christian church, we will find relief for our suffering in heaven. But as religious faith began to fade, so too did this belief. Even the church has abandoned this notion. (For Nietzsche, incidentally, suffering is meaningful; for him it’s “ennobling”, we learn from it, we become better people as a result of it, great art emerges from it. As Nietzsche famously wrote in aphorism 8 in Twilight of the Idols: “What does not destroy me, makes me stronger.”)
Nowadays, though, suffering is seen as useless, to be avoided at all cost, yet the metaphysical drive to find meaning for it, as “Good Riddance Day” demonstrates, hasn’t diminished. Ah yes! It must be the year itself that’s to blame. Sheer bad luck! And so we see this bizarre reversion to something atavistic in the way people shred their grievances and smash piñatas, in the way we annually gather with friends and family, in the chorus of voices counting down the final seconds till the New Year, the burst of fireworks and clinking of glasses, the kisses and embraces—practices, we have come to believe, that are necessary in order to ring in a beneficent new year.
And again, while I don’t wish to discredit the fact that a great many people have suffered deeply as a result of this pandemic, it seems that the ones who are doing the loudest complaining are those who are just inconvenienced by the whole thing, that what I’m hearing is a lot of collective whining. “My child is going to be permanently mentally scarred by all this!” I remember one woman called in to CBC’s noon-hour call-in radio show during the first lockdown to complain about her kid not being able to go to school. Yes, education is going to suffer as a result of this pandemic, but the nature of her plaint pales in comparison to those who are languishing, many of whom for years on end, in refugee camps in Turkey or Lebanon or Bangladesh or in the notorious detention centres on Nauru or Christmas Islands. And given that some countries like Syria have had one “bad” year after another, it seems that this herd-like condemnation of 2020 is something that only rich Western countries can utter, not having suffered very much until now. As my 80-year-old aunt recently put it, a woman who lived through World War II in Europe and experienced, first-hand, hunger, poverty and forced migration: “This? Ach! This is nothing!”
Which brings me to another bone of contention, the phrases: “When this is over” and “When things get back to normal” (phrases that are redolent of what people, thankfully, no longer seriously ask anymore, the idea of the US getting “back to normal” once Trump leaves office). It seems naïve to think that things will ever “get back to normal”—whatever exactly that means. For one thing, as long as the virus continues to mutate and new variants emerge; as long as vaccine hesitancy is present; as long as vaccines remain out of reach for poor countries; as long as mass-inoculation remains slow, disorganized, and administered experimentally (there have been a number of reports in the last few days of administering half-doses, extended waiting periods between shots, even offering the second dose from a different manufacturer: all of which ventures into uncharted territory), it doesn’t seem likely that we’ll ever truly defeat this virus and get “back to normal”—that third and fourth waves seem likely. This idea of “normalcy” also implies that the pandemic is an anomaly, a one-off, and, most arrogantly, that the worst is over! (This mindset eerily recalls those early assumptions when World War I broke out and many predicted that fighting would end in a matter of weeks.) For what also seems immanent, but is seldom spoken of, are the other pandemics that are bound to happen, and sooner rather than later. We now know that deforestation and the destruction of the natural habitats that otherwise acted as a barrier between wildlife and human-life is responsible for the current coronavirus to make the leap from animal to human and its subsequent global spread. So if getting back to normal means a resumption of our pursuit of material wealth and the unimpeded environmental devastation that accompanies it, then it’s almost certain that other, possibly deadlier, pandemics will follow. If one considers, too, rising global temperatures, more and more extreme weather events, not to mention a volatile political situation in the US, it seems foolish to contemplate ever returning to anything resembling “normal” at all, that in fact what we’re currently experiencing is very much within the range of “normal” when it comes to cause and effect. And so, instead of this wholesale condemnation of an arbitrary unit of time with its weirdly metaphysical connotations, instead of this blind optimism that things will “get back to normal once this is over,” it seems to me that not only have we have failed to place the blame squarely on ourselves for our current mess, but that such practices preclude any notion of gratitude for what we still have, for what is still “normal”—something we ought to keep in mind given the precariousness of the future.
http://www.ronschafrick.com/blog/2021/1/5/thoughts-on-the-new-year
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Written by Ron SchafrickOn January 6, 2021Tagged Nietzsche and the pandemic, making sense of 2020, Year two of the pandemic, gratitude in the time of the pandemic, gratitude in the time of covid
Happy New Year. 2021. Reflections on the past year!
January 2021.
I stayed up until midnight on New Year’s Eve to see 2020 over. Gone. It was a terrible year for everyone, a year that will be remembered as 2020, the year of a worldwide pandemic. There we were, masked and distanced, unable to participate in our regular activities, unable to travel and visit family and friends and discover new places. Unable might be considered one significant word of the year, I suppose. Or one of them. There were many. Resilience. I could go on, but that is not the purpose of sitting down today to start a journal entry for the first time in a long time. The purpose is to record some thoughts I had this morning about what was good about 2020, in spite of Covid 19 and the pandemic.
Here it is: During 2020, I discovered I am quite resilient. In spite of new health problems, I carried on. I am 83 now and have been extremely fortunate to be, on the whole, a healthy person. In spite of new medical concerns, I am still able to walk and shop and speak and perhaps dance when the pandemic is finally over. In the meantime, I have had regular Sykpe contact with two young grandchildren (Maurice and Emmanuelle) in Quebec (Montreal and the Eastern Townships), regular phone contact with Max, my 22 year old grandson who is in a music production program in London, Ontario. And contact with all their parents, most recently with everyone together on a virtual platform.
This past year, 2020, I received acceptance from my publisher, Inanna, for a nonfiction account (Late Bloomer) of my long journey to publication of my first book, (One Day It Happens) at age 70. Late Bloomer was accepted for publication in 2023. I self-published a linked collection of short stories, Dance Season, on Amazon in 2020. That involved a huge learning curve that continues into 2021 with the prospect of learning about effective advertising on Amazon. With Dance Season, five books have now been published. Late Bloomer will make six. I am in the process of working on a book on retirement (The Stage Is Yours) and another collection of short stories (The Jewel Thief).
The title of The Jewel Thief comes from one of two brand new stories written during 2020, i.e. written during the pandemic. I have entered The Jewel Thief (the individual short story) into a contest. The other story, Dog Walker, a pandemic story, I have submitted to a literary periodical. Both were fun to write, especially The Jewel Thief which started off largely as a spoof and gradually continued that way. It became a bit more serious as it was critiqued by two writing groups that continued, and continue, to meet on Zoom.
Looked at that way, 2020 doesn’t seem too bad. I have good friends and we keep in touch. And I have been blessed with having my sister and her husband, who lived out west until four or five years ago, only a block away. We manage to walk together, masked and distanced, on weekends when they are not busy with grandchildren. Also masked and distanced, or virtual, depending!
Then there is the area I live in, the Annex in downtown Toronto. This is a far cry from growing up in a frontier mining town in northern Quebec. But some of the same things draw me. Solitary walks in nature, for instance. Well, of course, it is very different to walk in an urban environment from when you live in a house next to the bush. But, you know, walking on the University of Toronto campus one is amidst trees and grass and a wide sky.
So, I guess the point of all this is, 2020 wasn’t so bad after all. I will be glad when the virus is enough under control for people to feel safe to go about their lives again. I will be glad to get on a train and visit my grandchildren in both provinces. I will be glad when I can go into a grocery store without a mask on. There are so many things I will be glad about. I hope some of them are differences in our approaches to the environment and climate change. To equity, diversity and inclusion. I hope there will be a change in how wealth is distributed. Not so the wealthy have to give up all their pleasures, but so that they enter into a contract for social change that will leave no one behind in poverty or hunger or…
These are my thoughts at the beginning of 2021 and as they began to overflow in my consciousness that had been flooded with despair and regret on the first days of the New Year, I thought them worth writing down. I also don’t want to forget that in this past year I have lost people who have been incredibly important to me. There are too many to mention, but I remember!
I am also grateful for my friends, old and new, who have kept in touch. It has been exciting, for instance, to recreate, in regular Zoom calls, contact between seven (including me) women who graduated in the late l950s from McGill University. We are dispersed between Ontario, Massachusetts, Georgia and New Jersey. And the friends here in Toronto who call regularly. And those who email from elsewhere. Yes. I have been, and am, a most fortunate individual.
And so… another day, another year. Onward!
Dance Season; A Collection of Linked Short Stories
This is the week! Many of you asked me to let you know when the print version of "Dance Season" would be available.
Here's what's happening. I have just uploaded the print version of "Dance Season."
Where? www.amazon.ca or www.amazon.com
What can you do? For those of you who prefer to read in print (and many of you asked for the information,) you will now be able to order that version. Check it out!
If you prefer the ebook and haven’t ordered it yet, both versions are now available.
And greetings and best wishes also for the occasion - Hanukkah, Christmas, etc. -
that you celebrate at this time of year!
Mary Lou Dickinson
Breaking the Ocean by Annahid Dashtgard. Just read this book!
Important book in the understanding of diversity and antiracism/racism. This is a groundbreaking book -honest, courageous, intelligent and self aware in its understanding of and analysis of racism encountered by a young girl who immigrated to Canada from Persia/Iran with her Iranian father and British mother and two younger siblings. Raised in Alberta in a primarily white environment Dashtgard did not find herself represented among the white children and teachers around her. Bullied, misunderstood, unsupported around these experiences in her family struggling to survive themelves in this hostile environment, she grew up with trauma unresolved until midlife when she had already been a prominent activist, organizer, speaker and married with young children Finally part of a mixed community in Toronto that was comfortable for her and her young family and finding a therapist with relevant understanding, she was able to write and finish this must read book. It helps us uunderstand the issues underlying the racism in our society. About the privilege of the white majority. Yes, all of this, and at the same time I was impressed by the wonderful writing and the luminous understanding of the author. It extended my own understanding and how necessary it is for each of us to recognize how we must be involved in critical changes both within ourselves and in society.
A Writer's Life During Covoid 2019.
Oddly enough, much the same. I usually work in isolation. I continue to do so. Except all the outside activities are cancelled. Including a talk in May on my mystery for a group called “Tea and Murder” at the Deer Park Public Library. Probably it will be rescheduled later, whenever later is! In the meantime, as well as writing and reading, I am one of the people who early on bought flour and sugar (I am supposed to be reducing that) and have baked. And gained weight. Time to stop that!
There has been a lot of online contact through Zoom, Skype, etc. Writing groups, a group on retirement, etc. Although to write about retirement now when more than a million people are suddenly out of work really doesn’t fly. Although some of what people will learn about structuring their own time and planning their days will serve them well one day when they are faced with a different, and more positive, kind of retirement. We can guess that will be postponed for many because of the pandemic. We can only hope that more and more of us will live through to the other side of this horrific scourge to another shore where perhaps we can use our experience to improve our world in ways that the pandemic forced us to consider.
Think about the reduction in pollution as one prime example of what this time has brought to us. Do we have the courage, the stamina, the will and the resourcefulness to find ways to carry this into the world beyond Covoid 19? Just one example, but there are many you are probably thinking of as you read this. So, let’s get through this by doing what we can to stay healthy (physical distance, hand washing, staying home). And applaud our heath care and front line workers across the spectrum for what they are all doing for us.
Think of the way our politicians have worked together in the face of a terrible enemy to our survival? Will some of this cooperation filter into our political conversations post Covoid 19? Think of the way countries around the world have been able to share information and resources in a positive way. Think of….the list goes on and on. Does it make you hopeful? I am not sure yet, but I would like to be!
Take care!
February, 2020. A new review of "The White Ribbon Man."
http://canlit.ca/article/murder-and-sin-in-t-dot/ You can check the review out at this link. Carla Kristmar Harrison reviews Randy Boyagoda’s “Original Prin” at the same time as “The White Ribbon Man.” Although very different books, she finds some underlying similarities as well. A well written, thoughtful and interesting review.
2020. January progress report.
So, here it is, already February 2020. Where does time go? What I do know is that it goes by awfully quickly. But I have been busy, so likely that is why it seems to have done so even faster than usual.
What have I been doing?
My Short story cellection, “Dance Season,” is almost complete. The stories are linked with the same central character, Laurie, in all of them. It is presently beng read by a reader who is a very insightful and interested friend who has agreed to make any comments she feels are relevant to creating a better book. Ellen Hrivnak has done this for me before and I am eternally grateful for her ability to look at a text objectively and offer helpful comment. Some of the stories have also benefited from the critiques of my two writers’ groups.
My memoir, “Late Bloomer,” is with my publisher. I await its fate. It is taking rather a long time and, as a writer, one does not know what that means. Is it going to be accepted? Or rejected? If accepted, when will it be published? If rejected, where will I submit it? Will I submit it as is? Or will I revise it yet again? This is the daily life of a writer. And these are the kinds of questions we ask ourselves. .
At the momnet, I am putting my energy into the book on retirement. “The Stage Is Yours; Finding Meaning and Purpose in Retirement.” What is my framework for writing this book? Is it a new frame for seeing retirmeent? I think so. There are so many books out there that take on the subject. How is this book different? I don’t doubt that there will be some overlap,. My hope is that in focussing on the emotional and social aspects of this transition you, the reader, will be inspired to take a look at your own options slighty differently and with new enthusiasm. I suspect you will find inspiration in the stories of a variety of people who have responded to questionnaires and with whom I have had conversations. It is possible and probable that you will then take new approaches to planning your own retirement/s. Or possibly to evaluating your life after this transition.
Question: What do you think at this stage about your own journey into or beyond retirement? And what questions do you have about it? What insights and ideas have you incorporated? Do let me know. It is by hearing stories that people remember what they read. Of course, these stories have to be presented well for impact, but I am hoping they will be! So I will keep on revisng until I am satisfied with them..
Thanks to those who gave feedback re the title for the retirement book. Most liked what I am still using, but there were some thoughtful comments and suggestions. Whether I make a change later or not, I appreciate feedback that also makes me think.
Happy Winter, Folks. If you’re down south, enjoy the warmth and sunshine. If you are living a northern winter, keep warm, albeit by bundlng up!
Until next time!
Mary Lou\
December 2019. A Writer’s Life. Update on last half of 2019.
This is my first blog post in some time. Indeed, I think the last was in late June. I recall saying I might take a break after a year of launches, readings, panels etc. focussing on my newly published (at that time) mystery, The White Ribbon Man, Inanna, 2018. And I did. I would like to report that all sorts of exciting things happened during that time. But after a slew of medical tests instead, the good news is that there are options for treatment. I would much rather have been doing almost anything else, but I was able to do quite a bit of writing. I resubmitted my memoir after extensive revision and just completed a collection of linked short stories called Dance Season.
I am now working in a concentrated way on the book on the social/emotional aspects of retirement many of you have encouraged me to write. While it does mention the financial issues of this transition, it focusses on these other aspects that are oft overlooked yet of equal importance.
I have enjoyed the research that consisted of interviews with people who are facing retirement and those who have already crossed that bridge. Also I took endless books out of the library and read numerous articles. I now have a structure for the book, a contents list and have written a few chapters. It took a while to get the structure organized. And there are aspects of writing non fiction that are very different than when writing fiction. So I am learning the basics of yet another genre.
The title now is: The Stage is Yours; Finding Meaning and Purpose in Retirement. For each title I use, I get a blast of feedback suggesting other options. This is the first title that has received quiet approval from the outset. If you have thoughts about it, I would be glad to have your feedback also!.
Thus far, I have interviewed a number of people who will act as examples of some of the issues that arise. Their stories range from the inspirational to the practical to the humourous. I hope to finish it in the first half of 2020. If you have any ideas of who might want to publish such a book, let me know. I don’t think I feel equipped at this later stage to self publish. I think a lot of people will benefit from its content. Or so I am told. Also any thoughts on marketing non fiction would be welcome. Marketing fiction is a great deal of fun, but also a challenge and even sometimes a nightmare. It is difficult to establish a ”Brand” for fiction and a way of communicating excitement. Although I have enjoyed doing so and have been moderately successful at it. On the other hand, I gather that selling non fiction in Canada is actually more difficult these days. Just as I had concluded it might be easier!
I won’t wait so long to post again. In the meantime, best wishes for whatever season you celebrate. And may 2020 be a heathy, happy year for you.
Mary Lou
The Happy Retiree!
I do not know if I will ever retire, but I don’t think most artists and writers do. On the other hand, I have learned over many years a great deal about the subject. Especially about all the aspects other than the financial ones which I will leave to the experts. Although I will have some references for those who have not already looked at that well covered topic of how to plan for your finances for retirement. Many of which I have used myself. However, what I am writing is a book about the other aspects of this late stage of one’s life. For instance, what are you going to do with your time? It is a period that has now become far longer for many people than it has been in the past. In this blog, I intend to introduce aspects of the book. Basically this is an appetizer for a book on planning for a creative retirement. Do you have a passion that will provide a thread to connect your days? Who are you?
How about a title? I have a number of working titles. Any comments about THE HAPPY RETIREE; Exploring New Paths. Any other suggestions? Do please let me hear from you. Leave a comment!
What A Year!
The White Ribbon Man" was published in May 2018. That was exactly a year ago. Since the Inanna Launch of five of its authors with new books at the Women's Art Association in downtown Toronto, my life has been very busy! Here is a lineup of the events from then to now. You may just want to skim these. If so, don’t miss a paragraph or so that follows that will likely interest you.
May 3, 2018. Toronto. Official Launch of The White Ribbon Man along with 4 other Inanna authors.
Toronto events in 2018.
-The Sleuth Of Baker Street Bookstore. June. Reading with Lisa de Nikolits and Sky McKay Curtis.
-Queen Saulter Branch, TPL. An hour in July with Mary Lou Dickinson
-A soiree with friends in July. Loren Edizel and I read and answered questions
-The Church of the Holy Trinity. August. Presentation of the book at the church where it is set
-Spadina Branch, TPL. An hour in September with Mary Lou Dickinson.
-Another Story Books in the fall. A talk about writing groups with me, Ele Pawelski, Heather Wood, Ron Schafrick. Moderated by Jerry Schaefer.
Out of town:
New Liskeard, Chat Noir Books in July. Read with Brit Griffen.
Chatham. An evening with Tri County Literacy Network in August.
Montreal. Two readings in October in Montreal. Art Centre in Westmount with 8 or 9 others, including Myna Wallin, and Paragraphe Books across from McGill campus with Loren Edizel & Myna Wallin.
Hamilton. Lit Live. I was one of six authors, including Ingrid Ruthig & Ray Robertson as well as Moez Surani, Cameron Anstee & Liz Harmer, who read at this event in early November.
Toronto events in 2019
Ontario Library Association Superconference. Crime Writers of Canada members presented short pitches on their current books. Feb.
Draft Readings. Read 3 pp. of a piece in progress (Leonard Cohen & Me). Feb.
Writers Union of Canada (Toronto area). A panel on writing groups with Zoe Ray, Allan Weiss, Patricia Westerhof, Heather Wood, and me. Feb.
Noir at the Bar. Read with Christian Baines, Michael Januska, Kim Moritsugu, Jon Sheppard & Jennifer Soosar. Feb.
A Women's club in East York. I was the speaker for the evening. March.
Famous Last Words. Read with Loren Edizel, John Miller & Catriona Wright. March.
Csarn Salon. A short presentation of my work as an author and a description of "The White Ribbon Man." March
Ben McNally Books. Presented short list for Crime Non Fiction at announcement of short lists for Arthur Ellis awards. Short pitch of own book. April.
Crime Writers of Canada presented a panel for Sisters in Crime. Moderated by Des Ryan. Panelists: Sharon Crawford, Lisa de Nikolits, Maureen Jennings and me. On mysteries set in Toronto. Northern District Library. April.
Some Book Clubs also. Always interesting as most members have read the book
Out of Town:
Novel Idea Books, Kingston. Read with Elizabeth Greene (moderator), Lisa de Nikolits, & Ursula Pflug. March.
Time to move on?
I think it is time to listen to the other projects that are demanding my attention. Of course, an invite to speak at an event with a fee (let's say $100 to $5000!!!) would get a positive response, I think. Don't you? In the meantime, some of you know about the memoir (now complete, or almost, I hope) and the non fiction book on creative retirement I have begun. Also a collection of short stories well underway. And I suppose a good idea for another mystery might start something in that genre. You know, a Jack Cosser mystery series. In any case, there is plenty still to write and to work on. I don't suppose I will be bored!
In other aspects of my life, there is still dancing. And I have had recent trips to visit family in Montreal and Winnipeg. And went to Halifax for the AGM of the Writers' Union of Canada. Then Friendship Force of Toronto (non profit home stay travel group that receives guests from and sends our own members to other clubs around the world) hosted a group from Albuquerque, New Mexico. This year some members from our group will travel to four cities in Western Canada and next year to New Zealand and Australia.
In the meantime, lots of reading, catching up with friends and cultural events, seeing grandkids (now 21, 5 & 2), dancing. And am looking forward to seeing many of you. And reading your books that I want to tell you about. Etc., etc.
Listen To This!
There is a broadcast of a recent reading I participated in at Novel Idea Books in Kingston earlier in March. Many thanks to Bruce Kauffman. Since it has aired already, here are some other options for hearing it. I am the second reader on the tape.
Live online: Streams live at cfrc.ca, then saved in the station's archives there for up to 90 days.
Blogspace: At https://findingavoiceoncfrcfm.wordpress.com/ shortly after show airs, will remain there easily accessible for 4 years.
As a podcast: Accessible in iTunes, other apps, and on CFRC’s podcast link at https://podcast.cfrc.ca/
Automatic weekly podcast downloads: Search 'Finding a Voice' in and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or Google Play.
Happy Spring (feels as if it is almost on the horizon).
Mary Lou
My upcoming March events include:
Thursday, March 21st 7:30 pm. East York University Women's Club . Speech. 125 Brentcliffe Rd. in Northlea United Church).
Sunday, March 31st 5:15 pm. JUNCTION READS AND WRITES .at Famous Last Words Books, 392 Pacific Avenue..
February to April 2019. Updated List.
(Done) February 1 (Friday). OLA (Ontario Library Association) Superconference. Crime Writers of Canada members present short pitches (2 to 3 min) on their current books -1 to 2 p.m. Metro Convention Centre Toronto. (This event has happened and it was great fun to present to librarians at the Ontario Library Association Conference. The challenge is to stand out enough so that the librarians will remember you pitch enough and follow up with buying your book/s for their libraries).
***(New) February 17th. 3 p.m. I will read at the Draft Writing Series. 450 Broadview Avenue, Toronto (just north of Gerrard). I am one of a group who will each have 4 minutes to read.
February 20 (Weds) The Writers Union of Canada (TWUC). Panel on Writing' Groups. Glad Day Bookshop. Church & Wellesley. Panel to be announced. Some changes made, but I think I am still on it.
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February 28 (Thurs) Noir at The Bar.. 7 pm Wallace Gastro Pub. Reading (Christian Baines, Mary Lou Dickinson, Michael Januska, Kim Moritsugu, Jon Sheppard, Jennifer Soosar)
1954 Yonge St., at Davisville, Toronto.
March 7 (Thurs.) Novel Idea Books 7 pm (Kingston, ON). Readings and Q&A with Lisa de Nikolits, Mary Lou Dickinson, Ursula Pflug, & Elizabeth Greene
March 12 (Tues) Book Club (Toronto) Private
March 21 (Thurs) University Women’s Club, East York Speech 7.30 pm
March 31 (Sun) Famous Last Words (to be confirmed) evening
April 10 (Weds) Book Club (Toronto) evening Private
April 18 (Thurs) Panel 7 pm (Authors from Crime Writers of Canada whose mysteries are set in Toronto at Sisters in Crime meeting) Sharon Crawford, Lisa de Nikolits, Mary Lou Dickinson, & Desmond Ryan. With special guest, Maureen Jennings. At Northern District Library. Open to the public. $5.non members of SINC..
Upcoming Events. 2019.
February 1 (Friday). OLA (Ontario Library Association) Superconference. Crime Writers of Canada members present short pitches (2 to 3 min) on their current books -1 to 2 p.m. Metro Convention Centre Toronto
February 20 (Weds) The Writers Union of Canada (TWUC). Panel on Writers' Groups. Glad Day Bookshop. Church & Wellesley. Mary Lou Dickinson, Zoe Roy, Jacqueline Valencia, Patricia Westerhof., Allan Weiss, & Heather Wood
.
February 28 (Thurs) Noir at The Bar.. 7 pm Wallace Gastro Pub. Reading (Christian Baines, Mary Lou Dickinson, Michael Januska, Kim Moritsugu, Jon Sheppard, Jennifer Soosas)
1954 Yonge St., at Davisville, Toronto.
March 7 (Thurs.) Novel Idea Books 7 pm (Kingston, ON). Readings and Q&A with Lisa de Nikolits, Mary Lou Dickinson, Ursula Pflug, & Elizabeth Greene
March 12 (Tues) Book Club (Toronto) Private
March 21 (Thurs) University Women’s Club, East York Speech 7.30 pm
March 31 (Sun) Famous Last Words (to be confirmed) evening
April 10 (Weds) Book Club (Toronto) evening Private
April 18 (Thurs) Panel 7 pm (Authors from Crime Writers of Canada whose mysteries are set in Toronto at Sisters in Crime meeting) Sharon Crawford, Lisa de Nikolits, Mary Lou Dickinson, & Desmond Ryan. With special guest, Maureen Jennings. At Northern District Library. Open to the public. $5.non members of SINC..
