Five Years a Writer

Life is a collection of dots... Abigail Thomas , the American memoirist, says not to worry about chronology when we are trying to capture our life ’ s stories. Just get the dots down, she says. Worry about connecting them later. I find this freeing. In a recent writing class, the prompt was the image of an old-fashioned pencil sharpener — the kind that was affixed to the wall of my primary school classroom. I mulled on it a while, thinking about pencils and sharpening them, a most satisfying action. Then, after a conversation with a writing friend who said the image reminded her of ‘back to school’ times, I realized I had two dots stored in my memory bank that I could work with: Miss McCormack, my Grade One teacher in Montreal; and Frau Doktor Friedrich, my home room teacher at my middle-grade school in Germany. I started with those two dots, inserted a third ‘teacher’ dot in between them, and then noodled on how to extend the piece beyond those three dots into something I would share ...

“ Write something ”  is a favourite encouragement of mine: Just start. Put words on the page. Write. Time enough later for editing, revising, refining. Today, right now: Write something . My sister sent this lemon poppyseed cake from my neighbourhood bakery to celebrate the launch of my handbook,  How to be a Writer in Four Steps , this past Saturday. Yum! Of course, my one fear was that no one would come. My other, much less rational, fear was that so many people would come the room would burst. Of course, neither of those things happened. This past Saturday, about 50 people came to my book launch. I know this number only because my clever friend Jacki counted the 45 people seated to which I am able to add the handful who came to buy the book but were unable to stay for the formal event. What a spectacular feeling — to have people, many known to me but also some total strangers, come to an event designed expressly to celebrate the launch of my handbook into the world. While I...

The world is unnerving these days. Far-away wars rage, politicians more or less ignore the threats of climate change and AI, women die in childbirth, and penguins are losing their Antarctic ice. Closer to home, email scams trick even the most vigilant among us, including, now, me. REMINDER (and belated note to myself): Always delete an unexpected email message, even (maybe, especially) from a known sender. If you are even moderately concerned, check with the apparent sender via a different communication channel. These days, the sad truth is that trust cannot be taken for granted, because trust is what is being exploited by the baddies out there. Staying vigilant and questioning just about everything is the best way to stay clean and safe these days. After having the "party-invite scam" affect one of my email accounts last week, I spent countless hours alerting my contacts, locking down all my accounts, and changing passwords  — and I was left with feelings of sadness and gr...

I know it's a book I'll be releasing on Saturday, October 3rd, but it feels like I am launching my very self out into the world. I am beyond excited and (remind me I'm saying this) ready for whatever happens... My handbook, How to be a Writer in Four Steps , is the longest-running creative project I have ever undertaken. What started as a short-form piece in a writing group way back in March 2023 took root in my mind and has grown into a fully fledged book. How did this happen?  I believed in my original idea. I took a chance on myself by getting started.  I experimented beyond my comfort zone, writing in a longer, much longer form, than I usually do.  I showed my work to other writers. I believed them when they said I was producing value for other writers, and I took to heart their notes about necessary changes.  I persevered. I listened when a writing friend told me I needed a designer, then a proofreader. I committed more deeply to the project, putting money into...

We can be so many things Every day, any day So let us be kind Every day, any day Let us always be kind I was taken aback when I realized, last week, that September 11th, this year, marked the 25th anniversary of that dreadful event named simply by its date. I remember being at work that day, time unfolding as it became clear, slowly, what was going on. We watched it on television, no smartphones to send videos across the distance, just each other, right there, together. Trying to make sense. The next day, the wicked awfulness became headlines, then weeks and months and years of news coverage and wars and death and more death and ongoing politics, destruction, and the very worst of humanity. And, yet, what brings me to tears about September 11th, anytime, is the kindness that also existed back on that day. Especially the kindness shown by the people of Gander, Newfoundland , shown to the thousands whose planes were grounded there on that day. The story from there is about the best of h...

SISU - How my mother’s fight for her death changed the course of my life By Shaana Hamm FriesenPress 2025 Review by Amanda Le Rougetel Death comes to us all, but how we die is unique to each of us. My father died of a heart attack, in hospital, in the middle of the night, alone. My mother died with medical assistance , at home, with my sister and me holding her hands. Two deaths, very different one from the other. I was relieved my father had been released from his failing body, but I was honoured to help my mother ease her way from this world in a way she wanted, was able to chose, and was grateful to have. About 76,000 people in Canada have chosen an assisted death since medical assistance in dying (MAiD) was legalized in this country in 2016. By reading SISU, a memoir by Shaana Hamm, I learned how very different a MAiD death can be from what I witnessed with my mother’s — and I was reminded how important it is that we share our stories by writing them and sharing them. How else can...