What inspired me the most at this week’s BCBusiness Top 100 Luncheon 2010 were the words of a magician. Listening to the 92-year-old Dal Richards playing O Canada on his sax was a close second, but the keynote speech by Giovanni Livera really stood out for me.
Gio, as he calls himself, interspersed his motivational message with magic tricks. There was … Read the rest >
I have two writing contests to tell you about today. The first is being held by the Great Little Publishing Company. The other is being held by SFU’s Summer Publishing Worshops. I’ll talk about the SFU one first, since the deadline to enter is July 5th, 2010.
SFU has joined with CBC Vancouver’s North by Northwest and The … Read the rest >
Are you a book-o-holic? Do you have colourful stacks of tomes on your dresser? If you are like me, you tend to buy your books before considering that they might be available at the library. And here’s your chance to get your hands on some more for only $2 a pop.
Geist magazine is holding a giant clearout of books … Read the rest >
Is your manuscript tired and worn out? Could it use a massage, or perhaps a full-on retreat? Would it benefit from going to summer camp? If so, I suggest you air it out at one of the SFU Summer Publishing Workshops. And no, I’m not in cahoots with SFU. I just think writers might want to know these courses exist.… Read the rest >
I started keeping tabs on Andrew Smith after I read about him in Quill and Quire magazine last fall. The Canadian author of two traditionally published non-fiction books couldn’t find an agent or publisher for his first novel, Edith’s War, so he decided to self-publish it. He has been blogging about each stage of the writing, publishing and marketing process ever since. I … Read the rest >
Being an editor, I need material to edit. That means it’s in my best interest to share the following tidbit about breaking through writer’s block with you, my fellow writers.
Geist magazine is holding a workshop to “help writers bust through writer’s block”. The workshop is being held Saturday, May 29 (2010) at the Listel Hotel on Robson Street in Vancouver. … Read the rest >
You’ve probably heard the expression “write about what you know”. But how do you proceed when you must write about what you don’t know? I recently had that experience. I was hired to write about a subject I knew almost nothing about. So what did I do? Here’s my process. Maybe you will recognize yourself here. Or, more likely, you have … Read the rest >
I attended the first day of the two-day 2010 Northern Voice personal blogging and social media conference at UBC on May 7th. Northern Voice is in its sixth year, but it was my first time. My $50 day pass included seminars, lunch and networking opportunities with fellow bloggers. After one keynote address and seven … Read the rest >
Do you blog for profit? Are you comfortable with having other people’s paid ads on your website? If so, you may want to check out the new book by self-proclaimed dot-com mogul John Chow. Even if you don’t want to monetize your blog, the Vancouver-based blogging pro offers useful advice on how to increase traffic to your website in his 144-page … Read the rest >
Hello, writer friends.
Looking for tips on getting your book published? Wanting more people to find your blog? Seeking a sample edit of your manuscript? (You can ask Zen Editorial for a sample edit via this website, but you can also get one at the festival I’m about to mention.)
Here are just seven of the more than two-dozen workshops and … Read the rest >
