Wanna write comedy? Chase melons.
In April this year, during Frye, the popular annual literary festival in Moncton, New Brunswick, I attended a workshop called “Writing for Comedy.” The speaker was Randy Pearlstein, a Toronto nati...
Could the shocking bequest in Grandma Runa’s will be the key to unlock Melinda Hall’s mysterious past—and her future?
Brace yourself for monsters brought to life by talented Atlantic Canadians—Rhonda included—in this 2023 anthology, by Partridge Island Publishing.
If you don’t like Brussels sprouts, here’s a fun, fractured fairy tale explaining why–it’s all Sog’s fault.
Adults and children alike will enjoy this light-hearted picture storybook about self-perception and elusive dreams.
In April this year, during Frye, the popular annual literary festival in Moncton, New Brunswick, I attended a workshop called “Writing for Comedy.” The speaker was Randy Pearlstein, a Toronto nati...
This past weekend, an elderly relative died of cancer. He had made it clear that upon his death there would be no funeral and no visitation. Since the family is not close, it didn't surprise me, but I...
This March Break morning, my daughter woke up in her room next door, and said, "good morning." Not by popping her head out of the door and stumbling to the bathroom, mind you. She said it on Facebo...
How do you cure children of faking sick? You make them stay in bed, that's how. Both my husband and I had to get to work this morning and since our seven-year-old son informed us he was “kind of sic...
A couple of months ago I attended a screening of the locally-produced film “A Question of Beauty” (first released in May, 2010) at a fund raising event for Project Under the Tree, a charitable Chr...
I’m going to confess something now that will reveal once and for all how cranky I really am, but I can’t hold it back any longer. Please hear me, grocery store clerks, gas station attendan...
Did you know that November is National Novel Writing Month, also known as NaNoWriMo? If you didn't know already, well, you have four more days. Can you write 50,000 words in four days?...
If you’re a student of nature, and interested in Canadian conservation and environmental causes, you’ve probably heard of Mary Majka. Sanctuary: The Story of Naturalist Mary Majka, published by Go...
A few things about me.
I am a New Brunswicker, born and raised. I’ve never lived anywhere else except to go to college. I could have stayed in Ontario after I graduated. I might’ve made more money. I often wonder what my life would have been like had I gotten a job in Toronto and made my life there.
Naw.
As much as I like cities, I felt strongly that I needed to come home. Perhaps it was the crashing waves of the Bay of Fundy that were calling me back. Or the brightly-coloured fishing boats at the wharf in Alma. Or the sparkly Richibucto River on the Acadian shore, where I spent my childhood summers. I watched the moon rise over it at night, and in the sunshine, I picked the wild blue irises (my Nanny called them Blue Flags) that lined the dirt road to the cottage.
Over the years, my husband and I toyed with leaving the province for other opportunities. But all the memories are here. Our friends, our family, the salty-air landscapes, the familiar mixes of language, of culture, of ideas…
It’s all different out there, you know.
My background is in public relations and freelance writing and promotional work, but these days, I’m working as an arts administrator – something I sort of fell into by accident — and I have learned a great many new things in this position. And there’s so much more to learn!
I am a wife of more than 30 years, mother to three grown-up kids, and now a small grandson has joined our little circle. He lights up everyone’s world. Other than writing, I love to paint, sing, bake, hike (after I eat what I bake). I like camping in the rain, but I’d have to do it alone. The family likes hotels.
I’d like to hike the Fundy Footpath—in theory. I hear it’s not for beginners.
I love historical fiction, mysteries, thrillers, fantasy/science fiction, dystopian, and the biographies of interesting people. And a really, really good love story never goes amiss.
Thanks for visiting! Feel free to check out my books, available for purchase. You can read my blog posts on the writing life, a little bit of fiction, plus some family & personal stuff. I hope you find something here to entertain, challenge or inspire you.