Category Archives: Books

Author Niki Jabbour Answers 25 Questions

By Richard | Published February 5, 2012

I’m not sure why it’s always been there, but I have a soft, quiet spot in my heart for gardeners. And lately, for this gardener in particular. We’re friends. But, surprisingly, Niki Jabbour and I have never met. Niki and I both wrote for The Halifax Daily News in the 1990s, where I was a [...]

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Author Chris Benjamin Answers 25 Questions

By Richard | Published October 4, 2011

Even though he’s much younger, I want to be like Chris Benjamin when I grow up. He’s the respected Sustainable City columnist at The Coast, Halifax’s progressive weekly, and I delight in watching him skewer the ecologically inept even as he finds the heart of the matter in issues that are pressing for the planet and [...]

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Dragons, Queries, and the Shards of Narsil

By Richard | Published July 31, 2011

If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans. None of my plans for this year have come to fruition, yet I still feel as if I’ve handled a difficult illness with a modicum of grace and good humor. And that, and a double-loonie, will get you a cup of coffee at [...]

Also posted in Author, Author, Life, Wall-E—The Neuroendocrine Tumor, Writing | 4 Comments

Is This Microphone On?

By Richard | Published June 17, 2011

The intrepid Peter Dudley — a man among men which, interestingly, makes him a man among many women — asked writing friends to post audio or video clips that show us reading recent work. (I may not have done this properly, but I don’t fraking care! It’s been a rough month. :-) Making a recording [...]

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Author Alissa Grosso Answers 25 Questions

By Richard | Published April 13, 2011

I dare anyone NOT to like author Alissa Grosso. In fact, I double dare you. It is just not possible. Admittedly, we don’t know each other in the real world, so I’m wondering if my online friends see her in the same way that I do — as someone who is exceedingly kind, open and [...]

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25 Questions with Author Catherine McKenzie

By Richard | Published April 10, 2011

Author Catherine McKenzie Catherine McKenzie was born and raised in Montreal, Canada. A graduate of McGill University (B.A. ‘95 in History (Hons)) and McGill Law School (BCL & LLB ‘99), Catherine practices law in Montreal. Her first novel, Spin, was published by HarperCollins Canada in January, 2010. It debuted at #15 on the Globe & [...]

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A Book Meme

By Richard | Published March 11, 2011

The book I am reading: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins. To be honest, I simply don’t love the series like most readers. I don’t find the writing is compelling enough to make me believe in this future (unlike Ship Breakers by Paolo Bacigalupi, which is also about a broken world, and which felt frighteningly real). My [...]

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A Creative Family

By Richard | Published March 3, 2011

One reason I’d like to land a book contract doesn’t apply to many other writers: I want to work with my family. In particular, I have a niece, Tara, who is a New York City art director, and a nephew, Jason, who is a film and video director. They’d help me publicize my work because [...]

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Authors, Promotion, Branding, and Websites

By Richard | Published February 28, 2011

As a writer, I’m lucky because I’ve also spent time in the web design community, so I know just how important a website is in creating a brand, an identity. Writers who have agents, and writers who expect they’ll be able to land an agent, need to start thinking about it now. I’ve been running [...]

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Author Silver Donald Cameron — 25 Questions

By Richard | Published January 27, 2011

I remember the first time I met Silver Donald Cameron because I was scared to death. I had no good reason to be, really. Canadian authors, as a group, have always impressed me with their warmth and kindness. But as a novice feature writer at The Daily News, I felt pressure when writing about such [...]

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