My Top Seven Films of 2015 by William Henry

I watch way too many films, more than is good for me, and I critique them more than is healthy. I haven’t seen all the movies that came out this year. For example, there are many movies that I didn’t watch because of age restrictions or just because I’m too busy. I haven’t seen Spotlight because my mom and dad don’t think it’s appropriate and I haven’t seen Creed yet, because we flipped a coin and saw Brooklyn instead (a bit slow), but I expect we will see Creed over the holidays. And I may have forgotten one or two I saw at the beginning of the year.  But as of writing this, here are my favs....

The seventh best film I saw this year was The Gift. This was an extremely well crafted thriller (not to be confused with horror) using the classic stalker formula. Throughout the entire film, I was leaning forward, literally on the edge of my seat. This is what a thriller should be like, not to mention the amazingly disturbing twist ending that no one saw coming.

The sixth best film this year, in my opinion, was Mad Max: Fury Road. Many people have ranked this film even closer to number one, but since action movies really are not my favourite, this movie is going to be sixth place. On the other hand, if you do like action movies, this film is for you because this film has the most well made action sequences I have seen all year and on top of that, it is Rabbi approved (my mom’s rabbi friend loved it because of its “Biblical references”).

In fifth place is Far From the Madding Crowd. The story was very intricate and had a lot of moments were you felt a lot of emotion. But we must not forget where this film truly shined. Far From the Madding Crowd had absolutely phenomenal cinematography! Every scene was shot so well and the landscapes were just beautiful.

Usually, the top four choices in a list are hard to pick. However, these four were quite clear cut. My fourth favourite movie this year was Spy. The only thing to say about this film is that it is the most my dad and I have ever laughed in a theater. Period!

Pawn Sacrifice (the Bobby Fischer story) was an absolutely amazing piece of art, which is why it deserves the third spot on my list. It has an interesting historical plot , its cleverness with the use of suspense, the great acting it consisted of, and the smartly placed double meaning in the title. Overall, Pawn Sacrifice was a flawless sight to behold.

The Big Short was a great film; for me, the second best of the year. It had a perfect mix of everything and it was able to explain a really complicated topic to a 13-year-old, so he could understand it. Being that 13 year old, I loved this film. I loved the humor that slowly unfolded into a serious topic, I loved how the actors would stop every once in a while and explain how a certain thing didn't really happen, which led you to believe that everything else was accurate. 

I thought that it was really smart in the way that they got famous people to explain complex terms, as it was a good laugh and helped you understand the plot better. I found this movie extremely entertaining with a depressing turn at the later part of the film. I feel that the best way to describe this film is a slick complex version of Moneyball that is easily understandable and really gets you to question Wall Street, makes you wonder if it's a dim or almost demonic place. 

Slow West is now what I want every action film to be like. It not only had great cinematography and was amazingly done, but it did something that I have rarely seen in an action movie to date. Rather than focusing on the great action sequences the film consisted of, it was mainly about the suffering that came from that action. It was far more realistic than films like Furious 7 in the way that it really made the main character seem small compared to everything else and he was constantly struggling. It had quite a sad yet fulfilling ending in which they also briefly had a montage/memorial of all casualties and deaths that happened throughout the story of the film (even the minor forgotten ones).

           

William Henry is 13 years old and in grade 8. He’s a big amateur film buff and a professional actor. His dad teaches creative writing and publishes Quick Brown Fox. 

Quick Brown Fox welcomes your reviews of books and movies or whatever else catches your eye. Details here. Read how to write a book review (or any kind of review) here.

See Brian’s full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Algonquin Park, Barrie, Bracebridge, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon, Collingwood, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Ingersoll, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Orillia, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Saint John, NB, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Windsor, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Writing Your Life & Other True Stories workshop, Saturday, Apr 16, in London

Writing Your Life & Other True Stories

Saturday, April 16, 2016

10:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
London Central Library, 251 Dundas Street, London, Ontario (Map here.)

Have you ever considered writing your memoirs or family history? This workshop will introduce you to the tricks and conventions of telling true stories and will show you how to use the techniques of the novel to recount actual events. Whether you want to write for your family or for a wider public, don't miss this workshop.

Workshop leader Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada’s most popular blog for writers, teaches creative writing at Ryerson University and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Charlottetown. Along with Cecilia-Anca Popescu, Brian is the co-author of Bloody Christmas, a memoir of love and revolution, which is currently under consideration with a literary agent. But his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get published.

Fee: 40.71+ 13% hst = 46 paid in advance by mail or Interac

or 43.36 + 13% hst = 49 if you wait to pay at the door

To reserve a spot now, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Note: Don't ever miss a post on Quick Brown Fox. Fill in your email in the box to the right under my bio, and get each post delivered to your Inbox. ~ Brian

See Brian’s full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Algonquin Park, Barrie, Bracebridge, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon, Collingwood, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Ingersoll, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Orillia, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Saint John, NB, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Windsor, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Love letters ~ Where your fellow writers are getting published

Hi, Brian.

Yasemin Uçar of Kid's Can Press

I just wanted to let you know that I received my first rejection letter today, from Kids Can Press for a couple or picture books I sent them.

First of all, I was surprised to get a rejection letter at all. I was expecting nothing, so Yay me!

Second, it was the nicest rejection letter I could've gotten – complimentary and complete with suggestions of next steps.

 Maybe it’s a weird but I’m actually a little proud of myself and I feel very official now!

Take care,

Barb

Yay, Barb. A rejection letter is a badge of honor. You wear it proudly! ~ Brian

Note: Yasemin Uçar, senior editor of Kid’s Can Press will be one of three guest speakers at my Writing for Children and for Young Adults mini-conference in Guelph on April 30. Details here.

Hi, Brian.

Hope you're doing well.  I've attended a few of your workshops in the past and you've gave me constructive criticism on my then manuscript.  That manuscript is now an award-winning self-published novel titled Shadow of Deception, and I have you to thank for that :)  I've also partnered up with Covenant House in which I will be donating all my royalties in the first year to them to help homeless youth.   
Sincerely,
Sophia

Shadow of Deception is available from Amazon here.

Dear Brian,

This is for your love letters section, because I never would've
written my short story "Vidmar" if I hadn't taken your workshop on How to Write Great Characters. It was a great workshop, and when we did the writing exercise, I chose to turn a disappointing ("worst" was the actual category!) former teacher into a garbage man / wannabe violinist. 

I read the story out loud at the end of the workshop and many 
people loved it, but as always, you were able to put your finger 
on exactly what *wasn't* working in it (and thank you for that!). I took it home, reworked it, then read it at the last-ever CJ's Cafe evening in September. At the 
time, you said it was an excellent rewrite. So, knowing I was close, I brought it to class as my firstpiece for the Wednesday afternoon Intensive in Burlington. Got some more helpful editing, went home and massaged it some more, and then sent it out.

It was accepted by the first place I sent it to. The editor who wrote to me said, "I am pleased to 
inform you that we have accepted your story for publication in the first issue of the Halcyon 
Reader! We're excited to include your work, and I greatly enjoyed reading it. The character was likable and the story well-written. I especially liked the intro."

So thank you for all your help in bringing this story along, and also for your first rule of editing, 
"Do no harm" – because the intro the editor liked so much was one of the things I liked best 
about my story too, so I resolutely kept it, despite some negative feedback on that first 
paragraph. Such a great lesson: we need to listen to others, but we need to trust our guts too. 

Your classes and workshops ROCK.

Thanks for all you do!

Mary Steer

To read issue one of the Halcyon Reader, including Mary's story, see here. 

For information on submitting to Halcyon Reader, see here.

For information on weekly creative writing courses starting soon, see here.

See Brian’s full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing
courses in Algonquin Park, Barrie, Bracebridge, Brampton,
Burlington, Caledon, Collingwood, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Ingersoll,
Kingston, Kitchener, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Orillia, Oakville,
Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Saint John, NB, Sudbury, Thessalon,
Toronto, Windsor, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York, the
GTA, Ontario and beyond. 

Writer to Writer: CJ Martin has a new venture selling coffee and Alliston writers' group accepting new members

Hi, Brian!

CJ at her former Cafe in Bronte

Hope you’re well.  I’m back in action with my new company, CJ’s Coffee Fundraising! I help groups to raise money selling delicious, organic Café Femenino coffee, and I also sell it to people who want to buy some for gifts, or to re-sell through their own stores.    

Right now am taking orders for gifts.   If you would like any for clients/students, personal friends or family, let me know. I can even make you custom labels.

By early in the New Year my website will be up and I should be good-to-go for doing fundraising campaigns with schools, groups, clubs or churches, so if you’re interested – or know anyone who might be – let me know. 

This Friday I roast my very first batch, so you can be part of the history of my new company by being one of the very first customers. 

Bye for now,

CJ Martin

 cj@cjscafeinbronte.com

Hi, Brian.

I wish to let you know about our writers group. We have been together for a year and have moved to a new home in Alliston, Ontario. We meet at the South Simcoe Arts Council office at 41 Victoria Street in Alliston, Ontario. Our group's name is the South Simcoe Wordsmiths. We meet on Tuesdays on the odd weeks of the month from 1:00  to 2:30 p.m.

For more information, email me at: dian_bowers@hotmail.com  

Dian Bowers
 

See Brian Henry’s schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Algonquin Park, Barrie, Bracebridge, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon, Collingwood, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Ingersoll, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Orillia, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Saint John, NB, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Windsor, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York, the GTA, Ontario and beyond. 

“Christmas Miracle – 70’s Style” by Colleen Crawford

 “Dad, why is Mom hugging the Hippie?”

For a great many years, there hasn’t been a Christmas where that phrase doesn’t pass the lips of at least one family member.   It’s often over cups of hot chocolate as we discuss what Christmas means to us.

It was forty years ago and then some.  I was about eight and my brother, Jeff, seven.   We won’t ever forget that mid-December night; because of the storm … and our miracle.   A serious sale at The Bay encouraged us out with our mother on a blustery night.   The wind howled, the street lights rattled and in the early nineteen seventies, a snow storm in Hamilton was a real show.

Jeff and I snuggled into the back seat of the Green Pig, an old Chevelle that had been graciously passed on from my grandfather.  Mom suddenly cursed and cranked the steering wheel a hard right.  In the fury of the storm, our car slid a few treacherous feet before coming to an abrupt stop.

 “For crying out loud!” she blurted.  “What a jerk!  Driving like that in this weather!”    Mom was a bit of a scrapper, so we were not surprised when she quickly threw open the door of the Pig.  The wind and snow whipped in on us as strained and angry words whipped from my mother’s mouth to the rude Ford driver who had nearly sideswiped us.

“What’s your problem, lady?” the Ford Man demanded and drove on without another word.

Mom got back in our car and we drove the rest of the way home, with me and Jeff grinning over the adventure.

Ten minutes later, we were plunked down in front of our old black and white television, ready to travel to the North Pole with Rudolph.  Quickly, the glory of the moment broke as we heard Mom’s breath catch and saw her grab a chair to steady herself. 

Amidst the heap of snowsuits, mittens and hats, she couldn’t find her purse.   

 “Dave … all our money for Christmas was in that purse.  Three-hundred dollars!  That money was for the gifts and our dinner and everything.  It must have fallen out when I opened the door to shout at that guy.  I feel sick about it!”   My mom’s voice was weak and shaky tone.  I was getting scared.  She was always so strong.

We were never very well off, and pretty much through the year, no extras were bought.  But Christmas was special around the Crawford house.  Santa brought us new socks and underwear, new pajamas and blue jeans and toys too!   Jeff and I weren’t worried. We knew Santa made the presents at the North Pole.  Mom may have lost her money, but we were covered.

My mother cursed her uncontrollable temper and began to sob, “What are we going to do, Dave?”

Dad set out on foot to go to the scene of the near accident.  He was gone for at least an hour and came home looking like the Abominable Snowman, especially with such a miserable look on his face.   While he was gone, my mom, Jeff and I tore every inch of our house apart looking for that sacred purse. 

When all resources were exhausted, my mother collapsed into the sofa and, with her face in her hands, wept for a good, long time.   She was so forlorn and as the storm continued to lash at the windows of our cozy house, the desperation she felt seemed to creep into our young hearts as well.

Some hours later, in the dead middle of that violent winter storm, a barely audible knock came to our front door.  I ran to open it and, as young as I was, wondered who would dare venture out on a night like this. 

I pulled the door open as the wind fought me for it, and then I stood back frightened as I looked up at the face of a tall man, with long hair and a scraggly beard, wearing a headband.  He was dressed in torn blue jeans, old boots and a tattered, denim winter jacket. 

It wasn’t just his size that intimidated me, it was his look. He was the kind of person my mother and father had told us to stay away from.  I knew they were going to be angry I had opened the door to this man, but I was more afraid of him than I was of them.   This man who stood before me, without the slightest semblance of a smile, was the forbidden, the intolerable, the socially unacceptable … hippie.

“Pat Crawford?”  His low, deep voice rang in my ears.  I did not say a word.  “Does she live here?”

He was asking for my mother and I was petrified.

           

Just then my mother’s voice boomed from the kitchen.  “Does one of you kids have that front door open?   Close it now!” My mom came into the living room and she too was taken aback by the weather-beaten man who stood in our doorway.   He was pretty much covered with snow and had his left arm curled into his side, holding something that too, was covered in snow.

 “Can I help you?” Mom asked.

           

 “Are you Pat Crawford?”

 “Yes.”

He brushed away the snow from the object.   “I believe this is yours.”

The removal of the snow revealed the sacred black purse.   My Mother gasped!

 “I found it on the road a couple blocks away.  I couldn’t find this street, so it took me a while to get here,” the Hippie-man explained.

My mother’s eyes filled with tears and she flung her arms around the neck of this stranger and hugged him like he was one of her own.

At that moment, Dad wandered into the living room to see what was going on.

 “Why is Mom hugging the hippie?”  I asked him.

 “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Mom said and loosened her grip on the man. 

 “I had to open it to get the identification.  There’s quite a bit of money in it, so I knew you’d be worried,” the man responded.

 “You dear, sweet man.  You don’t know what you’ve done.  That’s my children’s Christmas in there.  I never expected to see that money again.  Here, let me give you some … a reward.”  My mother was blissful.

 “No thank you.  But could I please use your phone to call my wife?  She’ll be worried about me.”

His response shocked us all.  We didn’t think of a hippie being married.

 “Certainly.  Here, here.  But we’d like to do something.  Are you from this area?”

           

 “No ma’am.   We’re from the north.  We moved down here to get work.  We haven’t been too lucky yet.”

 “Would you and your wife be willing to spend your Christmas dinner here with us?   Things tend to be tight the rest of the year, but Christmas is our time.” 

My mother’s offer seem to catch him by surprise. “That would be nice.  Thank you.”  

With that he made his call and then left our house.  As he re-entered the world of the blinding blizzard, my mother broke down in tears. 

“Who would have thought that such a man, someone so hard on his own luck, would be so honest?” she said. “Kids, this is what Christmas is all about.  I believe we have just had our own little miracle.”

Tom Jenner and his wife Mary spent that Christmas with us.  We had a wonderful time and they shared their dreams of one day having a family like ours.  

As children that year, we learned to accept people for what they are, not what they look like.  As adults, to this day, we believe that people, by nature, are really very good.

Colleen Crawford is recently retired and enjoys volunteering in her community, photography, writing, nature, family and friends.

See Brian Henry’s schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Algonquin Park, Barrie, Bracebridge, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon, Collingwood, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Ingersoll, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Orillia, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Saint John, NB, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Windsor, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York, the GTA, Ontario and beyond. 

Beware the grammar ghost of Christmas that may yet be to come

Merry Christmas!

Author Shiela Jane offers bedtime stories for children

The Saltwater Ghost by Shiela Jane,
available on Amazon.ca here

Oakville author, Shiela Jane, is making bedtime a little more fun for both parents and kids. Beginning on Christmas Eve and after that on the first day of every month, she will post a new children’s story or poem on her website www.shielajane.com

The goal of Shiela Jane’s Bedtime Stories is to create a relaxing way for the whole family to read and spend time together. Posts will include several everything from original stories and short poems to classic fairy tales, legends, and fables retold in a way that children can easily understand. Some will be gentle and sweet, some funny, and others dramatic, but they can all be enjoyed at different levels so will appeal to kids anywhere from nursery to elementary school age.

While the original works are under intellectual copyright, they can be downloaded or printed for free as long as they are not used for commercial or educational purposes. The first story - The Little Plant - is about a storm that happens on Christmas Eve and will be posted December  24 here.

***

Shiela Jane is an author and non-fiction writer whose work has been published in a variety of newspapers, magazines and anthologies. Her first book is an adult novel – The Saltwater Ghost – set in Mumbai, India and Prince Edward Island.

See Brian Henry’s schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Algonquin Park, Barrie, Bracebridge, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon, Collingwood, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Ingersoll, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Orillia, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Saint John, NB, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Windsor, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York, the GTA, Ontario and beyond. 

Writing for Children & for Young Adults workshop, Sunday, May 29, in Ottawa

The Masked Truth by Kelley Armstrong,
a New York Times # bestselling author
and one of Brian's students

The Ottawa Independent Writers present ...

Writing for Children & for Young Adults ~ the world’s hottest market

With guest speaker Alan Cumyn, author of the Owen Skye series for kids and numerous acclaimed novels for adults

Sunday, May 29, 2016

10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Nepean Sportsplex, Hall E, 1701 Woodroffe Ave, Ottawa, Ontario (map here)

If you want to write the next best-selling children’s books or just want to create stories for your own kids, this workshop is for you. Learn how to write stories kids and young adults will love and find out what you need to know to sell your book.

Special option: You may, but don't have to, bring 3 copies of the opening couple pages (first 500 words) of your children’s book or young adult novel (or 1,000 words if that will get you to the end of your picture book or to the end of your first chapter.) If you’re not currently working on a children’s story, don’t worry, we’ll get you started on the spot!

Workshop leader Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada’s most popular blog for writers and is the author of a children’s version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Tribute Publishing Inc). But his proudest boast is that he’s has helped many of his students get published.

Hot Pterodactyl Boyfriend by Alan Cumyn
coming March 2016 from Simon & Schuster

Guest speaker Alan Cumyn is the author of twelve wide-ranging and often wildly different literary novels, including the beloved Owen Skye series for kids (The Secret Life of Owen Skye, After Sylvia, and Dear Sylvia) which between them have won or been shortlisted for a dozen national awards. 

His most recent novel for young adults, Hot Pterodactyl Boyfriend, will be released in Canada, the United States and Great Britain in March 2016.

His work for adults includes the human rights novels Burridge Unbound and Man of Bone, which both won the Ottawa Book Award and were shortlisted for, respectively, the Giller Prize and the Trillium Award. Since 2008, Alan has taught in the prestigious MFA program in writing for children and young adults at the Vermont College of Fine Arts, where he is currently faculty chair.

A past chair of The Writers' Union of Canada, he has also been writer-in-the residence at the University of Ottawa, the Vancouver International Writers Festival, and at Berton House in Dawson City, Yukon. Alan was born and raised in Ottawa, where he still lives, but he has also lived and worked in China and Indonesia, and spent most of the 1990s writing on human rights issues for the Immigration and Refugee Board. He has an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Windsor, where he studied under Alistair MacLeod.

Fee: 40.71+ 13% hst = 46 paid in advance by mail or Interac

or 43.36 + 13% hst = 49 if you wait to pay at the door

To reserve a spot now, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Note: Don't ever miss a post on Quick Brown Fox. Fill in your email in the box to the right under my bio, and get each post delivered to your Inbox. ~ Brian

See Brian’s full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Algonquin Park, Barrie, Bracebridge, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon, Collingwood, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Ingersoll, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Midland, Mississauga, Newmarket, Orillia, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Saint John, NB, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Windsor, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.