Ben McNally Books, Toronto |
A Different Drummer Books, Burlington |
By the Lake Books (A great used bookstore just around the corner from where I teach my in-person classes in Burlington. ~Brian)
Bookshelf, Guelph |
Novel Idea, Kingston |
Ben McNally Books, Toronto |
A Different Drummer Books, Burlington |
Bookshelf, Guelph |
Novel Idea, Kingston |
“Lessons in Natural
Writing”
Make the
mental shift: feel yourself float,
let words and associations freely
mix. Sense that
time changes pace, sidesteps
as the world
surges
past.
Make the mental shift; let
emotions
and images rub shoulders, pictures
whole but mute.
Unstop your
innocent, random
wondering.
Make the mental shift;
feel the
rhythms, hear
the sounds
play with the
language of
ideas and shape
a choice.
Make the mental shift; focus
the emergent patterns complex
and unique, the lightning flash
of vision that begs you to write
Now make the mental
shift
Life’s Circles
Life circles, souls renew. Ancient friends and lovers,
Seek each other anew, In the faces now of others.
In the eyes, dwells the soul. When like hearts meet,
The exchange is whole. And half becomes complete.
Julie Whitley is the author of the Secrets of the Home Wood series, a fantasy adventure. She has
been enjoying her retirement from nursing with a return to her early passions
of writing prose and poetry and painting. She works in both oils and
watercolour. Her three grandsons joyfully occupy the remainder of her time.
See Brian Henry’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.
Something
new: You can get new postings on Quick Brown
Fox sent to your Inbox as they go up. Just visit the new Quick Brown Fox
Substack page, and like and subscribe: https://brian999.substack.com/
But having
a real bed was just the start. Then there was the food. Dinner on Friday
evening featured a choice of lobster in passion fruit; roasted chicken with
Arowhon stuffing and house cranberry sauce; roast loin of venison; or orange
and ginger glazed tofu. It was a tough choice, even though for us the lobster
was out (not remotely kosher, you know).
Brian vs William, photo by Emma |
Sunset over Little Joe Lake, by Emma Henry |
Note: I
took this trip in June 2015 to check out Arowhon as a site for holding writers'
retreats. It passed! The subsequent retreats have been great, too. Read reviews
and other pieces inspired by of the retreats offered so far here (and
scroll down).
Check out
details upcoming retreats, at Arowhon Pines and other locales here (and scroll down).
See my upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.
At every Passover
Seder, we put out an extra
cup of wine for Elijah, just in case he should happen by, bringing with him
hope and redemption ~ which this year, we need more than ever. This year also
we have an extra place setting at the Seder table for the 133 hostages still
held in bondage. We can’t fully celebrate a festival of freedom until they,
too, are free.
Hi, Brian.
My
novel Sparkles and Karim was
published this week and is available on Amazon. My sincere thanks to you and
all folks in the Thursday afternoon “Extreme” class who definitely helped
sandpaper off the rough edges, and enabled me to realize every writer’s dream
of actually getting published!
Dave
Sparkles
and Karim
Iraq, 2014. ISIS is on a roll and Sparkles and Karim need to find a
dangerous cache of radioactive material before it's used to make some western
city glow.
Major
Michelle Wilson, age 32, callsign Sparkles, a US fighter pilot, and
Karim Hamid, age 21, callsign Black Flag, a US soldier of Iraqi
descent, raised in the US and planted inside ISIS by the CIA have both committed
serious infractions, breaking away from their assigned duties, albeit for
reasons readers will applaud.
To atone
for their dereliction, they find themselves forced to team up on a perilous
mission from Baghdad to Mosul – a city already taken by ISIS – posing as an
ISIS couple.
He’s an
impulsive risk-taker with little sense of fear, she’s a driven, uptight
perfectionist. They’re sceptical of each other initially, but as they face
betrayal and the barbarity of jihad, they learn to value each other and become
a team in ways they had never imagined.
Dave Moores
Raised in
Bristol, UK, Dave now lives in Oakville, Ontario. Dave’s first novel, Windward Legs, was set in the sailing milieu of Ontario’s Golden Horseshoe.
His second novel, Attitude, was a young adult crime
fiction novel. But although wildly disparate in content, all of Dave’s novels
share the same page-turning intensity.
Sparkles and Karim is available from Amazon here.
Note: If
you’re interested in getting published, come to our in-person “How to Get Published” workshop on May 11 in Niagara on the Lake
(details here).
See all my upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and four-day
retreats here. ~Brian
See more new books by your fellow authors – and invites to their book launches – here (and scroll down).
“Writing
Personal Stories 101”
~ A class dedicated to the pleasures of writing your stories & insights
Online: Tuesday
afternoons, 1 – 3 p.m.
July 2 –
Aug 13, 2024
Offered on Zoom and accessible from anywhere there's internet
If you've ever considered writing your personal stories, this course
is for you. We’ll look at memoirs, travel writing, personal essays,
family history ~ personal stories of all kinds. Plus, of course, we’ll
work on creativity and writing technique and have fun doing it.
Whether you're writing a book or just get your thoughts down on paper, this weekly
course will get you going. We'll reveal the tricks and conventions of
telling true stories, and we’ll show you how to use the techniques of
the novel to recount actual events. Weekly writing exercises and
friendly feedback from the instructor will help you move forward on this
writing adventure. Whether you want to write for your family and friends or for
a wider public, don't miss this course.
We’ll also
have a published author as a guest speaker.
Instructor 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, taught creative writing at Ryerson University (now Toronto
Metropolitan University) and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to
Buffalo and from Sarnia to Saint John. But his proudest boast is that he
has helped many of his students get published.
Read reviews
and other pieces about or inspired by Brian's writing courses, workshops, and
retreats here (and scroll down).
Fee: $212.39
plus 13% hst = $240
To reserve
your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca
See all of Brian’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.
“Writing Little Kid Lit”
Board
Books, Picture Books & Middle Grade Books
Online: Wednesday evenings,
7 – 9 p.m.
July 3 – Aug 14, 2024
Offered on Zoom and accessible from anywhere there's internet
This course
is for adults {or
teens} interested in writing board books, picture books, Chapter Books, or
Middle Grade books. This course is accessible for beginners and meaty enough
for advanced writers. Through lectures, in-class assignments, homework, and
feedback on your writing, we’ll give you ins and outs of writing for younger
readers and set you on course toward writing your own books.
We’ll also
have a published author as a guest speaker for this course.
Instructor 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, taught
creative writing at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University)
and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to
Saint John. Brian is the author of a children's version of Dr. Jekyll
and Mr. Hyde (Tribute Publishing). But his proudest boast
is that he has helped many of his students get published.
Read
reviews and other pieces about or inspired by Brian's writing courses, workshops, and retreats here (and scroll
down).
Fee: $212.39
plus 13% hst = $240
To reserve
your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca
See all of Brian’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.