Sunday, June 12, 2011

Canadians at War: A Guide to the Battlefields of World War I by Susan Evans Shaw

Hello Brian,
My new book, Canadians at War: A Guide to the Battlefields of World War I, has been released by Goose Lane Editions. The book is a history of the Canadians in World War One, plus a guidebook to the battlefields and Commonwealth War Grave Commission cemeteries in France and Flanders.

The book has beautiful colour photographs of the battlefields and burial grounds as they look today accompanied by modern maps and the famous Nicholson maps of the battles.

This is my second published work of nonfiction. The first was Heritage Treasures (James Lorimer & Company), about the old houses of Hamilton and Region, in collaboration with photographer Jean Crankshaw who contributed many photographs to this new work.

As a former participant in your workshops, I am grateful for the guidance I received and the skills I acquired. Because my grandfather was killed in the Great War, this was a very personal odyssey as well as a challenge, based in my lack of knowledge about the war.

Research was a matter of starting from scratch and slowly coming to understand events clearly enough to tell the story. I hope I have succeeded.

All the best,
Susan Evans Shaw
Hamilton, Ontario

For more information about Canadian at War: A Guide to the Battlefields of World War I or to purchase a copy, see here. For more about Heritage Treasures, see here.
For information about submitting to Goose Lane Editions, see here. For information about submitting childrens' books to James Lorimer & Company, see here.

I'm leading "How to Get Published" workshops on August 27 in Woodstock, Ontario, (see here) and on September 24 in Guelph with guest Monica Pacheco of the Anne McDermid literary agency. Monica specializes in representing middle grade and YA authors (see here.)

See my full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Pink Ink Zine launch Wednesday, June 15, Art Gallery of Ontario

Hey, Brian, it’s Portia.
I know this is a little late but any help you could bring to promoting The Pink Ink Zine launch would be incredible. The Facebook page is here.  Description’s below.
Thank you so much,
Portia Thorne

Supporting Our Youth and Art Gallery of Ontario Youth Council Presents
The Pink Ink Zine launch
with a showcase of SOY arts based initiatives by queer, trans, and two spirits youth, including dance, photographcy and art, with special guest Ill Nana and DiverseCity Dance Company, and DJs Mayhem and Masarap

Hosted By Karine Silverwoman and the Pink Ink Crew
Wednesday June 15th, 2011
6 - 8:30pm
Art Gallery Of Ontario
317 Dundas Street W. Toronto

Free, Accessible and All Ages
ASL interpreter provided

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Two reading nights at CJ's Cafe – Come read to an audience or just to listen

We have 2 nights of readings coming up:
Wednesday, June 22
& Thursday, June 23
Both evenings start at 6:30 p.m.
at CJ's Café, 2416 Lakeshore Rd W, Oakville (Map here.)

Besides coming to hear the readings, you're also invited to come as a participant, to give a public reading of your own writing – if you’ve ever published a piece on Quick Brown Fox (or you have a piece in the queue waiting for publication) or if you’ve taken any of my “Intensive,” “Intermediate,” “Extreme” or “Advanced” creative writing courses.

If you’ve done this before, you know what a charge it is. If you haven’t done it yet, don’t miss this opportunity! To reserve your spot on the readers’ list, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

We can have only a limited number of readers in an evening, so don’t delay, these nights will fill up!

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Rachel Stout, new agent at Dystel & Goderich seeks literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, YA, and magical realism

Dystel & Goderich Literary Management
One Union Square West
Suite 904
New York, NY 10003
http://www.dystel.com/

Rachel Stout joined Dystel and Goderich after graduating with a degree in English from Fordham University. Her interest in publishing began early in her college career as she sought to figure out where exactly she wanted her life to head, career-wise (and to ward off the all too common assumptions that just because she studied English, she inevitably wanted to become a teacher). An internship with LJK Literary Management solidified and strengthened her determination and introduced her to the agenting side of the publishing world. After growing up on the South Jersey shore, Rachel now lives in Brooklyn.

She is seeking: literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, and believable and thought-provoking YA as well as magical realism.

Query: rstout@dystel.com
Send a query and brief synopsis. Include your story's word count. No attachments. Please be sure to query only one agent at this agency.

More about Dystel &Goderich here.

Brian Henry has a "Writing for Children and for Young Adults" workshop coming up on on August 20 in Oakville. (See here).

Also, Brian is leading "How to Get Published" workshops on August 27 in Woodstock, Ontario, (see here) and on September 24 in Guelph with guest Monica Pacheco of the Anne McDermid Agency (see here.)

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Red Deer Press seeks middle grade and young adult fiction

The End of the World As We Know It,  teen fiction
by Lesley Choyce, published by Red Deer Press
Red Deer Press publishes upscale children’s picture books, including illustrated children’s Aboriginal titles, contemporary juvenile and young-adult fiction and nonfiction. Red Deer also publishes some adult books, including nonfiction, science fiction, fantasy, travel and biographical titles.

"We produce creative and contemporary books by enlisting a balance of established and emerging authors and illustrators guided by a production team of expert editors, designers and production personnel. We enlist publishing talent from across Canada, publish to the national and international markets, and continually strive to creatively promote and market our books.

"Red Deer authors and the house have won well over 300 awards, nominations, and citations for excellence, including Governor General’s Awards, the Mr. Christie Book Award, the Alcuin Design Award, and a large number of regional awards such as the Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver, the Sheila A. Egoff, the Anne Brimer, the Wilfrid Eggleston Award, and many other honours.

"Red Deer Press is looking for quality writing for children across the ages, from picture books to young adult fiction and nonfiction.

"Currently we have less interest in picture book manuscripts and are focusing more on middle grade and young adult fiction."

Submissions may be made by email or through regular mail. Please send only one manuscript at a time.
For picture books submit entire text, no query letter. No original art will be accepted. For fiction, submit query letter or three sample chapters.
For nonfiction, submit query letter or sample chapter with outline.
Please allow four to six months for response.

Greener Grass, teen fiction by Caroline Pignat
published by Red Deer Press
Art Guidelines: Send samples along with an illustrator bio and a website address, if available.
Please do not send original art, hand-bound books or other bulky submissions or anything that needs to be returned.

Send submissions to: rdp@reddeerpress.com
Or by mail to:
Peter Carver
Red Deer Press
195 Allstate Parkway
Markham, ON L3R 4T8

Adult Manuscripts
For fiction and non-fiction, please submit queries with samples and/or overviews, and author bio. Email submissions are preferred. Please include SASE with all mail submissions. Multiple submissions are accepted but are not given priority. No original art.  Please allow six months for a response.
All submissions should be sent to: rdp@reddeerpress.com  

Full submission guidelines here. Home page here.

Brian Henry has a "Writing for Children and for Young Adults" workshop coming up on on August 20 in Oakville. (See here).

Brian is leading "How to Get Published" workshops on August 27 in Woodstock, Ontario, (see here) and on September 24 in Guelph with guest Monica Pacheco of the Anne McDermid literary agency. Monica specializes in representing middle grade and YA authors (see here.)

See Brian's full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

The Best Laid Plans by Terry Fallis, reviewed by Jennifer Smith Gray

McLelland & Stewart, Canada, $19.99 (312 pages)

Terry Fallis’ The Best Laid Plans is funny – funny enough that it won the Leacock Award for humour. You could also say that it’s engaging, insightful, easy-to-read, well written, and all Canadian. That’s likely why it won the CBC’s Canada Reads contest.

Best Laid Plans tells the story of reluctant campaign manager Daniel Addison and his even more reluctant candidate for Parliament, Angus McLintock. Each man is driven to his role by ulterior motives, and though stuck in a long-shot riding during a Canadian federal election, each one feels he’s gotten one heck of deal.

Throughout the course of the campaign and its aftermath, the reader rides a wave of comical highs and hilarious lows with these two gentlemen as they both become painfully aware (sometimes quite literally) that they may have gotten more than they bargained for. Beginning with the catchy opening scene, there are moments of such humour that I found myself folding over the corners of pages and revisiting them often, just to be able to laugh at them all over again.

The story is told from the sarcastic and self-effacing viewpoint of Daniel, and the one-liners and cliché-ridden quips he delivers might leave the reader longing for a friend like him (or, more likely, like the author himself) to liven up water cooler talk, post-game banter, or Friday night dinner parties. In the midst of the hilarity, every chapter also adds touching commentary directly from Angus, and the book ties in a handful of colourful supporting characters to round things out.

Anyone interested in, or disinterested in, Canadian politics, should read this award-winning tale of Daniel and Angus. The Best Laid Plans is casual and fun, and cleverly satirical.

Jennifer Smith Gray is a graduate of the University of Waterloo's English - Rhetoric and Professional Writing program, and has extensive business and technical writing and editing experience. In recent years, she has been nurturing her inner creative writer, working on short stories, personal essays, and memoirs.

When she's not putting pen to paper, Jennifer enjoys exploring her East York neighbourhood with her husband and kids. Jennifer posts some writing here and occasionally tweets as @isshedreaming. You can read other reviews by Jennifer here and here.

Quick Brown Fox welcomes book reviews and other book-related articles. Guidelines here.

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Monday, June 6, 2011

The John Kenneth Galbraith Award Writing Contest ~ highly recommended

The Friends of Dutton-Dunwich are happy to announce their 2011Writing Contest. The contest winner and honorable mentions will be invited along with one guest each to the Gala Award Presentation Ceremony, where selected passages will be read. The evening will be a night of celebrating the writings of John Kenneth Galbraith, noted economist, statesman and author. This event will be a semi-formal or Highland dress occasion.

Following an evening of entertainment and refreshment, the winner will be announced and the presentation of a large cash prize and a cast medallion - The John Kenneth Galbraith Literary Award - will take place. On the reverse side of the medallion will be inscribed the winner's name and the year. This event will be held 8 p.m. on Galbraith's birth date: Saturdy October 15, 2011, in the West Elgin Performing Arts Theatre Currie Road, Dutton-Dunwich

Deadline: August 1.
First place prize: $2,000
Word count limited to 3,000 to 3,500 words.
Entry fee; $10 in Canadian funds. Unlimited number of entries.
Contest details and entry forms here.  Home page here.
I recommend this contest because, although it's basically a small town contest and attracts relatively few entries, it has a large cash prize. Besides, the awards dinner is a hoot! - Brian

To keep up to date with all the annual writing contests in Canada, get the 2011 Canadian Writers' Contest Calendar – now just $13 including tax and shipping (or $10 at any of Brian Henry's workshops or classes). To order your copy, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca  More details here.

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Cherry Beach Express, a Steve Nastos Mystery by Richard Cain

Cherry Beach is a quiet area on the Toronto waterfront where bad cops do bad things to worse people...

Hey Brian,
Thanks so much for your writing seminars. They obviously helped since my first novel, Cherry Beach Express, was just released by ECW Press. I learned so much from your classes, I'm still considering taking more despite the fact that I'm technically a professional now.

Having you do the novel critique was also clearly worth it. Thanks for finding the time for me. If there is anything I can do for you, just let me know.
Rich

Congratulations, to Richard! Not only has ECW published his first book, but they signed him for a three-book contract. For infomation on submitting to ECW, see here.
For more about Cherry Beach Express, see here.

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Saturday, June 4, 2011

Room Magazine contest for Fiction, Creative Nonfiction & Poetry

Calling all woman writers: sharpen your pencils or fire up your laptop and send us your fiction, poetry, or creative non-fiction contest entries.

Deadline: Entries must be postmarked or e-mailed no later than July 15, 2011.

Entry Fee: $30 per entry (includes a complimentary one-year subscription to Room). Non-Canadian entries: $42 Canadian dollars.

Prizes: 1st prize in each category – $500, 2nd prize – $250. Winners will be published in a 2012 issue of Room. Other manuscripts may be published.

Rules & Details:
Poetry: max. 3 poems or 150 lines
Fiction and Creative Non-Fiction: max. 3,500 words
More than one entry will be accepted as long as fee is paid for each entry.
There will be blind judging, so please don't put your name or address on your entry submission.

Full contest details here.

Regualar submissions:
Room magazine publishes original short stories, poems, creative non-fiction, and art. We take pride in publishing arresting, evocative, and accomplished literary experiences by women in these genres.
Room is committed to discovering new talents and we take this responsibility seriously, so if we are the first step on your journey to creating a portfolio with professional credentials, fear not, we're honoured and still interested. If you're further down this road, don't forget to mention your credits in your cover letter.

Fiction/Creative Non-fiction: Please submit 12-pt typed, double-spaced, single-sided pages of unpublished prose of no more than 3500 words. We do not accept simultaneous submissions.


Poetry: Please submit a maximum of five poems at a time. We do not accept simultaneous submissions.

Photos/Art submissions: Direct us to your work online or send a low-resolution digital file (JPG or PDF, 1 MB max size) to arteditor@roommagazine.com. Since our issues differ in theme, tone, and content, we will keep you on file for upcoming issues.

We receive over 600 submissions per year and publish approximately 25 pieces in each quarterly issue. {i.e., they publish one out of sux submissions - that's an excellent ratio! - Brian}

Mail your work to:
Room
PO Box 46160 Station D
Vancouver, BC V6J 5G5

We are currently accepting submissions by e-mail on a trial basis. Please Attach your submission in Microsoft Word, rich text file (RTF), or text (TXT) format, maximum 500 KB file size. The subject line of your e-mail must adhere to this format: Room / Genre / Submission / Your Name. For example, Room Poetry Submission Jane Smith)

Send your submission to: Fiction: fiction@roommagazine.com
Creative Non-fiction: cnf@roommagazine.com
Poetry: poetry@roommagazine.com

We pay $50 CDN for 1 - 5 published pages, $75 for 6+ pages and $100 for cover art. Contributors also receive two copies of the issue in which the work appears and a year's subscription to Room. We purchase First North American Serial Rights only (the work may not have appeared in print in North America prior to publication in Room), and copyright always remains with the author. We may also ask you for non-exclusive electronic rights to publish a portion of your work on our website, but these will be negotiated separately.

Full submission guidelines here. Home here.
See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Friday, June 3, 2011

John Jeneroux wins Crime Writers of Canada's Unhanged Arthur Award

John Jeneroux accepting Arthur Ellis Award for Best Unpublished First Novel
June 2, 2011, at the Grand Pacific Hotel, Victoria, B.C.


Congratulations to John Jeneroux! He's won the prestigious Unhanged Arthur Award for his unpublished novel, Better Off Dead. The Unhanged Arthur is one of several Arthur Ellis awards given by the Crime Writers of Canada association for outstanding crime writing.

The judges describe Better Off Dead as a: "strong first novel with snappy dialogue combined with poignant writing that is, by turns, insightful, gritty, harrowing, and humorous. Jeneroux’s characters are likeable. Better of Dead is elevated from the stereotype with a sharp sense of timing, smooth writing, and a page-turning plot."

In addition to winning a cash prize, John's novel is now under consideration for publication by McArthur & Company.

Other winners:
Louise Penny won the Best Crime Novel award for Bury Your Dead, published by Little, Brown UK
Avner Mandleman won Best First Crime novel for The Debba, published by Other Press.
Jacques Côté won Best French Crime Book award for Dans le quartier des agités, published by Alire Press
Alice Kuipers won Best Juvenile/Young Adult Crime Book for The Worst Thing She Ever Did, published by HarperCollins
Stevie Cameron won Best Crime Nonfiction for On the Farm, published by Knopf Canada
Mary Jane Maffini won Best Crime Short Story for “So Much in Common,” published in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine (submission info here).
And Louise Allin and N.A.T. Grant won Derrick Murdoch special achievement awards for contributions to the crime genre.

For information about submitting to the Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Unpublished Novel, see here.
 
See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Jessie Cammack of JABberwocky literary agency seeks fantasy, YA sci-fi and literary fiction


Francesca Giacco (left) publicity assistant at Henry Holt
(where she reads unsolited mmanuscripts) and  Jessie Cammack
Jessie Cammack is the digital rights manager for JABberwocky and is actively building her own client list. Jessie has a degree from Columbia in (mostly 19th century) English literature and (mostly 20th century) American history. While she was in college, she worked at Borders Books  and at The Overlook Press. She started at JABberwocky in fall 2009.

Jessie is seeking: epic fantasy, young adult science fiction, and literary fiction. "I rarely rep nonfiction, but if I do, it’s generally fairly serious history about a subject in which I am very interested. Recent examples I've read include Jennifer Homan’s exhaustive history of ballet, Apollo's Angels, and Kate Cambor’s rather novelistic triple biography Gilded Youth."

Query via snail mail only:
JABberwocky Literary Agency
PO Box 4558
Sunnyside NY 11104-0558

Send a one-page query with SASE if you want a reply. Including a synopsis or a few sample pages is optional and acceptable. Other than Jessie, JABberwocky is closed to queries, but will reopen soon.
Home page here.

Brian Henry has a "Writing for Children and Young Adults" workshop coming up on on August 20 in Oakville. (See here).

Brian will also be leading: "How to Get Published" workshops on August 27 in Woodstock, Ontario, (see here) and on September 24 in Guelph with guest Monica Pacheco of the Anne McDermid Agency (see here.)

See Brian's full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

“How to Make Yourself Write,” workshop, Saturday, November 5, London

The London Public Library presents...
How to Make Yourself Write
A creativity workout
Saturday, November 5
10:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
London Central Library
251 Dundas St, London, Ontario (Map here.)

Do you find it difficult to keep yourself motivated? To find time to write? Do you ever find yourself just staring at a blank screen? Come to this workshop and give yourself a kick-start, and then learn how to keep going. This creativity workout will get your words flowing and help you make the breakthrough into the next level of writing.

Workshop leader Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing teacher for more than 25 years. He teaches creative writing at Ryerson University and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Charlottetown. But his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get their first book published and launch their careers as authors.

Fee: $2.48 plus hst = $48
Registration opens September 6.
After Sept 6, register for "How to Make Yourself Write" and pay by credit card simply by phoning the London Library's Program Registration Office: 519-661-5122
Starting Sept 6, it will also be possible to register in person at the Central Library. Space is limited and registration is on a first come, first serve basis, so try to register early.

See Brian Henry's full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Kingston, Barrie, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

"A Daughter's Diary" by Elizabeth Crocket, reviewed by Jennifer Mook-Sang

Self-published with Lulu.com, paperback 119 pages $13.13 or pdf download $7.24

A Daughter's Diary by Elizabeth Crocket is a tribute to the author's father in his final days of cancer. It's an exploration of their relationship and the devastation that illness can bring to a family. Touching and, at times, laugh-out-loud funny, this memoir describes an ordinary family and the courage that emerges when times are most dark.

Although this is a very sad subject, the writing is so honest and the characters so true and warm that it makes for an effortless read (albeit requiring a couple of tissues). It leaves us with the hope that ordinary though we are, when we need it, we’ll find our own fortitude.

A Daughter's Diary is available in paperback here or for download in pdf here. All profits donated to cancer research.

Jennifer Mook-Sang lives in Burlington, Ontario, with her husband, two sons and two crazy cats. She supposes that makes her a crazy cat lady. She is working on a novel for young readers about a shy boy who faces his fears and enters a speech competition in order to win the prize of his dreams. She is also working on learning how to make delicious Japanese dishes to wow her friends in her Gourmet Supper Club. You can read another review by Jennifer here and a short piece about her supper club here.

Quick Brown Fox welcomes your book reviews. Guidelines here.
See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Kingston, Barrie, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Monday, May 30, 2011

Love letters

Hi, Brian.
You were in Sudbury last summer doing an editing workshop – super, insanely valuable stuff and I hope you come back to the Big Nickel soon! – and I just wanted to drop you a line to let you know that “Pearl,” the story I brought to work on at the workshop (about the would-be mermaid), has found a home!

Allegory magazine's May issue went live today with my story, and I wanted to share the link. It's my first sale, and I'm pretty jazzed.

Thank you again for your help. And please come back to Sudbury soon! : )
Stephanie Charette

Read Stephanie’s story here. For information about submitting to Allegory, see here. I will be returning to Sudbury - on Sunday, Oct 23, to lead a "How to Get Published" workshop. Details here. - Brian

Hi Brian,
I must say, you’re in good company for liking my poem “Feeling” that you looked at in class. I just received notification today that it has been selected for publication in Sibyl Magazine I'd submitted it for their 2nd annual poetry contest last month!
Cheers!
Linda Spencer
Georgetown

Brian,
I am very happy to report that my first piece of published fiction, a humorous look at life in a diner, was included in the new food-themed anthology Crave It! from Red Claw Press (here). The editors hosted a marvelous launch party and readings from the new book on May 5 in Toronto. After many years of being published as a cookbook author and food writer for magazines, I am so pleased to now be 'bi-published' (fiction and nonfiction)!

Thanks for sharing this with your readers, as I would love to point to the inspiring - and mouth-watering - works of my fellow authors, and acknowledge the dedication and hard work of the editors at Red Claw.

Cheers,
Anne Lukin

Hi Brian
More big news from Sarnia! On Sunday, May 15, two of our local writers/editors launched Sweet Lemons 2, an international anthology focusing on Sicilian heritage and writing. You don't need to be Italian to appreciate the significance of this 400-page book which features the work of close to 90 authors.

On a much smaller scale (but exciting for me), I will be one of the opening acts for the afternoon, launching a poetry chapbook, my second collection of previously published and 'honourable mention' work. Included is one of my poems shortlisted in the Freefall 2008 Prose and Poetry Contest.

Debbie Okun Hill
Sarnia

Hi Brian,
Recently one of my stories, an excerpt from my creative non-fiction book "Finding Matthew" was published in Commuterlit, and in June another story will appear in the spring publication of ARS Medica. Thanks for all your encouragement.
Donna Kirk

Read "Finding Mathew" here. For information about submitting to Ars Medica, see here. For submitting to CommuterLit, see here.

See my full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Kingston, Barrie, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

"How to Get Published," Sunday, October 23, Sudbury

The Sudbury Writers Guild presents...
How to Get Published
Sunday, October 23, 2011
10:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
The ParkSide Centre, Kinsmen Room B,
140 Durham Street, Sudbury (Map here.)

If you've ever dreamed of becoming a published author, this workshop is for you. We’ll cover everything from writing your opening to getting an agent, from getting your short pieces published to finding a book publisher, from writing a query letter to writing what the publishers want. Bring your questions. Come and get ready to be published!

Workshop leader Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing teacher for more than 25 years. He teaches creative writing at Ryerson University and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Charlottetown. But his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get their first book published and launch their careers as authors.

Special Option: Participants are invited to bring a draft of a query letter you might use to interest an agent or publisher in your book. You don’t need to bring anything, but if you do, 3 copies could be helpful.

Fee: $38.94 + hst = $44 paid in advance
or $42.48 + hst = $48 if you wait to pay at the door

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

See Brian Henry's full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Kingston, Barrie, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Waking the Witch out in paperback and a new YA series – all the latest for Kelley Armstrong fans

Kelley Armstrong is the only one of my students who has been on the New York Times bestsellers list more than once and the only one who's been in the number one spot. As Kelley will be my guest speaker at the upcoming "How to Write a Bestseller" workshop (details here), I thought it was a good time to give an update on her latest releases:

Waking the Witch, a supernatural thriller for adults, came out in hardcover last summer and shot up the bestsellers lists. Now it's available in trade paperback.

Waking the Witch tells the tale of Savannah, a powerful young witch with attitude.  Savannah has never been able to resist the chance to throw her magical weight around. But at 21 she knows she needs to grow up and prove to her guardians that she can be a responsible member of their supernatural detective agency. So she jumps at the chance to fly solo, investigating the mysterious deaths of three young women in a nearby factory town. At first glance, the murders look garden-variety human, but on closer inspection signs point to otherworldly stakes.

This August, will see the worldwide release of Kelley's twelfth novel, Spell Bound, a follow-up to Waking the Witch.

On the heels of the wildly popular "The Darkest Powers" series, Kelley has released, The Gathering, the first in another supernatural Young Adult trilogy.

Maya lives in a small medical-research town on Vancouver Island. How small? You can't find it on the map. It has less than two-hundred people, and her school has only sixty-eight students – for every grade from kindergarten to twelve.

Now, strange things are happening in this claustrophobic town, and Maya's determined to get to the bottom of them. First, the captain of the swim team drowns mysteriously in the middle of a calm lake. A year later, mountain lions start appearing around Maya's home, and they won't go away.

Her best friend, Daniel, starts getting negative vibes from certain people and things. It doesn't help that the new bad boy in town, Rafe, has a dangerous secret – and he's interested in one special part of Maya's anatomy: Her paw-print birthmark.

I'm under orders from my daughter, Emma, to bring home a signed copy of The Gathering from the workshop June 18.

- Brian

See my full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Kingston, Barrie, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

"Peter and the Plan" by Sherrie Charter

Peter stood frozen, his sock-clad toes curling against the linoleum. He could hear the hum of the refrigerator and the laugh track of the TV in the living room. Everything else was quiet. No footsteps. But he better not breathe just yet.

He snuck a peek at Bobby. Bobby had also frozen to the spot, his eyes wide and his arm still reaching forward. It looked like he wasn’t breathing either. Bobby’s eyes drifted towards Peter’s as a drop of snot dripped from his nose. Bobby didn’t even move to wipe it away – they were both too scared to move another muscle.

Peter looked towards the doorway, sure that he’d see his worst nightmare already standing there on the threshold to the kitchen. His life was over, he was sure of it. But there was only empty space there, except for the dust motes floating in the sunbeam streaming in through the window.

Peter looked down and saw the remains of the once beautiful plan scattered across the floor. Bobby whimpered and broke the spell.

“Shhh!” Peter whispered and quickly clamped a hand across Bobby’s mouth. He could feel that drop of snot now stuck to his hand but if that was the most horrible thing that happened to him today he’d be lucky. Bobby’s eyes went even wider and Peter looked back down again at the mess on the floor.

“Daisy! No!” Peter hissed, springing into action to brush the dog away. Too late. The dog was already hoovering bits of chocolate off the floor. Great. If she ate something sharp she’d yowl and then his life really would be over.

Bobby whimpered again.

“Hush, will you? And go get the broom. Quietly!” Peter whispered, still holding the dog who was now frantically straining her tongue towards the crumbs on the outer edge of the disaster zone.

Bobby toddled over to the closet and reached up to twist the knob. The door stuck and Peter watched as Bobby put both hands on the knob, standing on the tip toes of his Elmo socks, and pulled with all his strength. The door made a soft creak and popped open, spilling a mountain of Tupperware from the top shelf, covering Bobby, who fell back in a heap against the counter, and startling Daisy, who turned and barked at what she surely thought was an intruder set to steal the bounty of broken cookies so recently gifted to her.

In the ensuing silence Peter heard the final death knell. The TV clicked off.

Sweat trickled down his neck as he summoned the courage to look back towards the doorway. Fearing that he would be turned to stone, or worse, he finally raised his eyes as the silence deepened. He saw the slowly tapping slipper, the faded fleece pants, the hands planted on hips and knew a dread deeper than his six year old stomach had ever known.

His mother had arrived. And she was mad.

He didn’t even need to see the look on her face to know that he would not be eating another chocolate chip cookie for a very long time.

Sherrie Charter is a self-professed dreamer and hopeful poet...with a rather average sort of day job. She grew up all over the Golden Horseshoe and currently calls Mississauga home. Sherrie has had many beautiful plans over the years, many of them involving dessert, and many beautiful pets that have often enjoyed the fallout.

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Kingston, Barrie, Gravenhurst, Sudbury, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Congratulations to Richelle Kosar – winner of the Toronto Star Short Story Contest

Back in the 1990s, Richelle was part of a class I taught at Ryerson University that was a precursor to the “Intensive,” “Intermediate” and “Extreme” creative writing classes I teach today. At the time, Richelle was working on her manuscript for The Drum King, which was published by Turnstone Press in 1998 (available here).

Then in 2003, Richelle published A Streak of Luck with Cormorant Books (available here). Now, with her story "Citrines," she's won first place in the Toronto Star Short Story Contest, which comes with a prize of $5,000.
- Brian

"Citrines" by Richelle Kosar

We were having a great time.

Let me tell it. You always forget something important. And I wouldn’t say a “great” time. Actually we were thinking that the food was the same as before. We were saying that maybe next year we should try somewhere different. Remember?

Yeah, true. The food was kind of boring. But every day was sunny and the water was always warm.

The weather was good, but you can get that in a lot of places. Anyway, one afternoon we started walking along the beach. It stretched for more than a mile and there were lots of hotels along the way. Big, gorgeous hotels. We picked one and said if we ever won the lottery we’d stay there.

And then we saw them … more


In the fall, I'll be leading three "Intermediate Creative Writing" classes - on Tuesday afternoons in Mississauga on Ridgeway Dr. (details here), on Wednesday afternoons in Burlington (details here), and on Wednesday evenings in Mississauga on Truscott Dr. (details here - note this class is almost full).

I also have introductory classes starting this summer and fall and Saturday workshops throughout Ontario and beyond.  See my schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Barrie, Kingston, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, South Carolina, etc.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

You're invited to the Toronto book launch for The Meaning of Children by Beverly Akerman

Hello, Brian.

I'm thrilled to announce that my new short story collection, The Meaning of Children, published by Exile Editions, will be launched in Toronto on May 31st at the Dora Keogh Irish Pub, 141 Danforth.

Part of The Exile Writers Series, we will also be toasting the launch of Claude Tatilon's A Pinch of Time (David Homel's translation of the original French novel, La soupe au pistou). The book has won many honours and sold 20,000 copies in France.

Jesus Hardwell's story collection, Easy Living, will also be featured, along with work read by Ann Elizabeth Carson and Claudio Gaudio, from Exile Quarterly's 34.3 and 34.4 issues. Music by bass musician Grant Curle.

I just wanted to let you know and invite you and everyone who reads Quick Brown Fox to drop by if at all possible. Links to some fantastic media coverage I’ve been blessed to receive are below. I’ve put the TV and radio interviews on youtube; links to the newspaper reviews are up at my blog. Please feel free to circulate this note to anyone you think might be interested.

Best to you,
Beverly Akerman
http://beverlyakermanmscwriter.blogspot.com/

More about The Meaning of Children:
“Each story [is] a reminder of what an optimistic endeavour it is to parent…Akerman holds up our greatest fears, not to dwell on them, but to marvel at our commitment to life, especially to passing it on to others.” ~Anne Chudobiak, The Montreal Gazette.

“This isn’t the invented childhood of imagination and wonderment…[here] children both corrupt and redeem: each other, family relationships and the female body.”~Katie Hewitt, The Globe & Mail

CTV Interview with Mutsumi Takahashi: here.

CJAD Interview with Anne LagacĂ© Dowson here. 

For information about submitting to Exile Editions and to Exile, the Literary Quarterly, see here.

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Barrie, Kingston, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

"The Eagle" by Daniel Groppini

The Eagle flies so high in the sky
When I look at it, it makes me cry
When I see it soar
I almost feel the wind blow through my hair
When I see it land
I take a picture.
Then I take more and more, until the sun goes down.

When the sun comes up, I jump out of bed
To see that Eagle fly again.
I love that Eagle flying in the sky
Once endangered, destined to die.

Now the Eagles are saved again
I am so happy that they fly again.

When you see an Eagle
What do you feel?
Do you feel the way that I feel?
The Eagle makes life feel so real.


Daniel Groppini is in grade 5. His poem, The Eagle, won 1st place in the writing category, poems for grade 5. in a contest sponsored by Raptorfest Grimsby. Prizes were also awarded for art and poetry. The art contest has run for fourteen years; the writing contest for three years; and the photography contest for two. Raptorfest is a conservation event featuring birds of prey. Read more about it here. 

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including creative writing courses and writing workshops in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Barrie, Kingston, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Monday, May 23, 2011

Exile Editions books and Exile, the Literary Quarterly – submissions

Exile is a literary publisher that puts out both books and a literary quarterly. Home page here.

Submitting your manuscript to Exile Editions books
Material Accepted for Consideration:
* Fiction: short stories and novels.
* Poetry: book-length manuscripts of more than 64 pages; preferably 96 - 144 pages.
* Non-Fiction/Essays/Travel: preferably manuscripts of more than 160 pages/Travel minimum 80 pages.
* Graphic Novel and/or Poetry: writing and art combined with a "literary/visual inclination" to adult readers, and with an emphasis on "quality" writing.
* Drama: preferably manuscripts of 96-144 pages.
* All submissions will also be considered for possible "partial/selection" publication in Exile, The Literary Quarterly. See: www.ExileQuarterly.com

Submissions by mail only, to:
Exile Editions - Books Editor
134 Eastbourne Ave
Toronto ON M5P 2G6

Note: It usually take 12-16 weeks for our editorial board to issue a reply. If you don't receive a reply within 16 weeks, email: info@exileeditions.com
See previously published titles here.
Full submission information here.

Submitting your work to Exile, The Literary Quarterly:
"We strongly suggest that you read two or three issues of Exile to get an understanding of the “flavour” of our selective taste with regard to what we publish in our journal. We are particular in our belief that we have a duty to ourselves (and our readers) to publish the best of both established and new writers–and artists–and we therefore have a very refined selection process.

Also, the mistake many authors make is that they think submitting everywhere and anywhere is their best chance of getting published (and this is increasingly evident as authors want to dump their work on publishers via e-mail) … but this is not the case here, as we are quite deliberate in who we select (and, if we do choose you, only to find out the same submission has been chosen by another publisher, you will never appear in Exile – hence, our No Multiple Submission policy).
Some simple Guidelines for submitting to Exile:

1) As noted above, We do not accept Multiple Submissions (ie, if you have submitted the work you want to send us elsewhere, then do not submit to us); and we do not accept electronic submissions/e-mail submissions (these will simply be deleted upon receiving).

2) For fiction and drama, we accept an average of 10-20 pages, although sometimes 1-2 pages, or as many as 30-40 pages, depending on the “body” and “individual integrity” of the work. This means that submissions generally fall within these lengths, and are expected to be a selection of your highest quality material.

3) For poetry, it is similar in that you can submit a few poems, or up to fifteen, again depending on the body of work.

4) Artists should submit ten to fifteen 4×6 photos, or colour-accurate photocopies, of their work, and should consider the body as a whole so we have the option of doing a Colour Section with them. You can also provide a Web site address, so that we can view more of your work if need be (please give exact links that take us to works that complement those you’ve submitted–we do not want to browse through your complete site).

5) Otherwise, we have no further particular guidelines except that you choose your work conscientiously, mail it in to us to the address below, and include a SASE if you want it returned (it usually take 6-8 weeks to receive a reply). For artists, be sure that your SASE is durable/safe and labelled accordingly (ie. Fragile, Photos, etc.) for you to have your works returned undamaged.

Direct your submissions to either the Fiction Editor, Poetry Editor, or Art Editor, at:
ELQ/Excelsior Publishing Inc
170 Wellington Street West – PO Box 308
Mount Forest, ON, N0G 2L0

Full submission guidelines for Exile quarterly here.

Brian Henry will be leading: "How to Get Published" workshops on August 27 in Woodstock, Ontario, (see here) and on September 24 in Guelph with guest Monica Pacheco of the Anne McDermid Agency (see here.)

See Brian's full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Literary agent Beth Fleisher seeks Middle Grade, YA, adult sci-fi, etc.

Beth Fleisher formerly of Barry Goldbalatt Literary has founded her own agency, Clear Sailing Creatives. Beth  has more than 20 years experience in the publishing business as an editor, author and agent. 

She was with Ace Science Fiction (part of The Berkely Publishing Group), and when Berkley wanted to explore the graphic novel market, she took on those projects. In 2009, she became an agent with Barry Goldblatt Literary.

Her clients include: Will Alexander, Jared Axelrod and Steve Walker, Jacey Bedford, John Mantooth, and Emily Murdoch.

Beth will read submissions in
• Middle grade - all subjects
• YA - all subjects
• Adult genre- SF, fantasy, some horror/thriller
• Select children's non-fiction, especially on history, science and nature
• Select graphic novels/hybrid books

She does not want, and so will not read
• Picture books
• Romance
• Memoir
• General adult fiction
• How-to books

She would love to find
• A true middle grade or YA mystery
• A great ghost story
• A wonderful animal story
• Adventure stories, whether dystopic YA, SF, or fantasy

How to submit
• Send a short cover letter with synopsis and any professional credits or relevant experience
• Include the first 10 pages or first chapter, whichever is shorter in the body of the email
• Mail to queries@clearsailingcreatives.com

"I don’t want self-aggrandizing statements. (This book is the next bestseller!). All I need is a brief paragraph outlining the plot and characters, and five pages or so, so that I can see if you can write. Please only include biographical information that is relevant to the content and sale of the book. And take into account what I’m looking for. It’s just a waste of time to send me material that I do not take on."

Note that Beth is big on setting: “Setting is so important to a book. Those who have ‘talked book’ with me will know my mantra is that setting is the unnamed character in a successful book -- and that if a book doesn't have that strong sense of place, the story just lies there on the page, lifeless. I can still smell the coverlet in Meg's attic room on that rainy night -- as well as a certain deli counter in Manhattan. I don't think either book would have garnered the Newbury if Ms. Stead or Ms. L'Engle had short-handed their own particular world.”

Brian Henry has a "Writing for Children and Young Adults" workshop coming up on on August 20 in Oakville. (See here).

Brian will also be leading: "How to Get Published" workshops on August 27 in Woodstock, Ontario, (see here) and on September 24 in Guelph with guest Monica Pacheco of the Anne McDermid Agency (see here.)

See Brian's full schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Orangeville, Barrie, Woodstock, London, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

"Bagpipes & Bullshot" by Janice Horton, reviewed by Melanie King

Self-published by Janice Horton, April 2011

Orley McKenna is an American cowgirl and Innes Buchanan is the Laird of a rundown Scottish estate. Innes is in Texas looking to save his home from ruin by seeking out a cattle expert to help him breed a hardy new herd back home.

By the time he returns to Scotland he’s found his new cattle expert – Orley – but to complicate matters, he’s fallen in love with her.

Back home, Davina MacKenzie waits for Innes to return. They have been arranged in marriage and she is determined to see it through even though his plans no longer include her. Lady MacBeth has nothing on Davina when it comes to what lengths she’ll go to in order to marry a man with a title.

Fergus, Innes’s younger brother is madly in love with Davina and would do anything for her, until he discovers her secret. But she isn’t the only one with something to hide.

Janice Horton keeps you riveted from the beginning. She does a great job portraying the beauty of the Gulf Coast of Texas and the ruggedness of Scotland in addition to keeping you wondering what’s going to happen next.

Bagpipes & Bullshot is a definite “feel-good” book and it is impossible not to laugh out loud at some of the situations she throws her characters into.

Highly recommended!

If you live in the US or Canada, you can download your own copy of Bagpipes & Bullshot for $1.95 US here. or if you live in the UK you can download from Amazon.co.uk for £1.38 here. And, if you have a Sony or other reader, Janice's book will soon be available for download at Smashwords here. I recently had the honour of interviewing Janice for my blog. See here.

Melanie King lives in Brockville, Ontario with her family. When not working or speaking, Melanie loves reading and writing, hoping one day to break into the novel-length fiction market.

Quick Brown Fox welcomes book reviews and other book-related articles. Guidelines here.

See Brian Henry's schedule here, including creative writing courses and writing workshops in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Barrie, Kingston, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Ashe County, NC, sponsors new contest for fiction, nonfiction & poetry

Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina

I'll be visiting the North and South Carolina this September and will be leading a writing workshop in Charlotte, SC, so I thought I'd put in a plug for this writing contest. (And if you're wondering why I'm visiting the Carolina's, you haven't seen photos of the Blue Ridge Mountains.) Besides, it's the first year for this contest, and the great thing about new contests is that they tend to get relatively few entries....
- Brian

Ashe County’s Literary Festival, On the Same Page, now in its fourth year, has for the first time announced a writing competition as part of the Festival. In association with the 2011 Festival, which will take place September 14-17 in Ashe County, North Carolina, the Page Crafter’s Prize will recognize writers of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry with cash awards.

The writer’s competition is designed to encourage and acknowledge emerging writers and to reinforce the annual theme of the On the Same Page Literary Festival. In 2011, the festival’s theme is “Family Matters.”

Page Crafter’s Prizes will be awarded for first, second, and third place in fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Prize money totaling $1,200 will be presented: $250 for first place, $100 for second place, and $50 for third place in each category.

Deadline for submissions is July 8, 2011, (postmarked snail mail or email submissions).

Entries must be centered on the 2011 festival theme “Family Matters.” There is a 1,000-word limitation for prose and no more than 50 lines of poetry.
A non-refundable entry fee of $10 (U.S.) per submission is required.
There is no limit to the number of entries per person.
Only previously unpublished entries qualify; winning entries will be published on the On the Same Page Literary Festival website. Authors will retain all rights to submitted works; winners need not be present to win, but are encouraged to attend the Festival and read their work.

Complete contest rules and instructions for submitting here.
Visit the festival website here. 

See my schedule here, including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener, Guelph, Woodstock, London, Orangeville, Barrie, Kingston, Gravenhurst, Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.