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Becoming A Poet
Today I’m on my way to Saskatchewan to participate in a Sage Hill Poetry Colloquium. Anticipating my departure, I recalled several poetry landmark moments in my life, leading up to this one. As a child I loved Lewis Carroll’s “You Are Old Father William” so much I memorized it with no one telling me to…
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Getting to Know Maud Lewis
In contrast to the often bleak landscape and harsh climate of rural Nova Scotia that formed the backdrop of her life, Maud’s paintings brim with vivid, joyous colour. Was she escaping the miseries of her life through her painting? Or was she simply adept at seeing the beauty in the world and expressing it through…
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Early Buzz for A Tulip in Winter
Sometimes a book, no matter how well written and illustrated, edited and designed, fails to find its intended readers. The reason is sometimes a mystery, but how much effort a publisher puts into promoting a book definitely has an impact. Lucky is a book whose publisher’s publicity department is hard at work even before its…
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Winter Photography
My Instagram profile identifies me as “A writer of kids’ books with a passion for photography.” This blog post offers you a sampling of pics taken so far this winter (all with my iPhone 11 Plus) that I haven’t posted there. One of my favourite subjects in every season is my dog Georgia, who inspired The…
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The Poetry Project
I’ve been writing poems lately. Some days I’m surprised and pleased by what I write and think I might someday have something worth submitting somewhere. Other days a voice in my head says: You can’t write poetry. Whatever made you think you could? Why are you torturing yourself trying to write something no one will…
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Why “Genitals”?
I love to hear from readers of my books, whether they’re expressing delight in what they’ve read, or questioning some aspect of what they’ve read. In 2019, a reader who liked The Bare Naked Book (the 1986 version) expressed disappointment with the inaccuracy of the “penis” and “vagina” spread. — “Our identity does not always…
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Holiday Book Shopping Made Easy
Many readers are enjoying the pleasures of browsing their local bookstores for holiday gifts these days, others the pleasures of shopping online. New buttons on the book pages of my website will make it easier for you to quickly find what you’re looking for, whichever your shopping style preference. You are looking for books by Kathy Stinson for all…
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“I Read Canadian” 2022
For this year’s “I Read Canadian” Day (that’s today), I decided to list books by Canadian authors I’ve read in the past year. And — to adopt a phrase used by the cheesiest of stories online — you won’t believe what I discovered! More than half of the 100 books I read were Canadian! Here are some favourites: Canadian Fiction Butter…
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Close But No Cigar
Ever wonder where the expression “Close but no cigar” originated? I had two occasions last month to wonder. This is what I learned. Back in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, players who succeeded at fairground games of strength, accuracy, and skill were commonly awarded a cigar as a prize. The games were notoriously…
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Where Was I This Summer?
Name the location of one of the photos: town, city, or body of water, and I’ll email you a sneak peek at the cover of my next book—weeks ahead of when I reveal it in a blog post!
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