Subscribe Now!
Do you offer writing workshops?
I offer a number of workshop options – for children, teens, and adults; single sessions or a series of sessions; and in a variety of settings including libraries, bookstores, schools, and private homes. I’ve even conducted workshops in Liberia. (If you want me to travel that far to do a workshop, somebody (besides me) has to…
Read More...
Jan Coates, An Alumnus of the Seaside Writing Workshop
Jan Coates first came to our Seaside Writing Workshop/Retreat in 2008 to work on several picture book manuscripts she needed help with. Second Story Press had published Rainbows in the Dark in 2005, but since then, Jan had collected only rejection letters in response to her submissions. During sessions focused on her work, she got feedback from…
Read More...
More Books (and Almost Books) by Seaside Retreat/Workshop Alumni
Having described the development of Jan Coates’s A Hare in the Elephant’s Trunk in a previous post, I want to give a plug to three other writers whose work has benefited from participation in the seaside workshop/retreat that Peter Carver and I offer each summer. Anna Kerz brought the manuscript for The Mealworm Diaries to Nova Scotia…
Read More...
The Fallen Canadian Soldier Project
I’ve blogged before about different ways Canadians have honoured fallen soldiers. But this winter I learned of another, after a neighbour attending a woodworking show with her husband came upon a display of portraits of Canadian soldiers who have fallen in Afghanistan. Stephen Gaebel describes the first time his paintings were exhibited publicly – on Remembrance…
Read More...Can you help me get published?
I have no ins with any of the publishers I’ve worked with as a writer or as an editor, so beyond encouraging you to continue honing your craft (by writing lots and perhaps attending classes or workshops), there’s nothing else I can do to help you get published. However, there are lots of websites that offer…
Read More...Do you write full-time now, or do you have another job, too?
I do my best to write full-time, but I don’t earn enough money from book sales to make a full income, so I do other things – related to writing – to make up what I need. I work as an editor. I lead writing workshops for adults and for children. I speak at conferences.…
Read More...
How can we arrange a visit to our school or library?
It’s easy. Just send Kathy an email! But before you do, it’s best to first read about audience sizes and the cost of hosting a visit. Also about the kinds of things I might do with your students and the impact our visit might have. Find answers to other FAQs here.
Read More...
Do you speak to teachers on their professional development days?
Yes, and it’s always a pleasure. (I was an elementary school teacher myself, before I was a writer.) I can discuss how to motivate students to write, how to excite them about reading, or I can conduct a mini-writing workshop, as a model for how teachers might like to work with their students, at any…
Read More...
Will you come and speak at our conference?
If your audience is teachers, librarians, booksellers, writers, parents, students, or seniors, chances are I’d love to come talk about just about any aspect of writing, reading, or being a writer in Canada. I’m more than open to suggestions. In addition to the speaking fee, conference organizers should be prepared to cover the cost of…
Read More...
Do you ever visit book clubs?
I haven’t done it often, but within a reasonable distance from my home in Rockwood (which is near Guelph) Ontario, I do. So far I’ve only met with adult book clubs, but I think it would be fun to meet with mother-daughter, mother-son, father-daughter, father-son groups too. Depending on who your book club members are,…
Read More...