For me the hardest part about writing literary fiction is having something to work with. Once you have a full draft it’s only a matter of time before it becomes what it is. But building out that first draft, in the face of everything that it could be, that it will not be, that you want it to be—that’s difficult.

If you’ve already read Rockets Versus Gravity (and if you haven’t, consider this a teaser), you know that its theme is the interconnected nature of seemingly different lives, and that the independent storylines in the book eventually all come together, like the threads of a spider’s web joining in the centre.

The transformation of a single storyline from the book into the short film Royal Blood happened in a similar, interconnected way.

When the First World War began in 1914, Canada was only forty-seven years old. Its people were largely of English, Irish, or Scottish descent, either having been born there or having parents who had been.

I was invited to attend the British Home Child Reunion on July 22, 2018, in Kitchener, Ontario to launch my new book, Marjorie Her War Years: A British Home Child in Canada. The event was organized by Lori Oschefski of the British Home Children Advocacy and Research Association. It was held at the Waterloo Region Museum.

Reunion: the act or process of being brought together again as a unified whole.

From September 14 to September 17, I traveled around Nova Scotia, talking about my new book, Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting. The book examines how 20 sets of royal parents from medieval times to modern times raises their children, from fending off Viking attacks to fending off paparazzi.

Jaclyn and Kendra headed to Calgary at the end of February for the Alberta Regional Book Fair. While our Ampersand sales team was busy presenting titles to Alberta booksellers, Jaclyn and Kendra were visiting local bookstores, libraries, Chapters stores, and festival contacts!