Days Road Writers' Workshops

Globe and Mail to publish Dolores Kivi's essay "The Glasgow Photograph"

2010-05-06T14:38:00.003-04:00

Dolores Kivi, a freelance writer based in Thunder Bay, writes with wonderful news that The Globe and Mail has accepted her essay "A Soldier's Portrait" for publication in its "Facts and Arguments" section on Friday, May 7, 2010. (See the online version here: A Soldier's Portrait.)

Says Dolores: "One should never hesitate to carry out a potentially kind deed even if it involves a bit of work. In 2005, with pending major surgery, I had realized that I had two photographs of Second World War soldiers - soldiers to whom I had written for several years but had never met either before or after the war. As a nurse I realized that no surgery is without risk and it seemed a shame for my children to probably be tossing out perfectly preserved (in my album) studio photographs because they meant nothing to them.

"With a lot of luck, because they had uncommon names for this area and because I knew the soldiers had originally come back to what is now Thunder Bay, I started searching for descendents. Both had stories to tell me but for one the story was exceptional and the photograph was - if I may be so bold as to say it - far more than the word 'appreciated' can convey.

"I wrote the first drafts of the story last year after I had spoken to the principal descendant, and received encouragement to write it; he saw the draft before submission."

Former workshopper Dolores Kivi pens a weekly column for Thunder Bay's The Chronicle-Journal for COPA (Council on Positive Aging). This will be her second "Facts and Arguments" essay. Read as well her essay "About Writing" (archived on this blog April 25, 2008) by clicking here: About Writing, by Dolores Kivi.

Sabino Springs Writers' Retreat, Tucson, Arizona, January 2011

2010-04-23T17:42:00.001-04:00

Journeys and Discoveries: Writing From Your Life
Sabino Springs Writers’ Retreat

Tucson, Arizona

January 22 to 28, 2011

Join editor and instructor Allyson Latta for this unique one-week retreat open to travel-loving writers of all ages. At Sabino Springs you’ll enjoy a series of entertaining and stimulating workshops and the opportunity to explore your own creative writing, while taking in sunshine, desert and mountain scenery, and irresistible Arizona culture.

Interested in developing your memoirs, or using life experiences to enrich your fiction or other writing? This retreat could be the inspiration you need.

Relax in shared accommodation at the luxurious Casitas, with views of the Santa Catalina Mountains and the fairways of the Arizona National Golf Club. Condos are over 1200 square feet and feature two bedrooms, two bathrooms, state-of-the-art kitchen, dining area, great room with queen-size pullout couch, and outdoor patio. There’s also a heated outdoor pool, hot tub and fitness centre. Our workshop venue is a 15-minute walk away at host Gail Rudyk’s welcoming Southwestern-style home.

Registration fee covers 7 nights’ accommodation, most meals, 12 hours of workshops, 1 private consult with Allyson, a Q&A session with a Tucson-based literary publisher, group activities such as an evening Reading Salon, and transportation for planned sightseeing.

Optional excursions include a tram-ride and hike in picturesque Sabino Canyon, a visit to Tanque Verde Dude Ranch, a trip to Colossal Cave Mountain Park, a guided tour of San Xavier del Bac Mission and historic downtown Tucson, lunch at the charming Arizona Inn and gardens ... and more. Use free time to focus on your own writing, commune with other writers, and re-energize in these beautiful surroundings.

Space is very limited and some workshop spots may be reserved by local writers. Accommodation availability is based on booking order. Contact Allyson at lattamemoirs@gmail.com for rates, Program, and Detail Sheet. For more about Allyson, visit the site for Days Road Writers Workshops.

Early-bird registration special: Register before August 15, 2010 [new date], and receive a written critique of one piece of writing (max. 2,000 words).

Writers' Community of Durham Region member discount: 10% off registration fee

Memoirist Mary McIntyre's poem accepted for publication

2010-04-16T14:34:00.001-04:00

Guest post by Mary McIntyre

I fit my grandmother-sized brain into the head of an angry, frustrated teen. Why do that? you might ask. The exercise was in response to the Writers' Circle of Durham Region's broadcast email from Susie Berg of Pearson Educational Publishing. In the fall of 2009 the publisher was looking for poetry for their May/June edition of applied language arts, English 9-10, Poetry Module, "Live Lines." The topic: teens in family conflict, and the poem had to appeal to 15-year-olds, most of them boys, and could have no profanity. I threw on a "hoodie," slammed shut my office door, shoved iPod ear pieces into my ears, slouched in front of my computer, and wrote a poem titled "Ugly Like A Scar."

After a couple of months I received by email from a Pearson representative a permission request to include my poem in the textbook. It was then that I realized the scope of the edition: 45,000 copies (approx. 80 pages), 1,500 teacher guides, audio rights downloadable to MP3 player – 1,500 users (classrooms), and electronic rights, student password-protected website – 1,077 users (classrooms).

On receiving the news, I emitted a grandmotherly whoop of satisfaction, and as a former teacher, thought about the impact my poem might have on troubled teens. Then I switched gears and thought about the impact the publication offered to me as an emerging writer.

I solicited members of my writing group, Life Writers Ink, and Allyson Latta, Writing Coach, and Deborah Windsor, President of The Writers' Union of Canada, to learn about how I should handle the offer. With their help, I concluded the negotiation to my satisfaction.

***

MARY MCINTYRE has been published in Parry Sound's The Beacon newspaper, and won first prize in the 2008 Days Road Writers' Workshops memoir contest, for her short story "Scugog at Dark." In her forthcoming book, Washburn Island: A Memoir of Childhood, the strong ties of a British immigrant family are torn apart by a violent tragedy at Washburn Island, Lake Scugog, where several generations of her family summered for over thirty years.

Mary has participated in a number of Allyson Latta's workshops, live and online, since 2004.

Mary Judith Ress's "Blood Flowers" honours sisters killed in 1980 in El Salvador

2010-04-10T21:02:00.002-04:00

Mary Judith Ress is pleased to announce the publication of her novel Blood Flowers. Her publisher iUniverse has designated it an "Editors' Choice." The book is available on Amazon.com and BarnesandNobel.com.

Says Judy: "I have been writing this novel since 1983. It was inspired by the assassination of the four religious sisters in 1980 in El Salvador -- especially by the life of Ita Ford, who went from Chile to El Salvador as a missionary. I was a member of the mission team in El Salvador in those years, you see -- and two of the women killed were my "compañeras" -- one of them actually replacing me. So in a real way, this novel is to honour their memory. While it started out as an historical novel, in the end I concentrate more on the relationships among my characters -- always complex, always surprising."

Judy Ress is a journalist, editor and ecofeminist theologian, as well as a member of Santiago Writers, a Chile-based group founded by Canadian writers Ellen Hawkins and Susan Siddeley. Judy has previously published non-fiction; Blood Flowers is her first novel. She was a participant in my 2010 Santiago, Chile memoir workshops as part of Susan Siddeley's Los Parronales Writers' Retreat.

Jane Boruszewski Based Novel "Escape from Russia" on Her Memoirs

2010-03-30T20:32:00.001-04:00

Escape from Russia, a dramatic and inspirational memoir-based novel by Jane Boruszewski of Syracuse, New York, has been published by Pennywyse Press, and is now available on Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.

This announcement is a bittersweet one, because Jane did not live to see her book in print. Sadly, she passed away on August 1, 2009, at 82 years of age.

Born in Poland, Jane was just 13 years old in 1940, when following the invasion of her country by first Germany and then Russia, she and her family were deported to Siberia. Escape from Russia is a fictional rendering of their struggle to survive and transcend this harrowing ordeal.

Jane worked on early versions of some of the chapters in Escape from Russia while taking part in several of my online memoir workshops through Ryerson University between 2004 and 2006. Even in writing about the adversities she and her family had faced, Jane managed to weave threads of hope, love and faith. Her strength of spirit shone in her stories. I remember her fondly, as do her fellow students from those courses.

Some of Jane’s short stories, both memoirs and life-based fiction, also appeared in the annual anthology OASIS Journal, published by Imago Press of Tucson. Following her death, her husband, Walter Boruszewski, worked closely with Leila Joiner – editor of OASIS Journal, and publisher of Imago Press and Pennywyse Press – to produce Escape from Russia, a beautiful book that’s a tribute to the author's memory and her long-time love of writing.

“My mom had been writing all her life and she worked on this story for years,” says Jane and Walter’s daughter Linda. “My dad, in her honour, had the book self-published. It’s fiction, but a lot of it is true. I’m very proud of my mom for never giving up on it, and proud of my dad for making her dream come true.”

From a review on Amazon.com: “This is a very simply written, yet powerful book written from the perspective of a young girl who, with her family, is taken from her homeland and deported to Siberia during World War II. It tells the story of the family’s deprivations and struggles to eventually return to Poland.... For all the suffering detailed throughout the book, the message that comes through is one of hope....” [Chuck Raynor]

The 2009 edition of OASIS Journal is dedicated to Jane Boruszewski.

***

More about OASIS Journal:

OASIS Journal is an annual anthology of short fiction, non-fiction including memoir, and poetry by writers age fifty and over. Produced in coordination with The OASIS Institute, a national non-profit organization in the U.S. that promotes ongoing education for seniors, OASIS Journal has showcased the work of older writers since 2002. Oasis Journal editions 2008 and 2009 are available at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. The book currently runs approximately 350 pages. A contest is held each year for Best Fiction, Best Non-fiction, and Best Poetry with a $100 prize in each category. Prose submissions are limited to 5000 words. Original illustrations (both artwork and photographs) are also accepted for consideration if they accompany a poetry or prose submission. OASIS Journal considers entries from Canada. Submissions are accepted from May 1 to July 31 (postmark) each year, and are judged anonymously.

To obtain a 2010 submission form, write to anthology editor Leila Joiner, after May 1, at ljoiner@dakotacom.net.

Telling Life Stories, by Seymour Eliesen (Guest Blogger)

2010-03-25T09:20:00.002-04:00

“Dad, I don’t really know you” began the conversation I had a few years back with Michael, my eldest son. This made me realize that I wanted to tell my children, grandchildren and the rest of my family about my life when I was a toddler, teenager, young adult, maturing parent, and now a senior. I wanted them to know what it was like for me. I needed to jump-start my memory.

I rented a tiny, secluded cabin appropriately named SHALOM, Hebrew for “peace.” The wooden structure was musty, without running water or electricity, and I loved it. My guests were a family of Canada Geese, chattering red squirrels, hummingbirds, blue jays, and a red fox that the owner told me was named Daisy Mae.

So on a warm day in July 2007, a bright sun beaming infrared rays into my body, I set up a folding table and chair in a field surrounded by yellow buttercups with the crystal waters of Aylen Lake on one side and the forest treeline on the other. I opened my coil-bound notebook, remembered to apply number 30 sunscreen, as I’m not stupid, and with pen in hand, I began to write. I wrote and wrote. I had a great time recording every memory I could recall.

In the middle of the afternoon, dark, ominous clouds appeared out of nowhere and within ten minutes a heavy downpour interrupted my writing. The thundershower was brief. To my pleasure, as the clouds moved to the west a beautiful double rainbow appeared. It seemed a sign to go on with my story.

I've continued to write about events I've experienced, people I've known, and what life was like for me "in the olden days." I've developed a real passion for Life Story Writing.

Telling stories has taken a number of forms for me. Some are primarily documentary in nature, recording various details of life and the times for posterity. Others are about aspects of my family background and heritage of which my children and grandchildren are not aware. My writings have become a learning and healing process and before I’m done I’ll write how I have grown from this. Some stories are quite personal, and may not be finished or shared for decades. My favourites, the ones that are the most fun to write, are vignettes of specific times, about the neighbourhood where I grew up, friends, happy occasions, sad ones, when I became a hippie, and then a farmer.

As I write, I'm finding that decorating the stories with photos, a family tree, old documents, recipes and whatever else strikes my fancy brings the level of my storytelling up a notch. I’ve gone to the Internet for some photos and artwork and I’ve researched libraries for other bits of information. I’ve interviewed cousins, former employers, business associates and friends. I had never thought that being involved in this task would give me so much satisfaction and enjoyment. To leave a legacy like this for my family makes me feel very proud of myself. There is an inner artist in me that I wasn't fully aware was there.

People ask if these stories are true. The answer to that question is yes, and the answer is also no. Sometimes my brother reads a story I've written and says, “That's not what happened at all.” I generally grin and reply, "Write your own story!"

These stories represent my memory of what happened and what the events meant to me. Therein lies their truth. In the end, the value of memories is the meaning they hold for us. But these are more than memories, they are stories. Beyond the twists of memory, storytellers learn not to let a few puny facts get in the way of a good tale.

***

Seymour Eliesen was born and raised in the 1940s in the St. Urbain Street district of Montreal. The first son of working class Jewish immigrants, he went to Baron Byng High School. At 15 he began a successful 52-year career in the apparel industry. He and his second wife, Lydia, were back-to-the-land organic farmers in the 1970s. Seymour is writing his memoirs as a gift to his children and grandchildren for his 75th birthday.

Seymour took part in my workshops at North York Central Library (memoir) and online (dialogue writing), and in February 2010 flew to Santiago, Chile, to participate in the two-week residential writers’ retreat workshops I led there: "Journeys and Discoveries: Writing from Your Life." His ever-present binder already brims with completed stories, drafts of others, photos and more, and the collection continues to evolve. This guest blog is the introduction to those stories.

Write Your Memoir in the Sun -- Writers' Retreat in Santiago, Chile - Feb 2010

2010-01-07T13:11:00.000-05:00

Gazing out your window and dreaming of an escape from the winter chill ...? There's still time!

At LOS PARRONALES WRITERS' RETREAT in Santiago, Chile, you’ll be treated to sunshine, South American hospitality and culture, and, each morning, one of a series of entertaining and stimulating memoir-writing workshops. Journeys and Discoveries: Writing from Your Life, a two-week getaway open to writers of all ages, runs from February 7 to 21, 2010.

Los Parronales -- the name means "vineyards" -- is situated on a 60-hectare property with a spectacular view of vineyards and the Andean foothills. Fee includes 10 workshops, some one-on-one consultations with me, accommodation, meals and (Chilean, of course!) wine, transportation to and from airport, and accompanied excursions, such as one to the homes of Nobel Prize-winning poet Pablo Neruda. (Airfare to and from Santiago is not included.)

Afternoons and evenings afford plenty of time for you to focus on your own writing; enjoy the facilities, which include a swimming pool and hiking trails (bring your camera); commune with others in your small group; or simply relax and soak in the bucolic surroundings. You’ll also have the opportunity to meet local writers with similar passions.

Canadians Gordon and Susan Siddeley are engaging hosts who have welcomed many returning writers to their Chilean residence. Journeys and Discoveries is their tenth retreat. Space is limited but there are still rooms available. Contact Susan at motocad@rogers.com for details -- and to reserve your escape.

To view a flyer and more photos, click the link on the main page of this blog.

I look forward to seeing you there!

***

ALLYSON LATTA is an independent editor of award-winning literary fiction and non-fiction, and a writing instructor specializing in memoir. As a freelance editor she worked on The Golden Mean by Annabel Lyon, which recently won the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize and was shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and the Governor General’s Literary Award. Several books she edited were selected for the 2009 “Globe Books 100.” She teaches life writing for the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies, and for the past several years has offered a popular biannual workshop series through North York Central Library, as well as speaking to literary festivals and writers’ groups. Allyson was a judge for U of T Magazine’s 2009 short fiction contest (see Winter 2010 issue). She is also a lineup consultant for radio-host Stephanie Dickison’s “Portraits on Paper” memoir/biography segments on CKLN-FM’s In Other Words.

Portraits on Paper -- Memoirs on the Radio

2010-01-07T09:13:00.000-05:00

Guest Blog by Stephanie Dickison

Getting to write for a living is just about the best thing in the world.

And it just got better, as I have been named a host on CKLN 88.1 FM’s In Other Words, a show about the written and spoken word!

The show airs every Tuesday at 2 pm and has a rotation of five hosts:

Week 1 - Charlie Huisken
Week 2 - Myna Wallin
Week 3 - Stephanie Dickison
Week 4 - Jennifer LoveGrove
Week 5 - Diana Kiesners

My audition for the show was a live broadcast that aired on November 17, 2009. I found out only days before so I had little time to prepare. I chose the focus of my show to be memoirs, biography and real-life stories -- Portraits on Paper.

I thought Allyson Latta would be the perfect guest, what with her memoir experience, as both an editor and a writing teacher. [Click the link on this blog to hear my interview with her.] And though I love speaking with authors, my goal with the show is to showcase everyone in the industry – booksellers, teachers, publishers and simply people who have a story to tell.

Allyson was so amenable and affable, both on and off the air, that she made my first show incredibly easy. You know, as easy as your first live on-air show can be!

As a result of that broadcast I was chosen to be a continuing part of In Other Words, and my next show was, again, just days later. On December 15, 2009, I interviewed co-manager of Nicholas Hoare Books in Toronto, Maxeen Paabo, about books and book clubs. It was fabulous. And I am pleased to say that I have had more time to prepare my next show on January 19 – what a feeling!

My upcoming guests will include Catherine Gildiner, Ian Brown, Wayson Choy, and Charles Foran to speak about their latest books, as well as many others. Throughout the show I also play music and spoken word CDs.

Allyson has been a freelance editor on numerous acclaimed memoirs and biographies, and some of my future guests, including Gildiner, Brown and Foran, are authors she's worked with. Catherine Gildiner will join me on-air in March. Her second memoir, After the Falls, has received enthusiastic reviews and earned a place on The Globe and Mail's 2009 "The Globe 100." Her first memoir was the bestselling Too Close to the Falls.

In Other Words airs weekly. You can listen over the Internet by clicking

CKLN-FM

or pasting this URL into your browser:

http://www.ckln.fm/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=59&Itemid=309

and then clicking the "Listen Live" icon.

I am grateful for this opportunity to speak about memoirs. It is nice to give a radio voice to what I believe is important literature. It’s also a helluva lot of fun!

I hope you will listen in.

***

Stephanie Dickison, author of The 30-Second Commute: A Non-Fiction Comedy About Writing & Working from Home, is a freelance lifestyle writer. See more at www.stephaniedickison.com

A Chance to Contribute Thoughts about Self-Publishing Online

2009-12-15T12:38:00.000-05:00

More and more these days, publishing online is a possibility that I suggest to my workshop participants, but whether the option of publishing on a blog or a website is right for you, and what you choose to publish there, will depend on your writing goals, your audience and other factors.

I recently asked author Rebecca Rosenblum, who created the entertaining blog "Rose-coloured," for her thoughts and she was intrigued enough to blog on this topic. Drop in and see what she has to say at

http://rebecca-rosenblum.blogspot.com/2009/12/self-publishing-online-any-takers.html

If you're curious about self-publishing online, or are already doing it, Rebecca and I would like to hear your opinions (or your concerns or questions). There is so much experimentation going on out there with electronic publishing that there's no "right" answer for everyone. We encourage you to comment on her post on "Rose-coloured."

Rebecca and I were fellow judges in the 2009 U of T Magazine short fiction contest. She is the author of a short-story collection Once, which won the Metcalf-Rooke Award, and her second collection, The Big Dream, has been accepted for publication by Biblioasis.

***

While I'm posting, let me also wish everyone reading this the best of the season. May you experience joy and good health in the new year -- and of course, time to revel in reading and writing!

Just a reminder to those on my Google Groups list not to reply to this message directly. You can go to my blog and comment there, or write me directly at lattamemoirs@gmail.com

Happy holidays,

Allyson Latta

Allyson's interview with Markham Village Writers

2009-11-13T15:05:00.001-05:00

My interview with Donna Marrin, founder of Markham Village Writers, has been published.

I hope you will visit their new site. The interview appears at http://markhamvillagewriters.com/focus-on

Tilya Gallay Helfield to be published in journal "carte blanche"

2009-11-11T17:00:00.000-05:00

Tilya Gallay Helfield's short memoir "Stars" will be published on-line in the November edition of the literary journal carte blanche on November 18, 2009 at www.carte-blanche.org.

"Stars" is one of the chapters in a collection of creative nonfiction stories that she has been working on. Other short stories and essays written by Tilya have appeared in The Fiddlehead, TV Guide, Viewpoints, Monday Morning, Winner's Circle Anthology and on www.theoccupiedgarden.com.

Tilya is a talented visual artist and writer who has participated in some of my online memoir workshops.

Congratulations, Tilya.

Memoir Workshops - Fall 2009 and Winter 2010 - Online, and in Santiago, Chile

2009-10-05T18:24:00.007-04:00

My Fall 2009 North York Central Library workshop series is now full. Please see the Toronto Public Library’s upcoming “What’s On” program for dates and registration details for my Spring 2010 series.

More Workshops ...

He Said, She Said: Effective Dialogue Writing (online)
Days Road Writers' Workshops
Location: Online
Date: October 19 to November 27, 2009 (6 weeks)
Fee: $129
To register: Contact Allyson at lattamemoirs@gmail.com

Note: Workshop site is accessible only to registered participants. It's open 24/7 for posting/reading, and I monitor it regularly, Monday to Friday.

***

Memories into Story: Introduction to Life Writing
University of Toronto, School of Continuing Studies
Location: Online
Date: Winter Session - January 18 to March 29, 2010 (10 weeks)
Fee: $585
To register: Contact U of T
Tel: 416-978-2400
Email: learn@utoronto.ca

Note: This course may be taken for a credit towards a Certificate in Creative Writing.

***

Journeys & Discoveries: Writing from Your Life
Location: Los Parronales Writers’ Retreat, Santiago, Chile
Date: February 7 to 21, 2010
To register or find out more: Contact host Susan Siddeley, motocad@rogers.com

Join us!
An informal get-together with Chilean music and wine will take place in downtown Toronto on November 18, at 6:30 p.m., for those interested in learning more about Los Parronales and Allyson’s residential workshop there. If you or someone you know may be interested in this writing holiday, please contact Susan at the above email address for details and directions.

**

ALLYSON LATTA is an editor of award-winning literary fiction and nonfiction who also leads writing workshops online, throughout the Greater Toronto Area, and occasionally abroad. Currently one of her edits is nominated for the 2009 Scotiabank Giller Prize, Annabel Lyon’s The Golden Mean. The Golden Meanis also a finalist for the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize. Allyson edited one of the finalists for this year’s Rogers Writers’ Trust Non-fiction Prize as well: Wade Davis’s The Wayfarers. She has worked as an editor on the last three out of four winners of the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize.

Visit www.daysroadwriters.blogspot.com, or contact Allyson at lattamemoirs@gmail.com

Remembering Jane

2009-09-28T17:22:00.005-04:00

Polish-born Jane Boruszewski, of Syracuse, NY, took part in several of my online courses through Ryerson University in Toronto between 2004 and 2006, sharing short memoirs and fictional stories based on her life experiences. She was enthusiastic about the writing process, and her sweet nature and determination to write inspiring and often beautiful stories about some of her difficult life experiences – especially in a language that was not her first – endeared her to me and to others in these groups. Between 2003 and 2007, she was delighted – as were her supporters here in Canada, with whom she kept in contact – to see several of her stories appear in OASIS Journal.

OASIS Journal editor Leila Joiner will dedicate this year’s issue to Jane’s memory. The story posted on the Days Road Writers' Workshops blog earlier today was one of Leila’s favourites among Jane's contributions.

Jane will be missed by all of us who knew her.

***

ABOUT JANE

Jane was born in Poland, and in 1940 at age 13, during the Second World War and following the invasion of her country by first Germany and then Russia, she and her family were deported to Siberia.

With Britain's support, in July 1941 the Polish Government-in-Exile re-established diplomatic relations with Russia. This led to an “amnesty” for Polish citizens who had been held in Russian labour camps and prisons, and to a Polish army being formed inside Russia. Jane's future husband, Walter, enlisted at the age of 17.

Some of the Polish army was needed to protect the Western Allies' oil fields in the Middle East, so under the amnesty, 77,000 soldiers and 43,000 civilians, including 20,000 children, were evacuated from Russia to various countries including Iran and the Middle East. Polish soldiers went on to fight in North Africa and Italy.

In 1942 while Jane was travelling with her family by train to be closer to the Polish army for protection, she and her older sister Mary fell ill and had to be taken to a hospital. When they were released, they didn't know where their family had gone, so an army-run orphanage took them in. They were transported to Iran, and from there to East Africa, where Jane spent the next seven years and completed high school.

After the war, Jane travelled to England, where she met Walter. They married in England in 1949, and two years later immigrated to the United States on a special visa for ex-Polish soldiers and settled in Syracuse. There they raised three daughters, and Jane completed two years of college. Writing, says her husband Walter, was her passion.

Jane’s sister Mary married and settled in England. Jane’s father died in Russia, and her mother and younger sister remained in Russia for a few more years before returning to Poland. Although Jane and her mother were back in touch in 1947, they were unable to see each other again until they were reunited in the United States in1964, after a separation of 22 years.

Jane passed away August 1, 2009, at 82 years of age. She is survived by Walter, her husband of 59 years, 3 daughters, 8 grandchildren, and 20 great-grandchildren.

***

OASIS Journal (www.oasisnet.org) accepts submissions from outside the U.S.; for more information please contact the editor, Leila Joiner, at ljoiner@dakotacom.net. OASIS Journal 2009 will be available in late October through www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com.

"My Favourite Game" by Jane Boruszewski

2009-09-28T09:14:00.004-04:00

MY FAVOURITE GAME

by Jane Boruszewski

“Hey, Marek, why do you always have to be the first guard of Dwa Ognie (Two Fires),” I shouted at a sturdy boy holding a ball in the crook of his arm. He stood at one end of a grassy field that was marked off with sticks and stones.
“…ooo…nie nie nie,” the edge of the nearby East African jungle echoed my Polish words.
“Ya, tell us why?” someone else wanted to know.
About a dozen youngsters, milling within the boundaries, waited anxiously for Marek to begin the first round of the game this morning.
His dark eyes went to Bolek at the opposite end of the field. Bolek was the other guard, who, with Marek, was supposed to keep the ball flying from one end to the other, either above our heads or between our bodies. Their aim was to hit a contestant. Even the slightest graze was enough to send us out of the game.
Marek laughed. He dropped the ball to the ground and dribbled it awhile. Then he caught and raised it slowly over his bushy head and held it high for everyone to drool over. Making big circles with it, he yelled, “It’s because I have the only ball in this camp, in Tengeru.”
“Bastard!” called out Stasia, the biggest girl in the group.
Marek pretended to ignore her, but he lowered the ball to his side and, staring into a space to her left, sent it spinning straight at her. With the speed of a cannonball, the ball hit Stasia’s chest, and she fell to her knees.
“You are already out,” he hissed.
“Yes, you are out!” cried the others in the field.
“That’s not fair,” she said, getting to her feet. “Marek, you didn’t say that Dwa Ognie had started.”
“Out! Out! Out!” the others shouted, amid much laughter.
“Get out before I hurt you again,” Marek warned.
“I’m going…going,” she mumbled. On her way out, she smacked small Edzio across his back.
“Fatso!” he called out after Stasia, sticking his tongue out at her as she staggered off the field. Edzio was the best player among us. He had developed the art of ducking the flying ball and using others as a shield at just the right moment. Most of time, he was the last one left in the game. As winner, he was handed the ball to start the next game with a partner of his choice.
I hated the little squirt.
And now, as soon as the ball went into action, we players turned into wild creatures. Running backward so we were always facing whichever guard had the ball in his hands, we swore and screamed. “Come on, Bolek, get me if you can…Marek, you think that you are tough, eh? You are nothing but a bully…” We called the boys names I can’t put on paper.
Caught up in a fearful excitement, I ran about as if seized by madness. I avoided the flying object by jumping up, ducking, or leaping backward. We kicked and elbowed one another, but felt no pain, only a fury of anger. Right now, in the midst of this madness, I was not a child who lived in Africa, but a nine-year-old grownup, ducking bullets with our Polish soldiers, fighting off the Nazis in 1939. In the distance, Jaroslaw was bombed every day while I watched it burn and smoke, flames shooting up to the sky. I had cried to see our captured countrymen being kicked and whipped by Germans. In the beginning of the war, Nazis rode in tanks across our village or rode on horses, but when they left, the Russians came to stay for good. Both invaders robbed me and my friends of our childhood.
And who was robbing us now? Marek? But he had been robbed, too. He had lost both of his parents to typhus in Uzbekistan and crossed the border with a group of Polish orphans, strangers to him.
Suddenly, I saw the ball coming straight at me. I spread my arms and caught it. Bolek had thrown it at me, hoping to get me out of the game, but he failed. I couldn’t believe my luck. As I hugged the ball, I felt sweet success filling up my heart to the brim. I grinned, knowing I was temporarily saved from having to leave the field. I savored my precious moment. I had conquered the ball the way I had beaten the typhus that tried to claim my life in Russia.
“Don’t just stand there gaping, you stupid goose,” I heard Marek’s voice behind me. “Let me have the ball!”
Slowly, I turned around and stared at the ruffian, grinding my teeth. With his arms folded across his chest and his legs wide apart, he looked like a short Lensky assembling our grownups for all-day labor in the Siberian forest. Lensky and his helpers kept the Poles confined to a place of imprisonment in the district of Omsk on the shores of the Irtish River. For two years, my parents worked for meager food alone. For two years, we children were too hungry, too cold or hot, and always humiliated by Lensky. And here in Tengeru, biting my lips hard, I was about to throw the ball, not to Marek, but at him, wanting to hit his nose, wanting to see it bleed. But he caught the ball with ease and laughed his awful laugh.
“Communist!” I called him the name we Tengerians hated and despised.
Marek seemed to ignore my insult, but I knew he was up to no good. As I thought, he sent the ball whizzing at me again. Today, his and Bolek’s shots were harder and more twisted than ever before. The two bullies kept aiming at our heads or chests. At this moment, I was one of four contestants left in the game, and I wanted to win this turn, even if it killed me. My fingers itching and palms sweating, I braced myself. “Ready for another catch,” I muttered to myself. “Be careful,” a small voice inside of me warned. But I did not listen to its advice. I spread my arms, but forgot to jump up a bit.
Woops! I felt a hard blow on the left side of my face. A million stars exploded before me, and then faded away. I went down to the ground, and the ball rolled away from me, laughter floating about me.
“Another loser,” someone sneered. “Got what you deserve.”
I got up with effort and staggered off the field to join the players grouped outside the boundaries. With my cheek numb from the blow, I sat down on the ground next to Wanda, the shortest girl of us all, who was sniffling, as always. Her hands embraced her knees, and she looked like a fetus curled up in its mother’s womb. From the time I met her in Pahlevii, our first friendly camp on the other side of the Caspian Sea, I had felt compassion for this playmate. She told me then that her papa was shot in Warsaw by the Nazis for hiding a Jewish family in his cellar. After his death, Wanda’s mama went to live with her cousin in Eastern Poland, which was occupied by the Russians, and they had deported the woman with her daughter to Kazakhstan. Two years later, they both found themselves in Iran, where her mama died of dysentery.
I had lost my little brother in Siberia, a month after our arrival at Bialy Jar, the Russian settlement. Extremes of climate and lack of proper nourishment killed the poor baby at nine months of age. We buried him in a hole we dug in the woods. A month later, my aging aunt died, for what reason, I never knew.
“Janka, you got a whopper there on your cheek.” Wanda’s voice brought me back to Africa and to my gang. There were still two players left in the field, and I wished I were one of them. But now my head was getting hot, and I felt dizzy.
“Have to go home,” I whispered, glancing at Wanda’s sweet profile, outlining itself against Mount Meru on the western horizon. I smiled sadly. The mountain was always there, like a loyal friend, for everyone who wanted to look at it and be consoled.
“Don’t you want to stay for the next turn?” asked Wanda. “You usually wait to the end of our games.”
“I…I don’t feel well,” I moaned, touching my face. It felt hot and lumpy. I tried to stand up, but sat right back down in order not to fall on my back.
“I’ll walk you home,” said Wanda.
Before I could say no, she helped me up and put her arm about my waist. I leaned on her thin shoulder. Listening to our playmates hollering, we plodded toward my hut, where I lived with my big sister, Marysia, Mrs. Nadzieja, and her daughter, Irena, who was my age. Wanda helped me to get into my bed. It was one of four leaning against the round, white-washed walls and shielded carefully with a snowy white mosquito net. We were all told that mosquitoes here carried malaria and were advised to keep the nets down at night.
No one was home, and I was glad. “Sit down, Wanda,” I said, pointing to one of the wooden stools that embraced the round table in the middle of the hut. Everything here was round to match the walls of the round hut. The pointed roof was covered with palm leaves, and the earthen floor was smooth and hard.
Wanda looked around. “Where is your washbowl?”
“What do you want it for?”
“To bring water from the faucet.” Tengeru had no water inside our shelters. Each group of huts had stoves, laundering tubs, and water pipes installed outside.
“I’m not thirsty.”
“A cool compress on your face will stop some of the swelling.”
After Wanda left me with a wet rag on my face, I fell asleep. Right away I plunged into a nightmare from my past:
I am lying in the hospital bed next to Marysia’s. We are both ill and hurting all over. Marysia tells me I have a very high fever, and she begs the nurses to give me some medicine, but in vain.
“Where is Mama?” I keep asking. “I want my mama.”
“Janka, don’t you remember? She and the rest of our family are on the train that is supposed let them off in Bukhara.”
I nod. Tears fill my eyes, and I’m blinded by the naked light bulb above my head. I keep asking the nurses to shut it off…
Someone shook me by the shoulder, and I woke up in the round hut.
“What’s the matter with you, Janka?” Marysia said, leaning over me.
“It hurts,” I said, touching my swollen and throbbing cheek.
“They hit you with the ball. Have I not asked you to stay away from those bullies? But you don’t listen.”
“I wish Mama was here,” I moaned.
“Ya, if she were here, she would know how to deal with you.”
I turned away to face the wall, and she walked away.
Mrs. Nadzieja made delicious potato and beef soup that late afternoon. The good woman checked my face over very carefully and told me I was fortunate not to have lost my eye. I waited for her to scold me the way Marysia had, but she did not. For the last several weeks, she had advised me to stay away from Dwa Ognie. Ever since we moved in with her, she had been pestering me to hang around with her precious Irena. Irena herself wanted to be my friend, but I thought she was too boring and not very popular. Today, everyone left me alone after supper, so I could recover from being hit.
Next morning, my eye had closed from the swelling. Irena told me that the lump on my cheek had turned black and blue and was as big as a hill. I had a slice of buttered bread for breakfast, and a cup of coffee sweetened with sugar and whitened with powdered milk. The powder made grease dots on the surface of the coffee; one had to get used to such a drink. Today, I was excused from washing the dishes, and I stayed in bed.
“Would you like to play a guessing word game?” Irena asked, after she had done her share of housework. I liked to hear her speak because she never hurried or skipped any syllables, and she rounded her mouth for perfect O’s. But I shook my head.
An hour later, I saw her drawing something on a piece of brown paper on the table. All she ever did in her free time was draw or scribble. From my bed, I watched her pencil getting shorter and shorter from being sharpened so many times, and I could hardly wait for it to get too little for her to use. Then I got bored and was about to nap, when she noticed that my eyes were open. She returned to my bed and offered to stay with me in the hut. Her dark, expressive eyes seemed to search my soul, and I resented the look.
“Leave me alone,” I hissed. Hurt or not, I was not going to be stuck with her company.
Without a word, she left. Where did she go? She was always so polite, and that also irritated me.
Now I was alone again. Marysia had gone gallivanting with her friends, as usual. She told me they were going to Duluti Lake with someone who was supposed to take pictures. Irena’s mother was doing laundry at the outdoor sinks, which had built-in washboards and running water. With no one to disturb me, I could think clearly about things and people I did not think about often. Maybe I should quit Dwa Ognie. I was getting hurt, and I hurt others by kicking, shoving, and hitting. Down deep in my heart, I didn’t like what I was becoming. Yet what would I do without my gang and the ball? I would have nobody to hang around with except Irena. Maybe she could be a good friend, after all? Eck. No. Even that leafy young tree in our back yard would be more fun than she, if one wanted to climb to its top. Irena did not fit with my crowd because she was neither brave nor active enough, and she was such a good daughter and perfect child that it made me sick to my stomach. But what about the gang itself? How many of my so-called playmates had bothered to visit me in the hut? None, so far. And who would be next to get hurt by the ball?
On the third morning after I was hurt, I got out of bed and moved about the hut. I gladly helped Irena with washing the dishes and making up beds. I also swept the floor, simply out of boredom.
“Since you are up, Janka, what are you going to do today?”
I shrugged. “I want to go back to play Dwa Ognie, but I don’t want my friends to see me looking so bad.”
“Come outside with me?”
“No way. I’m not showing my bruised face to anyone.”
“Let’s climb up my tree.”
“What can we do up there?”
“You will see,” she said, grinning.
Twenty minutes later, she and I had settled down in the tree house she had made up there. “So this is your secret hideout, Irena.” A spark of interest stirred in me for this skinny, long-legged girl with straight, brown hair.
She nodded and smiled. Right now, her round face not only looked interesting, but almost beautiful. I asked how she had made this cozy room in the elbow of the branches. And she said that she found pieces of cut boards behind the outhouse and nailed them to the tree. She made three walls and a floor, which she lined with grasses and leaves.
“You are clever, Irena,” I said sincerely. “But what do you do up here all by yourself?”
“Daydream,” she whispered, staring into a hole in the foliage toward Kilimanjaro, which sprawled like a giant haystack to the north of Tengeru, about fifty miles away. The mountaintop was covered with snow even though it smoked or shot flames upward sometimes. It was volcanic, we were told, but not expected to erupt for hundreds of years to come.
“What do you dream about?”
She paused for a long time before answering. “I try to imagine how it would be to go back to Poland after the war ends.”
“It would be wonderful to see my farm,” I said. “Our house was big and had smiling windows. The barn and fowl shelters and the silo were surrounded by a white wooden fence, and so were the flower gardens—”
“But I also think of something else.” Irena interrupted the thread of my thoughts. “And I dream of…”
“Of what?”
“I wish…to have…a boyfriend.” She giggled into her fist.
“You do?” I looked sideways at her.
“Yes, I do. But most of all, I would love to have a best friend.”
“I see,” I said, adding to myself, Don’t look at me, kiddo.
“And I do something up here.”
“Huh? If it’s something weird, don’t tell me.”
“I draw pictures, silly, and write poems.”
Thinking that I would be bored looking at her things, I was about to suggest we descend the tree and go back into the hut. But when I opened my mouth, I said words that surprised me. “Can I see your pictures?”
From under planks used as a table, Irena pulled out her sketches of Meru and Kilimanjaro, with huts and trees umbrelling them. Her drawings were simple, but full of details. She had captured the image of the rocky top of Meru, which was pointed and constantly hugged by fluffy clouds. Even Kilimanjaro smoked its pipe, like it always did. She even drew monkeys swinging from tree to tree.
“You’re an artist,” I said, envy kicking at my guts. How I wished at that moment that I could create something constructive, too. Maybe, just maybe, I could start a diary. If I only had a tablet and a pen. These things were hard to find in Tengeru until after our people began to organize schools. “Yes, you are good at drawing,” I repeated, picking up the image of a monkey sitting on the roof of a hut. “This one is my favorite.”
Irena stood up and, bending over like a monkey, sang out, “Eech, eech, eech.” She scratched her underarms, and I imitated her. Soon we both were laughing, making monkeys sounds and giggling until noontime. While I was with her, I forgot about the bruises on my face and about my gang. Then Irena showed me the poem she had written. In it she described how she missed her birthplace and her father, who signed up with the Polish Army while still in Russia. I thought the poem was beautiful, but didn’t tell her so, because I was now jealous of her talents, of which I had none. Maybe because of that feeling or because of sitting up in the tree so long, I suddenly turned off Irena’s voice. Now I was listening to the screaming of my gang, playing Dwa Ognie in the distance. Suddenly, I wanted to be with them. But I said nothing about it to Irena.
Early next morning, Marek showed up on my doorstep before the game started. I came out of the hut and, standing before him, I asked, “What do you want?” I pulled my light brown hair over my ugly bump. With one eye, I stared at him, an old hatred stirring in me. He doesn’t look so big or mean now, I thought.
“Came to see if you were all right,” he said.
“I’m still living, no thanks to you.” Now I brushed the hair from my face. “See what you did?”
“Wow!” His mouth opened wide. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, blinking and stepping back a bit. Yet, after a short pause, he said, “Coming back to play with us?”
I ached to say yes, yes, yes. But instead I blurted out, “And who else did you hurt lately, Marek?”
“No one, and I’m sorry, again, for hitting you.”
“That’s all right,” I heard myself say. “What’s going on with everyone?”
He scratched his head. “We’re still playing, but now we don’t have enough people in the field.”
“Huh?”
“You see, some kids stopped coming.”
“Why?”
He shrugged.
“Is Wanda…?”
“She quit the day Stasia elbowed her in the stomach and made her throw up right in front of everybody.”
“Dear Heavens!”
“The twin sisters attacked Edzio and broke his arm…”
“My God! Marek, you, I, and the whole gang are bad, very bad.”
He stood in silence, looking down at the ground.
“You know, I don’t think I’m going back to play with any of you anymore.”
“I…I don’t blame you for feeling this way.” With his head still down, Marek, the bully, shuffled away. He looked like a confused boy of thirteen now, which is what he really was.
That he was changing for the better, I knew then. And that I was changing, too.

* * *

What every writer needs most is perseverance, and Jane Boruszewski definitely possessed that quality. She began submitting her stories to OASIS Journal in 2003, and has had a short story or memoir published every year since then. Jane also followed the edict “Write what you know,” and her fiction was based on her own experiences, or the experiences of people she knew. But she also had a vivid imagination and was able to embellish the facts, adding depth and drama to characters and events in order to create a good story. Along with perseverance, the best advice I can offer to any aspiring writer is to read ... read ... read!

—Leila Joiner, editor and publisher

Pay It Forward: Life Writers Ink success stories

2009-09-22T13:58:00.005-04:00

Formed by an enthusiastic group of novice writers who came together through some of my online workshops, Life Writers Ink is a small group of women from a range of ages and backgrounds who meet regularly to encourage and critique one another's creative writing endeavours. Several "Lifers," as they've dubbed themselves, have met with success recently in some notable ways:

* * *

MARY McINTYRE published a personal essay titled "30,000 Lasting Impressions of Georgian Bay" in Lifestyles This Week, a Parry Sound publication. The essay developed out of a writers' retreat this summer organized by three Life Writers Ink members at a cottage on Otter Lake, near Parry Sound. One of their activities was a boat tour. To read Mary's reflections on this experience, visit:

www.parrysound.com/e/issues/796/pdf/03B.pdf

* * *

RUTH ZARYSKI JACKSON will see two of her poems published in an upcoming anthology of poetry and prose written by and about grandmothers, titled Grandmothers' Necklace. Ruth was published for the first time last year when a vignette, "Room in My Heart," appeared in the anthology about grandmothers titled The Wisdom of Old Souls, published by Hidden Brook Press.

Ruth has since launched a blog, Memoir Writers World, and she invites you to check it out at:

www.memoirwritersworld.blogspot.com

There you'll find the post "Reading Not Writing," about her first public readings as a published writer.

* * *

CHERYL ANDREWS's poem "The Frayed Map" appeared in the Summer 2009 issue (Our Sacred Identity) of the theological literary arts journal SmoKe and SaLt, published by Vivian Carter's NEUK Press.

* * *

GAIL RUDYK, yet another member of Life Writers Ink, now runs an informal memoir writers' group out of her Georgian Bay cottage. Following is an introduction by Gail to a recent piece by one of her fellow writers.

I was excited about writing my life stories and wanted to share that enthusiasm with others, so two years ago I started a cottage memoir writers' group. Since I stay up at our Georgian Bay cottage all summer, it gives me something to look forward to every Wednesday morning. There are six of us and we meet for coffee, chat, and then sit down to read a story which we have each written over the week. It's important to read our story out loud and get feedback from fellow writers.

We all have the same goal: to get our stories down on paper for our children and grandchildren. As a bonus we found that sharing our life experiences has brought us closer than we had ever imagined. Now we sometimes expand our two hours to three, and meet at someone's home for lunch following the meeting.

The following was written by group member Charlene Lowes:

--Gail

THE GIFT OF FRIENDSHIP THROUGH MEMOIRS

by Charlene Lowes

When Gail Rudyk started her memoir writers' group at her cottage last summer, she was kind enough to invite me to attend. A group where I would be expected to write something weekly was a stretch for me. I am a number person not a word person. Could I manage this? What would be the ramifications?

At first, I declined the invitation. I was busy. I had other obligations. Thankfully, the invitation didn’t come with a deadline. Later in the summer, I was allowed to change my mind.

The experience has been interesting though at times stressful. The words don’t just flow when I have to put them onto paper. This summer Gail has been giving us a subject every week. I have learned that I need to take time to think about the subject and how it pertains to me. I certainly cannot write anything credible in the last half hour, as MaryLou manages to do most weeks. For several days, I find the "subject" consuming my mind. After thinking things through, my thoughts start to form into what I hope will be a coherent account of some happening or other.

We are all aware of the fact that humour is an important part of life’s experiences. It helps us deal with issues that might otherwise overwhelm us. I have come to realize that although it plays an important part in the writing of memoirs, humour can also be used as camouflage. Like the class clown who uses humour to hide an inferiority complex, the writer can use humour to hide his or her deeper feelings.

Last week, our subject was "The Not-So-Perfect Mother." Most of us used this opportunity to poke fun at ourselves in a light-hearted way. One of us did not. Margaret was courageous enough to trust us with a very painful part of her past. Without a doubt, Gail was Margaret’s role model. Margaret has commented on the honesty Gail used in writing about her father’s anger issues. With or without Gail’s influence, the importance of Margaret’s courage and trust cannot be overemphasized. It took our little group to a new level of friendship and understanding.

Scot and I have never regretted our decision to live our retirement in Tiny. We have met lots of fun and interesting people. We have an active social life that we love. However, these new relationships are mostly superficial due to their relatively short duration and the lack of shared life experiences. The members of our memoir group have shortened the incubation time of new friendships by honestly sharing meaningful events from our past. And Margaret gave us the gift of her friendship by doing just that.

* * *

Words Alive Literary Festival, September 20, 2009

2009-09-19T18:10:00.002-04:00

Don't miss the Words Alive Literary Festival in Sharon, Ontario, tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. There's a fabulous lineup of author readings, workshops and so much more. I'll present a workshop there myself in the early afternoon. Visit wwww.wordsalive.ca for the full festival schedule and directions. Hope to see some of you there.

Allyson

Here are more details from the festival flyer:

The Words Alive Literary Festival celebrates a rich literary heritage providing a showcase for local and Canada-wide authors. One day of author readings, public readings, workshops, panel discussions and storytelling including poetry with music and art will allow you to travel with new voices to different lands and have the opportunity to become a part of their human experience.

Sunday, September 20, 2009
10:00 am to 6:00 pm

The Venue
The Festival is held annually at the Sharon Temple National Historic Site and Museum. We use the beautiful historic buildings for readings and workshops, the enchanting grounds for storytelling, vendors, and picnicking. In the event of inclement weather, the outdoor activities would be relocated to Temperance Hall and/or the East Gwillimbury Town Hall complex next door; this enables us to hold the event – rain or shine – in warm, dry, and comfortable surroundings! Learn more »

Affordable Family Fun
Words Alive is a budget-friendly and family-friendly event. Parking on site is free and a very modest admission of $5 is charged for attendees age 16-years and up. Food and beverage vendors are available, but attendees may bring a picnic lunch if they prefer. We will have a book sales table, an opportunity to get your purchases signed, a souvenir table, and much more!

Mission Statement
To act as a catalyst in our community that will bring together, stimulate, encourage and support all writers and readers.

Registration open for fall session of "Memories into Story" (online), at University of Toronto

2009-09-11T12:23:00.007-04:00

Here are the details for my upcoming online course being offered by University of Toronto's School of Continuing Studies:

Memories into Story: Introduction to Life Writing

http://learn.utoronto.ca/course/list.htm
(Paste the above address into your browser, and search for course alphabetically by title.)

Students who wish to pursue the Certificate in Continuing Studies in Creative Writing must indicate their intent IN WRITING to the Creative Writing Program Office (scs.writing@utoronto.ca) and also MUST ALERT THEIR INSTRUCTORS IN THE FIRST CLASS that they will need to be evaluated. Students are solely responsible for keeping a dossier of their ORIGINAL evaluated works.

SCS 2282 – 004 Memories into Story: Introduction to Life Writing (Online)

Instructor: Allyson Latta

Instructor Contact: lattamemoirs@gmail.com

Restrictions: Instructor will make every effort to return messages
within two business days.

Date: Starts September 21, 2009; 10 weeks

Required Reading: Writing About Your Life: A Journey into the Past, by William Zinsser
PLUS
two published book-length memoirs of the student’s choice (no “celebrity” memoirs) to be approved in advance by the instructor

Brief Course Description:

Channel your life experiences into creative writing by exploring the nature of and diversity within memoir and related genres. Readings, exercises and instruction stimulate your memory and guide you in developing your unique voice and style. Discover your “emotional truth” and hone your craft. Bring your memories to life on the page, for yourself or for publication, through personal essay, memoir, or fiction.

Learner Outcomes:

• Recognize the range of possibilities in writing about personal experience
• Apply fiction techniques to life writing/memoir writing
• Analyze structure in selected short and book-length published memoirs
• Discuss challenges inherent in writing about real people and events
• Assess own writing using self-editing checklist
• Write one short story or book chapter (2,500 words max.)

Evaluation:

Assignments (3 x 20%) 60%
Participation 10%*
Final Project 30%

*For submitting optional course exercises and participating in discussion board forums.

Grading:

90 to 100% Honours
70 to 89% Pass
60 to 69% Pass
50 to 59% Pass
Less than 50% Fail / Incomplete

Final grade will be Honours, Pass, or Fail.

Instructor Bio:

Allyson Latta, BA, HBJ, is a literary editor who over the past thirteen years has worked with many of Canada’s most respected authors and edited numerous award-winning works of fiction and non-fiction, specializing in memoir. In 2004, for Ryerson University, she developed and taught one of the first interactive online memoir writing courses, on which others have been modelled. She also leads workshops through her own company. After earning degrees in criminology and journalism, Allyson worked as newspaper reporter, associate editor for Quarry literary journal, and associate editor and features writer for Ottawa Magazine and Ottawa Business Magazine. For three years she lived in Japan, where she taught college-level English and published personal essays. Allyson is a consultant for the annual Words Alive Literary Festival, held in Sharon, Ontario, and a judge for U of T Magazine’s short fiction contest.

A Right Time for Everything, Guest Blog by Pat Irwin Lycett

2009-07-31T18:47:00.002-04:00

I’ve been writing all my life, never with a view to publishing (still don’t, except in newspapers, usually letters to the editor).

Three years ago I read about the Writers’ Circle of Durham Region in the Oshawa paper; tried the number listed, to no avail, gave up for a number of reasons. One year later, in May, I came across the number again and made contact. There really is a right time for everything!

In July, same year, WCDR announced that Fred Ford was planning a Wednesday night class, Writing Is Hard Work (WIHW), to be held every second Wednesday from 6:30 to 8:45 at the Pickering Library. We began meeting in September. There were about twelve of us, some poets, most writing fiction; that lasted until Christmas, when a few melted away. Some new folks were added from a waiting list, and we’re now finishing our second year with a tight group of seven, including Fred. We’ve grown quite close, and we love one another’s fictional characters.

I discovered after about eight months in class that I was actually interested in memoir, and joined Allyson Latta’s eye-opening North York Central Library four-week workshop series. It was well worth my drive to Toronto.

For our bi-weekly Pickering class, three members e-mail a chapter, usually by the prior Wednesday, for discussion the following week. We critique in writing at home, then present our comments in the group, and end the evening by handing across heavily-marked written material.

With a total of seven people, it can make a rather light evening if two of our group are unable to come; so the move for this fall is to accept perhaps two to three new people into the fold, and Fred is presently interviewing new candidates. I am the only one writing memoir, and adding a new memoirist has been ruled out by the group! They would be interested in adding a writer of town history, perhaps, just to add balance. Many of us occasionally submit poetry, one writes travelogues, most are working on The Great Novel; the age range of our group is 40 to 72.

Learning to write my memoirs has been a gradual process, coupled with my planning what turned out to be a well-attended family reunion, held last August in Orono. While in the process of reunion planning, I chanced upon my mother’s old family history, which really started the ball rolling. I’m now pretty dedicated, trying all sorts of techniques – a train ride has been suggested – and themes to carry the memoir through.

In the group we’re all free with our opinions, and we don’t always agree with Fred, but he is the leader, and he’s pretty good. Writing groups can have many varied formats, and I consider myself lucky that I landed in this one, as I needed a group with some structure.

Los Parronales Writers' Retreat Photos

2009-07-03T19:21:00.004-04:00

Let's try that photo link again:

Click:

Los Parronales Writers' Retreat

Join me in Chile, February 2010, when I'll be editor-in-residence at Los Parronales Writers' Retreat

2009-07-03T18:49:00.018-04:00

“Journeys and Discoveries” Writing Holiday in the Sun

Don't miss this unique opportunity in February 2010 to combine writing and travel.

Los Parronales Writers’ Retreat in Santiago, Chile, has invited me to present the workshop series “Journeys and Discoveries: Writing from Your Life” from February 7 to 21. This two-week writing holiday will engage writers who are eager to explore and develop their own memoirs or experience-based fiction. The retreat offers an inspiring and relaxing blend of morning workshops and private editorial consultations with me, plus space and opportunity in surroundings conducive to solitary creative writing or community with like-minded writers.

Set on a privately owned 60-hectare property in the Andean foothills near Santiago, Chile, Los Parronales – Spanish for “vineyards” – offers panoramic views, and is surrounded by vineyards, grassy pasture and bush-covered hillside perfect for strolls and photo-taking. The facility includes a traditional Chilean-style main house with guest rooms, open-air porch, swimming pool, communal areas, library and workshop space. Enjoy Chilean food, wine and culture on site, as well as accompanied excursions.

Flights to Santiago, Chile, via Lan Chile, have never been more reasonable. Or Air Canada flies there direct.

For more photos, click
Los Parronales Writers’ Retreat (If this doesn't work, see subsequent post.)

Detailed information available from your host
Susan Siddeley:
Email: motocad@rogers.com; Tel: (1) 416-968-0769

***

Editor and writer ALLYSON LATTA has worked with many of Canada’s most respected authors and edited numerous award-winning books of fiction and creative non-fiction. For Ryerson University she developed and taught one of the first interactive online memoir writing courses, which served as a model for others as far away as Australia. Beginning Fall 2009 she’ll teach life writing for the University of Toronto. She also leads workshops through her own company. After earning degrees in criminology and journalism from Carleton University, and completing the Economics for Journalists Program at the University of Western Ontario, Allyson worked as newspaper reporter, associate editor for Quarry literary journal, associate editor and features writer for Ottawa Magazine and Ottawa Business Magazine, and for three years taught English in Japan. She has published short memoirs and short fiction, and writes about current affairs for a national publication for secondary school teachers. Allyson is a judge for U of T Magazine’s 2009 short fiction contest, as well as a consultant for the annual Words Alive Literary Festival, held in Sharon, Ontario. She lives in the Toronto area.

SUSAN SIDDELEY, the co-ordinator of Los Parronales Writers’ Retreat, was born in the West Riding of Yorkshire and has recently returned to Toronto, Canada, after spending many years in Andean South America. She has published three collections of poetry, When in Chile, Still in Chile, and On Line, and is a two-time winner in Grain magazine’s “Short Grain” contest.

Cheryl Andrews to be published in "SmoKe and SaLt" quarterly

2009-06-04T14:32:00.005-04:00

Here's the full version of the post that appeared earlier this week!

A note from Cheryl Andrews:

“Allyson Latta has worked her magic again, successfully bringing Allyson Alumni together. Allyson made me aware of Vivian Carter’s SmoKe and SaLt call for submissions for the Summer 2009 issue, Our Sacred Identity. My poem ‘The Frayed Map’ was accepted for inclusion in the edition. While the poem may not be considered memoir in its purest form, it does speak to a real point in (emotional) time for me.

“A special thanks to another Allyson alumna and fellow member of my writers’ group Life Writers Ink, Mary McIntyre, for her critique and heartfelt feedback on ‘The Frayed Map.’”

***

Cheryl Andrews is a writer, novice artist, photographer, accomplished leadership coach and lover of the natural world. She is a founding member of Life Writers Ink and serves on the Advisory Committee of Words Alive Literary Festival. Cheryl was raised in Southwestern Ontario and moved to York Region in 1998.

Vivian Carter, BFA, M. DIV., Dip. Th., who participated in one of Allyson's workshops at Fred Varley Art Gallery, is a meditative writer, artist, spiritual guide and retired minister. Never having found a literary art journal that explored the Soul and Spirituality, she decided to publish one herself. Vivian is the publisher, editor of NEUK PRESS, and SmoKe and SaLt: lyrical art and dappled shadows, a Canadian quarterly. She may be contacted at thevicar@rogers.com

http://smoke-and-salt.blogspot.com

SmoKe and SaLt

http://neukpress.blogspot.com

Neuk Press

The theme of the upcoming issue is “Wilderness.” Submission deadline is September 4, 2009.

"First Person Arts" Memoir Contest: Deadline June 30, 2009

2009-05-19T19:10:00.003-04:00

PHILADELPHIA – First Person Arts is going across to the nation to find the best videos, photographs and stories that define how individuals, families, and communities are managing during these hard times. The contest, First Person America: In These Hard Times, invites artists to document how this generation of Americans is coping with one of the hardest economic periods since the Great Depression.

This contest is also open to Canadians, but please note that the setting of the submitted video, photograph or story must be a U.S. one.

Try clicking here for more details: First Person Arts press release

or go to the contest website, www.hardtimes.firstpersonarts.org:

In These Hard Times Memoir Contest

"Memoir (and)" Memoir Contest: Next Deadline August 15, 2009

2009-05-19T18:54:00.006-04:00

The following is a note from Memoir (and), a literary journal based in Sausalito, California, about the writing contest affiliated with its Spring-Summer 2010 issue:

Hello all of you at Days Road Writers' Workshops,

Our contest information is as follows:

The Memoir (and) Prize for Memoir in Prose and Poetry
The Memoir (and) Prize for Graphic Memoir
Four prizes awared up to $500.

Memoir (and) reading period for Spring+Summer 2010 (Issue 6): 5/1/09 -
8/15/09. Accepting traditional and experimental prose, poetry, graphic
memoir, narrative photography, lies, and more. All submissions eligible
for contest entry. Submit online or mail to: Memoir (and), P.O. Box 1398,
Sausalito, CA 94966.

Guidelines at www.memoirjournal.com

***

ADDITIONAL CONTEST INFO

The Memoir (and) Prizes for Memoir in Prose or Poetry are awarded to the
most outstanding prose or poetry memoir—traditional, nontraditional or
experimental—drawn from the reading period.

Grand Prize for Memoir in Prose or Poetry

* $500 cash award
* Publication in print and online
* Six copies of the journal

Second Prize for Memoir in Prose or Poetry

* $250 cash award
* Publication in print and online
* Six copies of the journal

Third Prize for Memoir in Prose or Poetry

* $100 cash award
* Publication in print and online
* Three copies of the journal

The Memoir (and) Prize for Graphic Memoir is awarded to the most
outstanding graphic memoir drawn from the reading period.

Prize for Graphic Memoir

* $100 cash award
* Publication in print and online
* Six copies of the journal

Thanks for the consideration, and please e-mail your response to submissions@memoirjournal.com.

We hope to hear from you soon!

Mariel E. Valerio
Memoir (and)
www.memoirjournal.com

Life Writers Ink: A Fledgling Writers Group Spreads Its Wings

2009-05-15T16:16:00.008-04:00

by Cheryl, Anahita, Ruth, Gail and Mary

Our group of five women first came together as participants in Allyson Latta’s online memoir writing courses. Compelled by the support, encouragement and professional critiquing we learned through those courses, we didn’t want to let go. The Memoir Writers Social Allyson organized in September 2008 gave us the opportunity to meet face-to-face for the first time.

When Allyson posted an article on www.wordsalive.ca, “Start Your Own Writers Group,” I (Cheryl Andrews) was inspired and forwarded it on to Anahita Printer Nepton, Gail Rudyk, Mary McIntyre and Ruth Zaryski Jackson.

"I know that workshops … can provide inspiration while they’re going on, but that that inspiration can disappear in a poof once they walk out the door (real or virtual). A writers group is the logical next step ..." (Allyson Latta 9/30/2008)

It certainly was the logical next step for us, and the article became the basis for our group Guidelines. We took them to a fairly comprehensive, yet informal and relaxed level and haven’t referred to them since. The extensive discussion process we undertook about the structure of our writing group was the critical element.

We came up with a name, "Life Writers Ink." Mary (lovingly) refers to us as the Lifers.

We held our inaugural meeting January 25th, 2009. We prefer Sunday afternoons, once a month and take turns hosting. As Allyson Alumni we have slipped into the writing group format with very few wrinkles!

"Every meeting reinforces my respect for our writing differences and how we learn from each other… I gain so much from your ideas. You energize me again to do more heavy lifting with my pen." (Mary McIntyre)

During our meetings we read our pieces to each other, critiquing upon request, socialize, discuss and swap books we’ve read recently, share news about upcoming literary events and contests, cheer and applaud successes and pry open the door when one of us hits the creative wall.

"I personally enjoy the side discussions that come up about the latest books we have read and information about any calls for submissions." (Gail Rudyk)

Life Writers Ink is about discovering the courage to explore the furthest reaches of our creative sides and providing encouragement as we move toward publishing. Writing memoir brought us together, and the support we get from the group has provided the incentive to investigate other genres. I’m playing with fiction, Ruth has ventured into the realm of poetry, and Gail, humorous vignettes about life and living. Anahita is sharing poignant passages from the journal she kept while watching over her dying father. Mary has found the energy to take on a major memoir project about where she really grew up: the family cottage.

" … (our) varied styles … keep our creative energies up, fueling new ideas/stories … suggestions are fodder that provides … options and directions that we may not have thought about, whether we use them or not. The variety of styles … helps to keep the blinders off so we are free to grow, develop and express ourselves beyond our abilities." (Anahita Printer Nepton)

Email helps us extend the encouraging borders of Life Writers Ink. Between meetings fresh pieces get circulated and critiqued, ideas tossed out for input, and progress, roadblocks and angst shared. No one is allowed to go silent for too long.

There’s something extraordinary about the camaraderie of our group. The comfort level with being honest and open as well as supportive and critical is way beyond where a newly formed group might be.

"I … feel supported by the group to move forward and overcome my lethargy… our writing differences stir our creativity and make us better writers. Thanks for your encouragement with the submissions." (Ruth Zaryski Jackson)

We take courses and participate in workshops. We created this writing group and read voraciously, but ultimately we each have to spend the time writing, the best we can, alone in a room, or "… ass in chair," as Margaret Atwood says.

We laugh a lot. We work hard. We are having great fun, and we are all writing!

News: Read my interviews in "The Writers Den: Conversations on Memoir" ... and get reminiscing to enter Words Alive's Memoir Writing Contest

2009-05-10T12:27:00.011-04:00

Two bits of news ...

The Writers Den: Conversations on Memoir

I've had wonderful feedback so far on my blog's newest feature, an evolving section called "The Writers Den," which includes my interviews with a number of memoir writers (commercially published as well as self-published), and others with thoughts or advice on the genre. Read interviews with authors David Gilmour, Richard Scrimger, Howard Engel, Catherine Gildiner, Maggie de Vries, and Robert Ward, among others; literary agent Marie Campbell, author and self-publishing coach Stacey Lynn Newman, and American psychologist Dr. James Pennebaker (who studies the healing potential in writing about difficult life events); as well as thought-provoking essays by Blanche Howard and Tilya Gallay Helfield, and helpful tips on memoir writing from authors Lawrence Hill and Beth Powning ... and much more.

I'd be happy to hear your impressions of this new section, and also your input as to what other sorts of interviews you'd like to see here in future.

Words Alive Literary Festival Memoir Writing Contest 2009

The annual Words Alive Literary Festival, held in September in Sharon, Ontario, just north of Toronto, is hosting its first mid-year memoir writing contest. The deadline is June 5, 2009, and contest guidelines can be found at

Words Alive Memoir Writing Contest

(or go to www.wordsalive.ca and click on the icon for "Memoir Writing Contest")

I've been asked to join the team of judges, which includes Blanche Howard, Allison Howard, Beth Powning and Elizabeth Yeoman.

There's still time to polish up your gem of a story and submit it! Please read the guidelines carefully.

The 2009 Words Alive festival will take place September 20, so mark it on your calendar and watch the festival website for updates on the lineup of outstanding authors, poets and others who'll present there. It's a not-to-be-missed event for readers and writers of all ages!

Workshopper Beatriz Duran publishes her first editorial in the Toronto Star

2009-05-10T12:02:00.005-04:00

BEATRIZ DURAN, 34, who took part in my North York Public Library series of memoir writing workshops last spring, is pleased to announce that she has joined the Toronto Star Community Editorial Board. Beatriz hails from Merida, Mexico, and now lives in Toronto. She recently published her first guest editorial (byline Beatrice Duran), "Thousands Take That Leap of Faith," and kindly sent me the link.

Here is her message:

***

Hola Allyson,

Hope this message finds you well. I know you have a new workshop coming up. I am sure it will be a great experience for those attending, just like it was for me.

I wanted to share a piece of news ... this past fall I joined the Toronto Star Community Editorial Board. Being part of the Editorial Board has been a great experience. The best part is that anybody can apply. The Star then appoints 12 participants who serve for 1 year. I am very grateful for the opportunity.

I was invited to contribute a column on a topic of my choice, so I decided to share part of my experience living here as an immigrant.

Here's the link:

www.thestar.com/comment/article/622812

Thousands Take That Leap of Faith

I've been writing since I was 18, but it was not until now that I decided to get "serious" about it, partly because my moving here caused me to question my ability to communicate in another language.

Participating in your workshop helped me overcome that "fear" and gave me the confidence to write about my experiences. It also made me think that perhaps the best time to start writing your memoirs is the present. After all, the past is not always that far away :)

Feel free to share this on your blog, it might encourage other writers.

Warm regards,

Beatriz

***

Bernie Kuntz Self-Publishes "Limericks to Save Planet Earth"

2009-03-27T10:28:00.008-04:00

Bernie Kuntz, one of my workshop participants, shares the news that his creative poetry-for-charity project, a self-published book titled Limericks to Save Planet Earth! is now available for purchase. Bernie is a member of the WALRUS Club, a writers' group created by five enthusiastic writers who met in my June 2007 North York Central Library workshop series -- the other members are Celine Kessler, Margaret Nosworthy, Sonia Goodman and Stan Stevenson. (I was humbled to learn that the name of the club is an acronym for Writers of Allyson Latta 'R' Us.)

While most of the limericks in this 100-page paperback are based on real people, places and events in his life, a few deal with fictional "mature content," though he assures me that these are pretty mild! All profits from the sale of his books will go to three charitable organizations involved in cancer research, heart research and action against climate change.

Bernie's "appeal-ing" limerick on his book's back cover says it all:

Oh dear reader, my thanks for support!
This anthology won't be for naught...
Let us save Planet Earth,
While enjoying some mirth?
But, to happen, this book must be bought!!!

He adds: "Readers may even enjoy some of the poetry as an unexpected bonus!"

Limericks to Save Planet Earth is available for $18 a copy. To order, contact Bernie by e-mail at bernelle@sympatico.ca.

Further details and excerpts from the book can be found on Bernie's unfinished "storefront" page at www.lulu.com/berniekuntz, or click Limericks to Save Planet Earth

Workshopper Dolores Kivi's short memoir to be published

2009-02-05T07:15:00.005-05:00

Dolores Kivi of Thunder Bay, Ontario, sends exciting news that her short memoir titled "Until Death Do Us Part" (title may change) has been accepted for publication in The Globe and Mail 's "Facts and Arguments" section in time for Valentine's Day 2009. It's scheduled to appear Friday, February 13. The piece traces Dolores's relationship with her late husband, Alf, from the time of their romantic meeting during the Second World War through sixty-two years together.

Dolores is currently working on a book-length memoir about their relationship that incorporates letters she received from her husband when he was stationed overseas during part of their courtship. Dolores has participated in several of my online writing workshops.

Memoir Writing: Is It Worth the Trouble? by Sonia Goodman (Guest Blog)

2008-12-03T10:44:00.004-05:00

Last week I had the pleasure of reconnecting over tea in Toronto with five former workshop participants, Bernie, Celine, Margaret, Stan and Sonia. After attending a workshop series I led at North York Central Library in June 2007, these five eagerly banded together to form their own writers group, which they dubbed the WALRUS Club. They had got along well in my workshops and felt that by meeting regularly at one another's homes they could sustain the momentum and encourage one another to continue writing.

They kept in touch with me over the following months and I was interested in their progress. At some point I casually mentioned to Bernie that if they succeeded in keeping the WALRUS Club going for more than a year (an accomplishment, it seemed to me!), I would love to meet with them to hear about their experience in the group and give them some informal feedback on their writing projects. Bernie wasn't about to let me forget my promise -- and I'm glad of that!

Their projects turned out to be more varied than I could have imagined. Most recently, Celine has been working on a children's novella, Stan on a speech introduction, Margaret on her memoirs (she's also developing a children's picture book), Bernie on a film treatment (he's also self-publishing a book of limericks), and Sonia on the moving personal essay she's agreed to allow me to share with you below. All five say that taking the memoir workshop inspired them, though not all have continued with memoir as their chosen form. I say: writing is writing! And it fascinates me that each of these people has gravitated toward different forms of creative written expression. If it's my workshops that inspired them initially, it's their own enthusiasm and dedication to helping one another that's kept them experimenting and evolving as writers.

Sonia's piece is both memoir and a reflection on the importance of memoir, as you'll see.

Allyson

Memoir Writing: Is It Worth the Trouble?

by Sonia Goodman

In June 2007 I attended a memoir writing workshop at the North Toronto Library. This course was given by Allyson Latta. Apparently many people had telephoned in response to the advert in the paper, and as it was also advertised in "What’s On?" in the library system, we were all told that it was oversubscribed. So I was delighted, after a few weeks, to receive a phone call to tell me that I had been accepted -- and was asked if I was serious about participating. I agreed that I was, and promised to attend regularly.

I enthusiastically showed up and learned so much from the four lectures and exercises. After this, spurred on by Celine, 5 of us, from a class of about 20, decided that we wanted to continue meeting regularly, to try and encourage each other, hopefully to give and receive constructive advice, and presuming that a time frame would keep us working more diligently. Our selection method for this very elite set was a little unorthodox, but we ended up by becoming the group we wanted.

Over the last 18 months it has been so interesting to discover so much about each other, our talents, strengths and weaknesses, and to have formed this tightly-knit quintet -- caring and supportive. It has not always been easy to find a date and a satisfactory time that was mutually suitable, but we somehow muddled along and usually arrived on time, clutching our work -- straight off the press or, literally, the computer!

Over the last few months, however, possibly because my life has been so nomadic and disorganized, I have been seriously questioning whether it was really worth the trouble. No one in my family seemed especially interested in what I was doing, memoir writing, so why knock myself out doing something that was worthless?

On the 2nd of November my husband -- or more correctly my ex-husband -- Sidney, died in Johannesburg, South Africa. He had been in my life from the time I was 16 -- 62 years in fact. We were engaged when I was 18 and married when I was 19. We eventually divorced after 40 years of marriage, but remained very close as friends, parents and grandparents. The last time I spoke to him was on my birthday, 7th of July, when he phoned to give me his good wishes, and when I inquired about his health, he complained of a pain in his hip. I told him to attend to this problem and I would phone him for his birthday on the 20th of July to see how he was. Alas, that was our last conversation, as a couple of days later, he was taken into hospital after falling in the shower, and was in various other hospital systems with many challenging health problems until he died 4 months later.

My son, David, who was in Johannesburg, had the responsibility of looking after him, and he did a valiant task. Both he and Sidney agreed that during that time they were able to grow closer emotionally, so it seems as though everything, however hard, has its reason.

Obviously I was in almost daily touch with David, and when it came time for the service and prayers, David phoned me and said, "Was Dad’s mother also born in Glasgow?" -- Well, she wasn’t, she was born in Adelaide, Australia, and his father was actually born in Russia and only went to Scotland as a young boy. So I corrected these facts. Then David asked me other details -- about Sidney’s life at school, at university and then as a pilot in the Air Force -- and I was able to tell him all the information he needed as well as several anecdotes. I felt so strange that I couldn't be physically there during that time, and so I wrote my personal tribute to Sidney, and so did Anne, my daughter, and they were read out at the service by my niece. Family and friends have either written or called me to say how meaningful they were to them.

Afterwards I asked David to send me his eulogy, and also one written by his daughter, Joanna, who had gone to South Africa, from England, to support her father. When I read David’s very moving contribution, I was amazed to recognize how much of what I had told him recently was included. And I realized then, very strongly, that it was important for me to write down all this information -- as when I go, who will be able to fill in the gaps, and join the dots?

So my question was answered: it IS worth the trouble. And, our WALRUS group, we have a job to do -- and I thank you for helping me on my journey.

Scholastic's "Write It" Resources for Aspiring Writers

2008-11-20T11:39:00.004-05:00

Scholastic's "Write It" online writing resource for teachers and students in grades 9 to 12 offers a unit on memoir writing and includes several accessible, well-designed writing samples and lesson plans. Though developed for student writers, these are excellent for anyone wanting to write about life experiences:

The main site for the unit is

Write It: Memoir

Here's a clickable link to the pdf of a short memoir by Gabriel Garcia Marquez and an exercise:

"Living to Tell the Tale"

Explore the "Write It" site for other tips, writing samples and exercises on memoir.

Workshopper Adele Simmons releases 2009 photo/poetry calendar

2008-11-14T17:44:00.005-05:00

Adele Simmons sets off her poetry with vivid photos in a chapbook and striking 2009 calendar (7" x 8.5") titled Seasons of Rhyme. A special feature is her song for Earth Day, "Pennywise," complete with piano music and guitar chords. Seasons of Rhyme 2009 is available for $20. Contact Adele to order: (905) 263-4211 or AdeleCLCreative@sympatico.ca

Adele, who is also a freelance editor, announces as well the release of first-time author Erla Wilson's memoir Precious Memories, which Adele guided through the self-publishing process. The book launch took place in Whitby in early October. This memoir tells Erla's "stories of nurses' training at Oshawa General Hospital,
pioneer work with mentally handicapped children, farming, wartime, family and faith."

Natalie Goldberg - Old Friend from Far Away - Book Video

2008-10-08T16:42:00.001-04:00

Watch this inspiring excerpt from the book "Old Friend From Far Away: How to Write Memoir," by U.S. author and writing instructor Natalie Goldberg.

Video: "Not Quite What I Was Planning"

2008-09-30T16:29:00.001-04:00

"Not Quite What I Was Planning" is a book of six-word memoirs that resulted from a competition held by Smith Magazine and Twitter in 2006. Here's an entertaining video version of some of the submissions.

Workshopper Gail Rudyk to be published in Australia

2008-09-30T15:58:00.001-04:00

Congratulations to workshopper Gail Rudyk of Richmond Hill, Ontario! Two of her short memoirs have been accepted for inclusion in an Australian anthology published by Life's Inspirational Moments. The new anthology, tentatively titled Caring Moments, is a follow-up to Stolen Moments (pictured above). Set to appear in it are Gail's stories "The Red Coat" and "Unforgettable."

Here is some information from the publisher:

"Life’s Inspirational Moments focuses entirely on raising awareness of Alzheimer’s Disease and supporting those who have to live with it. One of the ways we have chosen to do this is through our collections of true-life stories. While the disease itself is heart-breaking, our aim in these books is not to focus on the sadness but on the love, humour and strength of human spirit."

For more information, visit www.lifesinspirationalmoments.com

Gail recently read a version of "The Red Coat" to the Memoir Writers Social hosted by Days Road Writers' Workshops and held in Unionville on September 17, 2008.

Fall 2008 Workshops Update

2008-09-28T09:12:00.002-04:00

My upcoming Online Advanced Memoir-Writing Workshop, which starts Monday, September 29, is now full. The eight group members hail from the Toronto area, northern Ontario, British Columbia, New York State, Arizona and New Zealand. Some are returning participants (a couple recent, others from years back), some new. I look forward to having them share their stories and their thoughts on memory and memoir.

There are spaces left in two live workshop series I'll lead this fall at Toronto Public Libraries -- Wednesdays through October at Albert Campbell District Library, and Fridays through November at the North York Central Library. These are both introductory workshops, which means that we'll go over the basics, but I also welcome participants who have done some memoir writing and are interested in group discussion, tips and writing prompts to further their efforts. These library workshops are free and you must pre-register. Note that the North York Central Library respectfully asks that individuals who have already taken one of my biannual workshop series there not register a second time. Thank you.

Memoir Workshop at Words Alive Literary Festival, September 21, 2008

2008-09-23T12:08:00.000-04:00

I had the pleasure of presenting a workshop titled "The Memoir: Moments as Inspiration" to an enthusiastic group of 24 at the day-long Words Alive Literary Festival in Sharon, Ontario on Sunday. This second-annual celebration of words was attended by about 300 people, who gathered at the historic and beautiful Sharon Temple and surrounding buildings in Sharon, Ontario, to hear author readings and enjoy workshops, storytelling, public readings, writing contests, music and art.

The day got off to a chilly autumn start, but by late morning the sun was pouring through the large windows of the former temple, and warming the treed grounds as visitors meandered among scheduled events, sharing their appreciation of reading and writing. Governor General's Literary Award winner Karolyn Smardz Frost took part, as did Giller Prize nominees Anthony De Sa and Mary Swan and more.

The festival is run entirely by founder Vali Stone and a team of tireless volunteers, so kudos to them for their hard work in bringing to York Region such a multifaceted and entertaining literary event.

I encourage you to check out Words Alive Literary Festival and to plan to attend Words Alive 2009!

If you're looking for support in your writing and a way to motivate yourself, read my piece titled "Start Your Own Writers Group" on the Words Alive site under "News."

Memoir Writers Social Raises $1,000 for Alzheimer Society of Toronto

2008-09-19T12:56:00.001-04:00

Blacksmiths Bistro was the scene of a lively party on September 17 when close to 40 people gathered for the Memoir Writers Social. The evening, as I told the audience, was to be a celebration of memory and writing -- a chance for some of my workshop students to meet (or meet again) and mingle and discuss memoir, and a fundraiser for an organization that helps those whose memories are failing, the Alzheimer Society of Toronto.

My mother has Alzheimer's, and I know that the families of several of my students have been touched by the devastating disease as well. We're far from alone. According to the Society, in 2008 in Canada, 1 in 13 individuals over age 65 has Alzheimer's or a related disease, and in individuals over age 85 the condition affects 1 in 3. Some 36 percent of Canadians know someone who has Alzheimer's. Through events like the Memoir Writers Social, funds can be raised to help those who suffer from it, and someday to find a cure.

On Wednesday the sun came out for our occasion. Some guests arrived early to enjoy a stroll along Unionville's historic and flower-bedecked Main Street. The two-storey space – "The Grey House" owned by Blacksmiths Bistro and used for special events – was warm and welcoming, as were the staff, and the hors d'oeuvres were delicious.

Attendees hailed from as far away as Dorset and Mount Forest. Some were students from my online workshops who had come to know one another through the course site and had been looking forward to meeting in person. (Good thing there were name tags, said a few!) Others were students from my live workshops. I was especially delighted to see most members of the WALRUS Club, a private memoir writing circle that developed out of one of my North York Library series and that's been meeting for over a year.

Author Kristen den Hartog was our key speaker. She charmed everyone there with her thoughtful reading and discussion about the difficult but ultimately rewarding process of writing a book based on long-ago family memories, and signed copies of The Occupied Garden (The Occupied Garden), co-written with her sister Tracy Kasaboski. McClelland & Stewart and the authors donated all proceeds from sales of the book to the Alzheimer Society. HarperCollins Canada Ltd. and Thomas Allen Publishers also kindly donated books to the event, as did authors Lawrence Hill, Blanche Howard and Allison Howard.

Gail Rudyk of Richmond Hill, one of my workshop participants, read her bittersweet story titled "The Red Coat," about her mother who lived with Alzheimer's for 15 years. (A version of Gail's story has been shortlisted for publication in an Australian anthology.) The other two readers were prize winners in my "Summer Days" Memoir Writing Contest: Mary McIntyre of Stouffville (1st prize: $75 plus a signed copy of A Memoir of Friendship: The Letters Between Carol Shields and Blanche Howard, published by Penguin Group [Canada]) and Tiina Heathcock of Dorset (2nd prize: $50). Mary, too, is a past workshop participant. (See clickable links to their stories at the top of the page.)

A few other writers displayed their work, including Stacey Lynn Newman and Robert Ward, as well as some of my students, Bernie Kuntz, Gail Rudyk and Ruth Zaryski Jackson. The evening also featured an art show and sale -- with contributions by Tilya Helfield (Polaroid transfer prints), Gail Rudyk (acrylics), Stacey Lynn Newman (photography; Stacey Newman), and Cheryl Andrews (acrylics, mosaics; FrogHairs) -- a book sale, and a raffle. Prizes in the draw ranged from movie passes to signed copies of bestsellers (Lawrence Hill's The Book of Negroes, recent winner of the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, was a coveted one) to jewellery to a gift certificate from Cosmedicare Spa worth $500.

It was a very special evening, and I'd like to thank each and every guest -- students, colleagues, friends, authors and artists (many of you are more than one of these to me!) -- for their enthusiasm and support. A heartfelt thank you also goes out to a few individuals who donated even though they knew they couldn't make it, especially workshopper John Lee of Victoria. Cheryl Andrews, this wouldn't have happened if you hadn't planted the seed in my mind and watered me regularly. Nothing I could write would convey the myriad ways in which you assisted me. Anahita Printer Nepton, your way with the art and book displays was magical. Larry Hill, I kept your note on my bulletin board and re-read it often to bolster my resolve.

The Memoir Writers Social raised a total of $1,000 for the Alzheimer Society of Toronto. The following organizations and individuals contributed gifts or their valuable time to make the evening unforgettable:

Blacksmiths Bistro
Brick Literary Journal
Cineplex Odeon at First Markham Place
Cosmedicare
FrogHairs Art Studio
HarperCollins Canada Ltd.
Holtz Spa at the Hilton Suites
McClelland & Stewart Ltd.
Muriel’s Flowers
The Paper Place
Thomas Allen Publishers
Varley Art Gallery
Writers’ Circle of Durham Region

Allison Howard, Penticton
Amy Wu, Markham
Anahita Printer Nepton, Richmond Hill
Bernie Kuntz, Toronto
Blanche Howard, Vancouver
Cathy Witlox, Ajax
Cheryl Andrews, Newmarket
Gail Rudyk, Richmond Hill
John Lee, Victoria
Kendel Lloyd, Alzheimer Society of Toronto
Kristen den Hartog, Toronto
Lawrence Hill, Burlington
Nita Pronovost, Toronto
Shirley and John Kolanchey, Edmonton
Stacey Lynn Newman, Milton
Stephen Newman, Milton (photographer)
Tilya Helfield, Toronto
Tracy Kasaboski, Deep River
Tristan Latta-Goddard, Markham

Memoir Writing Contest Winners Announced

2008-09-18T14:42:00.000-04:00

The winners of the Days Road Writers' Workshops "Summer Days" Memoir Writing Contest were announced last night, September 17, 2008, at the Memoir Writers Social in Unionville, Ontario. There were 31 submissions in all, most from Ontario, a few from other provinces, two from the U.S. and one from England.

First-prize winner Mary McIntyre of Stouffville was awarded $75 plus an author-signed copy of A Memoir of Friendship: The Letters Between Carol Shields and Blanche Howard, for her beautifully descriptive story "Scugog at Dark," a childhood memory of time at her family's cottage.

Second-prize winner Tiina Heathcock of Dorset was awarded $50 for "The Journey," a poem she wrote to come to terms with the loss of her Estonian homeland after the Russian invasion. Her mother, father and she -- only an infant at the time -- escaped, but her father died shortly after their move to Canada.

Both winners read their winning entries before an audience of about 40 people who gathered for an evening to celebrate memoir writing and to raise funds for the Alzheimer Society of Toronto. (More about the event in an upcoming post.)

A couple of judges' comments about Mary McIntyre's winning story:

"She really managed to transport me to her childhood as well as parts of my own. A very charming aspect of the story is its simplicity. It’s not a trip to Disney World or some other grand event; it’s a small, almost-everyday event, and yet it’s so special through the eyes of a child. I love the innocence of that. Some of the images/use of language that struck me as particularly wonderful"

"This story makes me feel like I am toasting marshmallows, while inhaling the smells of campfire and Muskol. It reminds me of grandparents, summertime, trips in the car away from home and the grand perceptions of small children. I found the story to be beautifully written, simple but layered and with a touch of bittersweet longing. Well done."

Honourable mentions in the memoir writing contest went to Tony Kicinski of Markham for his story "Freedom," and to Mike O'Connell of Kingston for his story "St. Lawrence River."

The prize-winning entries (1st and 2nd) will be published on this site within the next few days.

Congratulations Mary, Tiina, Tony and Mike!

Thanks go out to judges Cathy Witlox, freelance editor and U of T grammar instructor, Stacey Lynn Newman, novelist and former owner of Wingate Press, and Cheryl Andrews, adult educator, for taking the time to read and evaluate submissions.

"The Wisdom of Old Souls" book launch

2008-09-02T12:10:00.001-04:00

DRWW workshopper Ruth Zaryski Jackson sends news of two book launches for the anthology The Wisdom of Old Souls, which contains her first published memoir. The first takes place Saturday, September 20, in Kingston at Chapters on Princess Street. The second takes place September 27, in Oshawa at the Stellar Literary Festival. Click on this link for details about festival: Stellar Literary Festival

Artist Tilya Helfield's New Exhibit Raises Money for the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation

2008-08-29T16:31:00.001-04:00

Toronto artist Tilya Helfield is pleased to announce her upcoming exhibit of 46 paintings, at Royal LePage, Central Toronto Branch, 55 St. Clair Avenue West (half a block west of Yonge). The exhibit will continue from September 15 until the end of November, and will include recent oil paintings, individual and group portraits, still lifes and landscapes. Hours are Mon to Fri 9 am to 9 pm; Sat 9 am to 5 pm; Sun 11 am to 4 pm. Half of Royal LePage's percentage from sales of her paintings will go to the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, which supports shelters for women and children fleeing abuse. For more information on the exhibit, please contact Aniko Kiss, 905-339-3338, info@anikokiss.com

Please note that Tilya will exhibit some of her Polaroid transfer prints at the upcoming Memoir Writers Social, hosted by Days Road Writers' Workshops, on September 17. Click link at the top of this page for details.

Born in Ottawa, Tilya Helfield is a multi-media artist who has lived and worked in Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto. She earned her MFA from Concordia University, and completed post-graduate art courses at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Her work is included in 26 public collections, as well as numerous private collections, in Canada, the U.S. and Europe.

Pictured above is "Lakeside," Oil on Canvas, 20" x 28".

Car Pool Message Board for Memoir Writers Social, September 17

2008-08-10T18:12:00.000-04:00

If you can offer a ride to the event, or need a lift there, please click "Comment" below this post and indicate your location and any other pertinent information, including a contact e-mail address or phone number through which you can be reached to firm up a plan. Days Road Writers' Workshops will not be organizing the car pooling; this is the responsibility of individual guests. But we hope this post will help.

Car pooling is good for the environment, and can be fun as well!

Memoir Writers Social and Fundraiser to Take Place September 17, 5 p.m.

2008-08-10T17:54:00.000-04:00

Event: Memoir Writers Social and Fundraiser for the Alzheimer Society of Toronto

Host: Allyson Latta & Days Road Writers' Workshops

Date/Time: Wednesday, September 17, 2008, from 5 to 7:30 p.m.

Location: Blacksmiths Bistro, 166 Main Street (Unionville), Markham, L3R 2G6 (near Hwy. 7 & Warden Avenue)

Come on out to charming Blacksmiths Bistro to meet and mingle with other memoir writers and workshop leader Allyson Latta, and to raise funds for the Alzheimer Society of Toronto.

All proceeds above costs go to the Society, and Allyson will personally donate an additional amount equivalent to 10% of ticket sales.

Please RSVP to lattamemoirs@gmail.com by September 14, 2008 (new deadline). Cost is $30 per person. You can request in your e-mail to be billed via PayPal, or simply mail your cheque, made out to ALLYSON LATTA, to

Days Road Writers' Workshops
Memoir Writers Social and Fundraiser
12-16715 Yonge Street, Suite 207
Newmarket, ON, L3X 1X4

You're welcome to bring along friends or family, but spaces must be reserved. Arrive earlier in the afternoon to explore the shops and galleries of historic Unionville, or stroll around Toogood Pond. At the social, Kristen den Hartog, co-author of The Occupied Garden, will speak and sign copies of the family memoir she wrote with her sister, Tracy Kasaboski. Event includes hors d'oeuvres, coffee, tea, and cash bar. Enjoy an art exhibit, prize draws, speakers, music, discussion, announcement of "Summer Days" Memoir Writing Contest winners, and more.

PRIZES include a $500 gift certificate for Cosmedicare Spa, and books and other surprises thanks to HarperCollins Canada Ltd.; Thomas Allen Publishers; Varley Art Gallery; The Paper Place; Brick Literary Journal; FrogHairs Art Studio; Writers' Circle of Durham Region; authors Lawrence Hill, and Blanche and Allison Howard; and Cineplex Entertainment.

Car pooling. If you can offer a ride, or need a ride, leave a comment after the post on this blog titled "Car Pool for Memoir Writers Social."

Dinner anyone? A couple of tables will be reserved at the Bistro for anyone who wishes to stay for dinner and order from the menu. Space is limited, so let us know early!!

Between August 11 and 22, please direct any queries about the event to Cheryl Andrews at cheryl@candrewsgroup.com

Allyson Latta's Interview with David Gilmour, author of the memoir "The Film Club"

2008-07-29T21:24:00.001-04:00

You'll find the interview under "More Links" in the sidebar.

Eve Claxton's Picks for the Top 10 Memoirs and Autobiographies

2008-07-23T09:02:00.000-04:00

Eve Claxton, author of The Book of Life (Edbury Press, 2005), a collection of the best-written memoir and autobiography throughout history, shares her top 10 with Guardian.co.uk. Check these out at Top Ten Memoirs and Autobiographies.

London-born Eve Claxton studied literature at Manchester University before moving to New York in 1995. She has written for many publications in the U.S. and abroad, and is the author of The Book of Life as well as two guidebooks to New York. She lives in Brooklyn.

First Person Impressions Competitions: Deadline August 15, 2008

2008-07-18T11:50:00.000-04:00

First Person Impressions: A National competition for Memoir and Documentary Writers, Filmmakers and Photographers.

Each day countless stories unfold. Take a real life experience of your own and tell it in a way that only you can. Craft your story with words, photos or video. Make the ordinary magical, or the exotic familiar. Shock us, amaze us or make us pause to reflect. The only rule is that it’s real.

All entries must be new works that have not previously been published, exhibited or screened, including on the Internet.

Categories
Film – up to 5 minutes
Essay – 1500 words or less
Photography – up to 5 images. Single images are welcome; multiple images must be related, as in a photo essay.

Prizes
The top three winning entries in each category will be presented at the First Person Festival of Memoir and Documentary Art at the Painted Bride Art Center in Philadelphia, November 12-16, 2008.

$500 – 1st place category winners
$100 – 2nd place category winners
$50 – 3rd place category winners

The 1st place writing and photography winners will have their work published in various publications including the Philadelphia City Paper. For a complete listing of publications go to impressions.firstpersonarts.org. The top five entries in each category will be featured on firstpersonarts.org

Judges
Documentary Video
Steven Rea, Film Critic, Philadelphia Inquirer
Samuel Adams, Contributing Editor, Philadelphia City Paper
Ron Kanter, Emmy Award-winning director of New Cops, Acting Out, Life and Death – Dawson, Georgia

Photography
Katherine Ware, curator of Photography, Philadelphia Museum of Art

Short Memoir
Daniel Jones, editor of the Modern Love column in the New York Times
Laurence Kirshbaum, Founder and agent, LJK Literary, former CEO Time Warner Book Group
Amy Salit, Producer, Fresh Air, WHYY FM

Enter at impressions.firstpersonarts.org

Video: http://www.viddler.com/explore/FirstPersonArts/videos/33/

For more information, visit First Person Arts

PRISM International Creative Nonfiction Contest Deadline Announced

2008-07-17T09:11:00.000-04:00

The following is from Prism's website:

This year, all contest entries must be post dated by Tuesday September 2, 2008.

To enter, download a handy contest form, put it together with your finest Nonfiction work, and a cheque for $28 (the entry fee entitles you to a 1 year subscription to the magazine). Mail it to:

Creative Non Fiction Contest

PRISM international

Creative Writing Program, UBC
Buch. E462 - 1866 Main Mall
Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z1
Canada

For the first time, PRISM will be imposing a maximum word count of 6000 words.

Contest judge to be announced.

For further information and contest entry form, visit Prism International

Days Road Writers' Workshops site now incorporates features from former "Treasures in the Attic"

2008-07-15T13:34:00.001-04:00

As of July 2008, my previous blog, Treasures in the Attic, a forum in which workshop participants shared their memoir writing, has merged with Days Road Writers' Workshops. "Treasures" is no longer publicly accessible. Its resources, however, have been moved here.

Student writing from the former blog is in the process of being transferred here too. Some stories already appear at the bottom of this page -- see clickable links under the section title "Treasures in the Attic" -- and there are more to come! Please note that students will no longer be able to post their own memoirs as they did on "Treasures." However, if you have a story that you'd like to share with readers, e-mail it to me at lattamemoirs@gmail.com and I'll create a webpage for it. These stories can be read by anyone on the Internet, either via this site or via the individual URL attached to each. (Click on the story title and open the page to view and copy the URL.)

Thank you for your patience with these changes, which I hope will make the DRWW site even more entertaining and comprehensive for visitors.

And thanks to all the current and former workshoppers who over time contributed their wonderful life stories to Treasures in the Attic.

Glimmer Train Stories journal seeking submissions for "Family Matters"

2008-07-11T10:23:00.000-04:00

Glimmer Train Press, Inc., of Portland, Oregon, publishes a quarterly journal of literary fiction, Glimmer Train Stories. One of the categories is "Family Matters," and competitions for prizes and publication are held each year in January, April, July and October. Here's some information on the current competition:

"The July Family Matters competition closes July 31. We're looking for original, unpublished stories on family, word count range: 500 – 12,000. First-place wins $1,200 and publication in Issue 72 of Glimmer Train Stories. Second- and third-place winners win $500/$300 (or, if chosen for publication, $700)."

Of interest to memoirists, according to the Glimmer Train website, "This category has stimulated lots of questions about fiction/non-fiction/creative non-fiction, since many people have significant real-life stories they want to write. It seems to us that a substantial proportion of fiction submissions are heavily rooted in actual experience, which is entirely fine with us, but we do want stories to READ like fiction and anything we publish is presented as fiction. (Also, sticking too tightly to "truth" can limit the larger truth that fiction is able to reveal.) I would certainly recommend changing details that would allow the real-life people to say, Hey, that character is--without a doubt--me."

The press's main page is Glimmer Train Press, Inc.. Click on this link for general submission guidelines, Submissions, and this one for specifics on Family Matters submissions, Family Matters

Note: The Press also produces Writers Ask, a journal of advice from published writers.

Memoirist David Sedaris to sign at Toronto's Ben McNally Books, July 11

2008-07-02T18:55:00.000-04:00

One of my favourite memoirists, David Sedaris, a man with an unerring talent for seeing the wacky humour in his own experiences and letting his readers in on it, will make a stop in Toronto this month to sign copies of his latest book. The following is from the Harbourfront Centre International Readings newsletter:

David Sedaris, When You Are Engulfed in Flames
Presented in partnership with Ben McNally Books and H.B. Fenn & Company

David Sedaris is the #1 bestselling author of Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, Me Talk Pretty One Day, Naked, Holidays on Ice and Barrel Fever. "David Sedaris's ability to transform the mortification of everyday life into wildly entertaining art," (Christian Science Monitor) is elevated to wilder and more entertaining heights than ever in this remarkable new book. When You Are Engulfed in Flames is Sedaris's sixth essay collection.

Sedaris signs copies of When You Are Engulfed in Flames at Ben McNally Books, 366 Bay Street, Toronto, Ontario, on Friday, July 11 at 8 p.m.

The Scribes of Uxbridge publish "In Lucy Maud's Style"

2008-06-23T19:57:00.000-04:00

The Scribes of Uxbridge, a memoir writing group, has published a small chapbook titled In Lucy Maud's Style. The collected stories were written in the style of author L.M. Montgomery, who lived in the nearby hamlet of Leaskdale from 1911 to 1926, to commemorate Uxbridge's "100 Years of Anne." It was 100 years ago that Montgomery published Anne of Green Gables. Montgomery, who was born in P.E.I., wrote 11 of her 22 books while living in Leaskdale Manse. She moved in 1926 to Norval, where she lived for nine years before moving finally to Toronto. She died there in 1942.

In Lucy Maud's Style contains fourteen original stories, one of them by 90-year-old Scribes member Marion Owen. The Scribes (formerly called the Senior Scribes) was formed in 1989 by students who had taken a creative writing course at Trent University and felt inspired to continue meeting. With occasional changes in membership, they have been getting together to write twice a month ever since.

Heather Beveridge, a member of the Scribes, participated in more than one of my online workshops and invited me to speak to her group about memoir writing.

Ruth Zaryski Jackson's memoir appears in anthology "The Wisdom of Old Souls"

2008-06-23T17:17:00.000-04:00

Ruth Zaryski Jackson is pleased to announce that her short memoir "Room in My Heart," about the woman Sadie who was like a grandmother to her, will appear in the anthology The Wisdom of Old Souls , published by Hidden Brook Press. Ruth is thrilled that the photo of herself with Sadie has been chosen to grace the book's cover (see above).

"Room in My Heart" is based on the first assignment Ruth wrote for one of my online workshops. She had to edit it to meet the word count required for the anthology. To her fellow workshoppers, Ruth says, "Thanks to each and every one of you for all your encouragement and support. It means everything."

If you would like to purchase a copy of this anthology through Ruth, the discounted price is $15 (including shipping). To order, contact her at RZaryskiJackson@gmail.com

Soul-Making Literary Competition 2008

2008-06-19T09:50:00.000-04:00

Visit Soul-Making Literary Competition for further details on this contest sponsored by an extended community arts outreach program of the National League of American Pen Women, Nob Hill, San Francisco Bay Area Branch.

Deadline is November 30, 2008. Note that international writers are welcome to submit. There's a US$5 entry fee, which must be sent via traveler's cheque drawn on a U.S. bank.

Here's what they are looking for in the memoir category:

LINDA JOY MYERS MEMOIR PRIZE
Sponsored/Judged by Linda Joy Myers

One memoir per entry, up to 3,000 words. Judge's Comments: A memoir is a story that draws upon memory. Its plot, dialogue, scenes, and narration immerse me into the places, times, and characters of the story. It is not analysis or a list of things that simply happened. Meaning and an epiphany are part of a well-written memoir story, the "Soul-making " moment when everything changed. I want to be drawn into the new world of the story, eager to find out why I am reading it. Write the stories from your heart, write your memories and bring them alive. I look forward to reading your work.

Joan Sinclair publishes "Lieber Walter, Deine Margret" (Dear Walter, Love Margret)

2008-06-04T18:37:00.000-04:00

Joan Sinclair, who attended one of my workshops at Varley Art Gallery, sends news that in late June she will launch her self-published epistolary memoir based on letters between her German mother, Margret Cohen-Tuteur, and Margret’s young beau from 1935 to 1940, Walter Roos. The Second World War separated Margret and Walter, and eventually each of them married another and had a family. Many years and thousands of miles later, they were reunited in Canada, widow and widower, during the final years of Margret's life. Walter, who had kept her letters, painstakingly translated each of them from German into English for this touching tribute, which is written by Joan and includes other writing by Margret. Lieber Walter, Deine Margret (Dear Walter, Love Margret) has been published for family and friends and, according to Joan, "for anyone who needs to be reminded that true love never dies and for those who enjoy a love story with a very happy ending." Joan Sinclair is a family mediator and counsellor.

Gail Rudyk to Host Summer Memoir Writers Club

2008-06-02T21:08:00.000-04:00

Gail Rudyk, a regular participant in my online workshops over the past few years who has self-published (some of!) her memoirs, is looking for interested individuals to join a weekly summer memoir writers club, starting June 25th, near Balm Beach on Georgian Bay. Details appeared recently in the Midland Free Press:

Memoir Writers Club

Gail Rudyk, a self-published memoir writer, is offering a free, weekly, informal get-together for aspiring memoir writers. They will meet at her cottage, near Tiny Beaches Road and Concession 13, every Wednesday morning from 10AM till noon, starting June 25th.

***

Do you want to share your stories with your children and grandchildren? Some people feel that if they haven’t survived a tsunami or some such tragedy, they shouldn’t be writing a memoir, but the truth is, everyone has a story to tell. You don’t want to leave your loved ones with unanswered questions. I wish I had asked my father about his childhood but it’s too late now. As I read somewhere this week, “When you’re gone, the library is closed.”

This is an opportunity to discover how to get started writing or to share some of your stories.

For more information e-mail me at Gail.rudyk@sympatico.ca or call on weekends 705-533-3852, and weekdays 905-881-0771.

Words Alive Literary Festival Short Story Competition

2008-05-27T09:35:00.000-04:00

Here's the Call for Submissions for the Words Alive Literary Festival's upcoming writing contest. Founder and chair Vali Stone says that fiction based on memoir will be accepted. The festival takes place September 21, 2008, in Sharon, Ontario. I will lead a workshop from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., "Banish Those Excuses: Why You Can (and Should) Write Memoir."

Check out www.wordsalive.ca. If you have further questions, please contact vstone@wordsalive.ca.

Call for Submissions: Words Alive Literary Festival Second Annual Short Story Competition

ADULT SUBMISSIONS (ages 17 and over)

Contest Rules:

1. Entrants must be commercially unpublished writers.
2. Entries must be original, unpublished, non-contracted works of fiction.
3. Length of entry must not exceed 2000 words (including a, an, the, etc.) Only one entry per person.
4. Entries are confidential and non-returnable.
5. All work submitted remain the property of their authors.

Submissions:

1. Work must be uploaded to the website at www.wordsalive.ca under Contests and correct age category or mailed to the address on the website.
2. The title of the story must be typed at the top of the first page along with your name, address, phone number and “Adult Submission” – otherwise your entry is disqualified.
3. Be sure of your word count! Type the word count under your title.
4. Every entry will be read by judges. Judges’ decisions are final.
5. DEADLINE: August 15th, 2008.
6. Top three winners will be notified by phone by September 15th, 2008.
7. Prize winners will be announced at the Words Alive Literary Festival on Sunday, September 21st, 2008 in the Sharon Temple.

Bernie Kuntz to Launch "Limericks to Save Planet Earth" in Fall 2008

2008-05-23T16:42:00.000-04:00

Workshop participant Bernie Kuntz shares the news that his creative poetry-for-charity project, a self-published book titled Limericks to Save Planet Earth, is written, and production is well underway. Limericks will be available for purchase in Fall 2008. Bernie is also a member of the WALRUS Club, a writing group that he and several other enthusiastic writers -- Celine Kessler, Margaret Nosworthy, Sonia Goodman and Stan Stevenson -- created after meeting in my June 2007 North York Central Library workshop series.

Here's the preface to his book, along with his bio.

Preface

This book is an endeavour to support three worthy charitable organizations involved in cancer, heart and climate change. None of these organizations were involved in, or have in any way endorsed, the contents of this book.

I plan to donate one-third of the profits from the sale of this book to each of the organizations. Regarding the first two causes, I have lost family and friends who have succumbed to cancer and heart related problems at too young an age.

As for the third cause, before the environmental issue caught on in a big way with the public, business community, politicians and media in 2006, I was involved in several initiatives to try and spread awareness and support action against global warming and climate change. Much of this work was done with the help of a friend, Prodyot (PK) Lala.

Hopefully, most readers will find that by buying this book they will share the same good feelings that I experienced, knowing that they have supported one or more causes they can identify with through their life experiences.

***

Readers may even enjoy some of the poetry as an unexpected bonus!!!

While many of the limericks are based on real people, places and events, names have been changed to preserve anonymity.

***

WARNINGS:

Please don’t operate heavy machinery for at least 4 hours after reading any limericks…!

While most of the poems are about nature, people, etc. a few actually deal with "mature content"!!! (Readers who shun the traditional “naughty” genre of limericks should refrain from reading the chapter titled “Mature” in Part 1.)

Bernie Kuntz

About the Author/Poet

Bernie Kuntz grew up in South Africa where he qualified as a Chemical Engineer. He then worked for many years in a variety of industries in South Africa and England. He later qualified as a Chartered Accountant in South Africa – and Canada, after his emigration there.

He has held management positions in industry, public accounting, the public sector and consulting. He has also been active in volunteer activities.

His interests include, but are not limited to, activities involving words and creativity, e.g. reading, writing, theatre, music, poetry, puns, Scrabble, cryptic crossword puzzles, inventions and the like.

He maintains that his time spent in England and the special attributes of his two professions helped to provide the interest and structure required to write limericks! That may be a stretch…

Bernie is married and lives in Toronto, along with his two married children and three grandchildren.

Call for Submissions: 2008 Lake Country Literary Lapses

2008-05-13T09:32:00.000-04:00

This just in ...

Attention Writers!

2008 Call for Submissions

Lake Country Literary Lapses

The Mariposa Writers’ Group is seeking submissions for its annual Lake Country Poetry and Short Story Competitions (for commercially unpublished writers) to be held in conjunction with the 2008 Lake Country Literary Lapses Festival.

This year’s Festival (the fourth annual) will take place on Friday August 15 on the grounds of the Leacock Home and Museum, in Orillia. A variety of events (workshop, readings etc.) will take place throughout the day and the Manticore Book Awards (and cash prizes) for the competitive Short Story and Poetry submissions will be presented at an evening Gala.

We are interested in works, real or fictional, which evoke emotion and/or comment in some way on the human condition. We are also accepting submissions for our (non competitive - no fee) “Summer Readers” feature as well.

For full entry guidelines (Poetry, Short Story or Summer Reader), please contact

Heather Gosein at heather_gosein@hotmail.com or call 705- 484-5644

John Forrest at johnforrest@rogers.com 705 -325 - 9403

Randy Pausch Lecture: Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

2008-04-28T09:54:00.001-04:00

This inspirational -- and entertaining -- lecture by Carnegie Mellon University professor Randy Pausch, who has pancreatic cancer, was presented in September 2007. "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," which has since been viewed by millions of people on YouTube, is part of a lecture series titled "Journeys," in which professors share thoughts on their lives. The lecture is about 76.5 minutes long, and well worth watching.

About Writing, by Dolores Kivi

2008-04-25T14:06:00.001-04:00

Thunder Bay freelance writer Dolores Kivi publishes a weekly column in the Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal for COPA (Council on Positive Aging). In her latest, she shares her thoughts on writing.

*****

About Writing

by Dolores Kivi
When it comes to writing, I've done some things right and a lot wrong. I learned to read early and was reading everything accessible including adult magazine stories by the time I was nine years old. I understood some of them. About the same time, I started writing poetry. Today I defend my verses, pointing out that they all rhyme.

I have written little verse as an adult, but I kept those from my youth. Some years back I discovered a few old prose pieces. At age 15 I had entered a national essay contest on Winston Churchill and placed among the 10 honourable mentions. That achievement was balanced by a flippant treatment on Gasoline Rationing which earned me my only failing English mark.

I get questions about writing, mostly commonly how long it takes to write this column. Answer: It varies. My shortest time for writing and editing one is rarely) two hours, but even a extensively researched piece usually requires fewer than 10 hours. Median is five to six. I try to arrange matters so that a later draft rests overnight or at least a couple of hours. Finally, I read the column aloud. Many talented journalists produce publishable copy with their first draft, but mine are wordy and I need to rewrite several times.

Also, I'm asked how to become a writer -- even a modest writer. I'm tempted to inquire if my questioner likes to read. That doesn't mean that all book lovers can be writers, but the converse is true -- most writers read extensively. One must want to write even if it does not provide a livelihood. Volunteering to contribute to community newsletters may result in being published earlier -- or oftener. True, some writers are born more gifted, but writing is also a craft. Learned techniques must be practised. Writers must write, whether for pay or just for the joy of putting pen to paper -- or fingers to keyboard.

Crafts require tools. Yesterday's typewriter is now a computer and laser printer. A large dictionary is a must. Aim to wear it out. Also, on my essential list are Strunk and White's The Elements of Style and a basic grammar book. When your budget permits, keep investing in other books and magazines. For advice, ask a librarian or a writer.

Public libraries are invaluable. Utilizing them has been one of the smart things I've done. When I found myself repeatedly borrowing a book, I'd buy it. Both The Canadian Writer's Guide and The Writer's Handbook are filled with short, focused articles on the art, craft and business of writing. The Writer and Writer's Digest are found on the magazine racks of even many small libraries.

Courses are available online and in classrooms. Check them out before investing big money. You can't go wrong with Thunder Bay's Sleeping Giant Writer's Festival sponsored by Northwestern Ontario Writer's Workshop. Adjusted fees make it possible for members or non-members to take in only one session or the entire festival.

Wise advice I didn't follow, until recently, was to write a minimum of 15 to 30 minutes daily -- at least five times weekly. A year's output can surprise you. Perfectionism and procrastination can be enemies of the aspiring writer, while perseverance and productivity bring their own rewards. Even a well-crafted letter can be a joy both to write and to receive. I should know. I married a man who repeatedly told me how much he loved my letters.

***

Dolores Kivi is currently writing an epistolary memoir based on letters she and her husband exchanged throughout their years together. She has participated in several Days Road Writers' online workshops.

Jane Boruszewski's Writing News / Oasis Journal Submission Guidelines

2008-04-23T16:49:00.001-04:00

Past workshop participant Jane Boruszewski, who lives in New York State, passes on the news that she has finished writing and is seeking a publisher for her memoir-based children's novel Escape from Russia, based on her family's harrowing but inspirational experiences when they were exiled from Poland to Russia during the Second World War. Jane's writing has also appeared in Oasis Journal, an annual anthology published by Imago Press of Tucson, Arizona.

Oasis Journal accepts submissions from writers 50 years of age and older, including Canadian citizens. Following are their guidelines (references are to U.S. dollars). If you have further questions or would like to receive an Oasis Journal submission form, please contact Leila Joiner at ljoiner@dakotacom.net or phone 520-327-0540.

OASIS JOURNAL 2008
Submission Guidelines

1) The OASIS Journal is an annual anthology dedicated to older writers. Anyone 50 years of age or older is eligible. New writers are especially encouraged to submit their best material.

2) All submissions selected for publication in OASIS Journal 2008 are automatically entered in our contest for Best Poetry, Best Fiction, and Best Non-Fiction. The winner in each category will receive a prize of $100 and special mention in OASIS Journal 2008. Please read the judges’ bios, which you will find on the next page, along with answers to some of your Frequently Asked Questions. This is a blind contest; all author indentification is removed from the judges’ copies.

3) We accept submissions in poetry, personal essay or memoir, creative nonfiction, and short story. Prose submissions may be 5000 words or less. Three pages of poetry (or 3 single-page poems) counts as one submission.

4) Manuscript Preparation: Prose: Your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address (if applicable) should appear at the top left-hand corner of your title page. Please include approximate word count and indicate if it is a fiction or non-fiction submission. Your name, title of submission, and page number should appear on the upper right-hand corner of every page following the title page. All submissions must be typed. Prose should be double-spaced. Poetry: Poetry may be single-spaced. You may list your name, address, etc. on a separate cover page, but please include your name on each page of poetry.

5) You may submit as many manuscripts as you wish. A $10.00 reader’s fee must accompany each submission. Make check payable to Imago Press.

6) If you have an original photograph or original artwork that has not been published elsewhere and you think it would enhance your text submission, please enclose a photocopy. The original must be available if chosen for publication. If it is someone else’s original photography or artwork, you must have written permission from the artist to use it.

7) Do not submit manuscripts that have been published elsewhere in magazines or books with a circulation over 500.

8) No manuscripts will be returned. All will be recycled, so don’t send us your only copy. Please do not use staples. Paper clips are okay.

9) Everyone who sends in a submission will receive one complimentary copy of OASIS Journal 2008.

10) Make sure to include a #10 self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) if you want to receive written notification of whether or not your manuscript has been selected for publication. If you send multiple submissions, please send only one (1) SASE. Final selection will not be made until after close of submissions, so don’t expect to be notified before late August 2008. Contest winners will be notified mid-September.

11) Submissions will be accepted May 1, 2008 through July 31, 2008 (postmark). Publication date is November 2008.

12) To purchase a copy of last year’s OASIS Journal 2007, send $13.00 plus $3.00 S&H to Imago Press, 3710 East Edison, Tucson AZ 85716. Make check payable to Imago Press. (Arizona residents add $1.05 sales tax.)

Thanks, Jane, for sharing this information.

Gail Rudyk Shortlisted for Australian Anthology

2008-04-18T07:45:00.000-04:00

Returning workshop participant Gail Rudyk shares the exciting news that her story "Unforgettable" has been shortlisted for the Australian anthology Stolen Moments II (working title, and a follow-up to Stolen Moments), published by Life's Inspirational Moments. Congratulations, Gail, and best of luck in the next round!

Leacock Memorial Medal Winner Will Ferguson to Read at Toronto Reference Library April 10

2008-03-30T13:51:00.000-04:00

Past workshop participant Vivian Carter passes on the news that her brother, Canadian author and memoirist Will Ferguson, will do a reading from his novel Spanish Fly at the Toronto Reference Library, Beeton Auditorium, April 10, 7 p.m.

Spanish Fly was recently nominated for the 2008 Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour. Will Ferguson has won the Stephen Leacock medal twice before, for Happiness and Beauty Tips from Moose Jaw: Travels in Search of Canada. Will's memoirs include I Was a Teenage Katima-Victim: A Canadian Odyssey, and Hitching Rides with Buddha: A Journey Across Japan.

Drop in to his site: www.willferguson.ca

Gail Rudyk's Self-Published Memoir: "The Perils of Miss Pepper"

2008-03-27T20:10:00.000-04:00

Click on image to enlarge.

Here's the whimsical cover of workshop participant Gail Rudyk's self-published memoir, "The Perils of Miss Pepper." The cover and inside illustrations are by Pat Wheeler. An interview with Gail on her self-publishing experience is part of the online introductory course. Gail, who is also an artist, is now at work on a second volume of her memoirs.

Guildford Book Festival Award-Winning Story by Chris Hazelgrove

2008-03-27T17:03:00.000-04:00

Former online workshop participant Chris Hazelgrove, of England, won the 2007 Guildford Book Festival Short Story Competition for "End of Summer," which was fiction based on memoir. Congratulations, Chris! Chris had previously made the top ten in the 2006 Writers' Circle of Durham Region 24-Hour Writing Contest. To read "End of Summer" online, click under "Links" in the sidebar.

A note from Chris:

Yes -- 'tis part of the Guildford Book Festival, various components of which are sponsored by BBC (Southern Radio) or other august bodies. The writing 'stars' of their firmament are considerable, so I feel particularly buoyant about this. And haven't they presented the story beautifully, with that picture of a lone child on the beach?

It HAS taken me about five years so far learning the craft of writing through courses, books and application, but once the nuts and bolts are learned I found I became far more fluent and found it more gratifying. My debt to you is enormous; thank you SO much for the encouragement you gave me.

There are loads of contests about, but I suspect many organisations are just in it for the entry fee and then choose a friend as winner -- in fact met someone who runs just such a website! DO encourage your wonderful group to go for the Big Ones! What is there to lose -- and you might just be what they are looking for.

Chris

Flyer for Spring Memoir Writing Series at Angus Glen Library

2008-03-27T10:50:00.000-04:00

Click on image to enlarge.

Kory Shillam Publishes "Under the Lilacs"

2008-03-17T09:43:00.000-04:00

Two-time former online course participant Kory Shillam, 90, has self-published a children's novel based on some of her memoirs (see cover above).

Says Kory: "Under the Lilacs began as a story for young people, but by the time it was finished I discovered that people of all ages enjoyed its humour and pathos. The book, which was originally written as two novellas, is presented in two parts beginning in 1929 and ending in 1932.

The story is about Milly and her little brother, Freddie, who live with their mother in Kitsilano, a portion of Vancouver. Milly is desperate to find her father whom she has never seen. Her life becomes even more complicated when the man in the felt hat moves into the house next door. The two story parts take Milly from age thirteen to sixteen."

My recent interview with Kory on her self-publishing experience is part of my advanced online workshop.

To purchase a copy of Under the Lilacs ($21.95) from the author, please contact her at the following email address:

underthelilacs@shaw.ca

Stories by Tilya Gallay Helfield and Jane Boruszewski Published Online

2008-03-17T09:18:00.000-04:00

Poignant wartime stories by workshop participants Tilya Gallay Helfield, and Jane Boruszewski of New York, have been published on the website for Kristen den Hartog and Tracy Kasaboski's memoir The Occupied Garden. See under Links.

DRW Workshop Participant Ruth Zaryski Jackson to be Published in Anthology

2008-03-17T08:29:00.000-04:00

Congratulations to workshop participant Ruth Zaryski Jackson, whose short memoir about Sadie, the grandmother figure in her life, has been accepted for inclusion in the Grandmothers anthology being published by Hidden Brook Press, and who recently shared with me that her evocative photo (above) will grace the book's cover.

"Why I Write Memoir," by Allyson Latta (Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre newsletter)

2008-03-08T17:35:00.000-05:00

Check out the February 2008 issue of the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre newsletter for my short essay on writing memoir:

http://www.jccc.on.ca/news/Feb08/Web%20Feb08%20Newsletter.pdf

or click under Links in the sidebar.

Call for Stories of Wartime Memories, from Kristen den Hartog and Tracy Kasaboski

2008-01-30T09:54:00.000-05:00

The following is from author Kristen den Hartog, co-author of The Occupied Garden, which I recently edited.

***

As you know, The Occupied Garden, the book my sister Tracy Kasaboski and I have written, is due out in March, and we are very excited about its release. Early in March, we'll be launching a website, and one of the components will be a page on which people share their own family stories about the war, along with images they have from that time. We hope to hear lots of stories from a variety of perspectives, but would like also to start with some when the website is launched, which is why I'm contacting you. If you have an anecdote or a longer tale you would like to share, either anonymously or with your name attached, please write it down and send it to me. If the story is fuzzy or full of gaps and questions, that's okay too -- memories and passed-down stories are often that way. An accompanying photograph is not essential, but of course would be appreciated. Our site will have lots of our own family photographs, as well as wartime photos we've found in archives etc.

If you know of someone who might like to contribute, please feel free to forward this email.

Many thanks. I look forward to hearing your stories!

Kristen den Hartog

kcdh@magma.ca

Allyson Latta presents "Get It Published," Jan 31, 2008

2008-01-22T16:41:00.000-05:00

Allyson Latta of Days Road Writers' Workshops will make a one-hour presentation, "Get It Published," at the Jess Hann Branch of the Oshawa Public Library, Thurs, Jan 31, at 2 p.m. The library is located at 8-199 Wentworth Street W., Oshawa, ON, L1J 6P4. Admission is free.

For information, contact Joseph Sansalone, Branch Supervisor, 905-728-2441 ext. 5862, or jsansalone@oshawalibrary.on.ca

Still Life with Laughs: An Interview with Richard Scrimger

2008-01-09T13:02:00.000-05:00

To check out my interview with author Richard Scrimger, including tips for writers, click on "Still Life with Laughs" under Links. Allyson Latta

Workshop at Varley Art Gallery, Unionville, February 7, 2008

2007-12-21T15:42:00.001-05:00

Click on image to enlarge. Registration fee includes admission to gallery and light lunch.

Expert helps you put your life on paper

2007-10-14T11:00:00.001-04:00

Click on image to enlarge. This story appeared in the Markham Economist & Sun and the Richmond Hill Liberal, October 11, 2007.

A Memoir of Friendship: The Letters Between Carol Shields and Blanche Howard, eds. Blanche Howard and Allison Howard, which is mentioned in the piece, was published in April 2007 by Penguin Group (Canada). For more information, click on the link below.