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The inspiration(s) behind Dark Mode
I started writing Dark Mode in July 2019 while on residency at Varuna, the National Writer’s House. I remember opening a blank Word doc and thinking, okay, now it’s time to start a whole new book. My first book, My Name Is Revenge, had come out in April that year. I’d also just received a…
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Artist statement – on becoming a crime writer
My first publication happened when I was seven, in the Young Saskatchewan Writers school district anthology. In my copy, a message from my grade one teacher reads, ‘Keep writing stories.’ In 2017, I was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, and ended up mostly homebound and unable to participate meaningfully in my own life. I was…
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New Year’s Resolutions for 2023
Looking over the past few years, my relationship with resolutions has been complex. In 2019 I made an intentionally ludicrous list. In 2020, I tried for sincere resolutions, and then the pandemic happened. In 2021 I refused to make plans or goals, and 2022 wasn’t much different. I must be feeling optimistic again, because I’ve…
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Ep 63 How not to write a memoir with author Bronwyn Birdsall
After contracting glandular fever as a child (aka mono), Bronwyn Birdsall ended up with such bad chronic fatigue, she missed six months of school. This was at a time when there was still significant stigma surrounding the illness. Bronwyn grew up in Sydney. At age 24, she moved to Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and worked…
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And the 2021 Penguin Literary Prize goes to …
Huge congratulations are due to my podcast co-host, writers’ group member and fellow health-challenged friend, James McKenzie Watson, who has won the won the 2021 Penguin Literary Prize for his manuscript Denizen. Launched in 2017, the Penguin Literary Prize was established to find, nurture and develop new Australian authors of literary fiction. I’ve read a…
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New Year’s resolutions for 2021
If 2020 taught us anything, it’s that there’s no point making plans. I planned all kinds of things last year, including that I would be in Canada over this holiday season to finally visit my family after four years of CFS making the journey impossible. Instead I’ve spent three damp and soggy holiday weeks in…
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Podcast: James and Ashley Stay at Home
Listen on Apple podcasts | Spotify | Stitcheror your favourite podcast app James and Ashley are staying at home. Partly because there’s a pandemic, partly because they’re writers, and partly because of their health. Through discussions and interviews with other writers and creatives, they’ll explore how staying at home has its benefits.James and Ashley Stay at…
Ashley Kalagian Blunt 