Growing up, I never imagined myself as a writer, but I’ve had a life-long love affair with crafts, particularly appliqué. It started when I was seven years old. My aunt, Kathy, gave me this small wall hanging that she had made with scraps of material and bits of embroidery floss. I’ve always cherished that little cloth picture. Something about its colours and its simplicity, is just so beautiful. And it has emotion. It’s a little work of art.

Its 7:30 AM, and still dark out. The dogs mill around, looking out the front window as if they, too, are wondering if they want to go for a walk. It’s the eighth day of temperatures in the -20’s, and I certainly don’t.

“I’m sorry to inform you that your husband has been shot and killed.” Words no wife should ever have to hear. Worse yet when the murder was the random result of a case of mistaken identity. Wrong spot, wrong time – gunned down for driving a vehicle similar to one owned by a gangster being hunted by an opposing gang.

We’d just bought a cabin on a small island off the west coast of Vancouver, British Columbia, and it had a dock.

The contract concerning the dock had this line: “Section 6.1c, Moorage Law Covenants: You must provide without compensation temporary accommodation to any vessel that is disabled or that seeks shelter in weather conditions that would render it unseaworthy.”

Want to win The Great Canadian Bucket List AND one of the expansions? Vote for the activity that would be highest on your Great Canadian Bucket List and you're entered for a chance to win 2 bucket list books! Increase your chances by doing additional options like spreading the word or tweeting us!
Contest open March 1, 2016 - March 7, 2016

When we refer to the Canadian Arctic, we’re talking about a space so vast, so wild, and so undeveloped, you may as well be trekking into the cosmos.   Case in point:  Nunavut alone is bigger than the three largest continental US states – California, Texas and Montana – combined! 

Laura H. takes over the blog today to talk about editing Stealing Time by Anne Dublin!

Laura H:

Whenever I begin a new project with an author, I take time to do some preliminary research on the topic — whether it’s social history, hard-boiled detective stories, or YA (Young Adult) fiction — in order to get a “feel” for my subject matter.