I woke up yesterday to find this picture on Facebook, posted by a classmate from the MFA. My first review! The reviewer refers to The Best Place on Earth as a notable debut this season, along with two buzzing novels: Taiye Selasi’s Ghana Must Go and The Lion Seeker by Kenneth Bonert. Great company! Here is a quote, “Issues of assimilation and belonging are a theme in contemporary literature, but they are approached here in specific ways that both trouble the underlying cultural conversations and tell moving stories.” Then I also received simultaneous messages (literally, at the same minute) from another classmate who works at Book City in Toronto and my in-laws…
The Book Lover’s Ball
I suck. I went to the Book Lover’s Ball and took no photos. I was so dazzled by the glamorous ball gowns, the snazzy VIP lounge (which Tanis Rideout and I snuck into), the dancers on stage in their flimsy outfits, and my awesome table of Toronto Public Library’s employees, that I forgot to take photos. To remedy my mistake, here’s a link to a blog post by Not My Typewriter (who is clearly a better blogger than I am) with some photos, and another link to Open Book Toronto, with some red carpet photos. What else can I tell…
The Best Place on Earth Book Trailer!
Directed, shot and edited by Elsin Davidi Narration: Gil Dattner Sound: Omer Most Music: Eldad Tsabary
On Book Trailers, Tel Aviv, and My Friend Elsin
While I was in Israel this fall, my friend Elsin Davidi and I started working on a book trailer for The Best Place on Earth. Book trailers have become more popular in recent years, probably due to our obsession with visual stimulation and our love of sharing kitten videos on social networks. Elsin and I watched many book trailers in preparation: they varied in style, tone, length and quality. Some commercial works of fiction have book trailers that resemble Hollywood movie previews: short and sleek, always with a man’s voice ominously reading abstract phrases and words like REVENGE, LOVE and…
Story Published in Prairie Fire
Prairie Fire! I’m in it! My story, ‘The Poets in the Kitchen Window’ (from my upcoming collection, The Best Place on Earth), takes place in Ramat Gan during the 91’ Gulf War, when Israel was under missile attack. I was seventeen back then, in my last year of high school. It was a scary and interesting and surreal time. There are other good reasons to read this issue: my good friend Nancy Jo Cullen, winner of awards and writer of fine poetry and prose, whose book of short stories, The Canary (Biblioasis), is coming out this spring, has one…
Advance Reading Copy
I came home from the AGO and there it was, in my mailbox, looking innocent, like a regular piece of mail. My advance reading copy!!! It hasn’t left my side since. I know it’s “just” an advance reading copy, and it still has some errors in it, and the pages are thin and the cover is soft, but it looks like the real thing and I am in love. That’s all.
On Being Interviewed
I was interviewed several times these past few months. It’s been an interesting experience, being on the other end of the recording device. Especially since for many years I was the one asking the questions. I started writing for magazines when I was fifteen (which probably had something to do with my poor performance and attendance in school) and continued after my army service. As a teenager, it gave me confidence and direction. It also enriched my life, allowing me to attend events and festivals I could have never afford financially. I was once sent to write about a diving…
The Next Big Thing
I’ve been tagged by the illustrious Terri Favro, author of the recently released The Proxy Bride, in The Next Big Thing, a virtual game of literary blog tag. In The Next Big Thing writers answer ten questions about their work-in-progress, and then link their post to five other writers who then tag five more writers (each!) This never-ending chain of literary awesomeness gives writers an opportunity to discuss their upcoming projects and be exposed to new readers. It also gives readers a glimpse into writers’ process while introducing them to new writers. In other words: everyone wins! Thank you, Terri,…
All about the Food (Oh, and the Cover!)
I know, I know. I’m a bad, rotten blogger. Of course, I have plenty of excuses. I’ve been in Israel since September, researching, travelling, swimming, enjoying family and friends and the ridiculously long holiday season that seems to never end. I’ve also been planning my book trailer with my good friend and videographer extraordinaire Elsin Davidi, working on my copyedits (!) and taking photos like crazy. Oh, and eating. Did I mention eating? Okay, maybe I’ve been mostly eating (it’s a good thing it’s still hot here so I can wear summer dresses all day long and not worry about…
Two Upcoming Workshops (also: Two Upcoming Publications!)
I teaching two writing workshops this winter. The first one, Creative Writing through Reading, is a part of the University of Guelph‘s brand new Creative Writing Certificate, in which I am extremely honoured to be teaching. It actually takes place in the gorgeous Guelph campus (Greyhound, here I come!) The second one is Introduction to Creative Non-Fiction, which I will be teaching at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Education. I had so much fun teaching it this summer so I’m looking forward to doing it again. I updated my Workshops and Manuscript Consultation page so you can read more about these exciting opportunities. Hope…