A writer is someone who uses written words to communicate ideas.
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Writer
Issue: 2019-09-25, PHOTO: Pixabay
Another opening, et cetera
Six hours after I email this column to Danny Macdonald, and long before you read it in What’s Up Yukon, these words by Cole Porter from the 1948 Broadway smash, Kiss Me, Kate, will be part of my remembered experience: Read more
Issue: 2019-06-19, Dan Davidson
Want to win gold for your writing?
The Klondike Visitors Association (KVA) and the Writers’ Trust of Canada have announced the theme for the annual Authors on Eighth Writing Contest. Read more
Issue: 2019-06-05, PHOTO: Pixabay
As Granny said, mind your ascenders and descenders
Anyone who has ever worked in a printing shop, or who has helped teach a youngster learn how to print the alphabet, knows the importance of minding your Ps and Qs. And your Bs and Ds, for that matter... Read more
Issue: 2019-06-05, PHOTO: Dan Davidson
How real life can inform fiction
In the course of his Massey Lecture series in 2013 (published as Blood: The Stuff of Life, from House of Anansi Press), Lawrence Hill used a fair amount of autobiographical information for anecdotal evidence to enliven his research material... Read more
Issue: 2019-05-01, Photo: courtesy of Heather O’Neill
Consumed by craft
Heather O’Neill is pleased to be returning to the Yukon this year for another engagement during the Yukon Writers’ Festival and Young Author’s Conference. She was last here In 2016. “I love the sunlight in the Yukon,” she said. “Everything seems... Read more
Issue: 2019-04-24, PHOTO: courtesy of David Geary
David Geary says to “be hungry for other people’s stories”
David Geary is no stranger to the Yukon. He was here to work with Gwaandak Theatre a year ago last February. Now he’s looking forward to seeing what Whitehorse is like when it’s warmer... Read more
Issue: 2019-04-24, PHOTO: courtesy of Sigmund Brouwer/Rebecca Wellman
Sigmund Brouwer says put your character in a problem situation
With over 100 titles and four million books in print, Sigmund Brouwer is a bestselling author of books for children, young adults and adults. He will be one of the mentor authors at this year’s Young Authors’ Conference on May 2 and 3, which is... Read more
Issue: 2019-04-17, Photo: courtesy of Jan Redford
Fear should never be a deterrent
Jan Redford describes herself as a compulsive journal writer who always knew that she would like to be an author. “I remember filling pages with squiggly lines when I was about four or five, pretending I was a writer... Read more
Issue: 2019-04-10, PHOTO: Cathie Archbould
Ongoing fascination for haiku
“What fascinates me about writing haiku is that I have found it to be the perfect vehicle for the kind of art that I want to make,” said Yukon-based poet, Kathy Munro. “I am a poet. I believe that I have something to say and haiku allows me to say... Read more
Issue: 2018-12-05, PHOTO: Pixabay
Like porcupine courtship, timing is everything
Every now and then, a fella happens to hit the sweet spot, even if it is more by good luck than good management. I rest my case on a recent example. Early in the week, I casually mentioned to “Herself” that it was time to consider remounting the... Read more
Issue: 2018-10-17, PHOTO: Danny Macdonald
Let be whatever may befall
To be, or not to be. For advocates of plain writing, Shakespeare’s most famous monologue is a touchstone. Its opening sentence consists of nine one-syllable words in a row, followed by one containing just two (depending on whether one reads... Read more
Issue: 2018-10-10, PHOTO: courtesy of Sebastian Fricke
The Northern Seduction
Having completed our undergraduate degrees, Rose and I were very eager to break free of the bureaucracy and daily grind of city life. We followed our inner compasses north, to Alaska and the Yukon, writing all along the way and compiling it into a... Read more
Issue: 2018-07-18, Cartoon: Allan Benjamin
’Cause Writer’s block
Sometimes I can’t think And I can’t write in ink. When my mind is not bright I have nothing to write. Read more
Issue: 2018-07-11, PHOTO: Dan Davidson
Authors on Eighth celebrates Klondike literature
Each summer the Klondike Visitors Association (KVA), working with the Dawson Community Library and the Writers’ Trust of Canada, honours the memory of four writers who have meant a great deal to the public profile and history of Dawson City and... Read more
Issue: 2018-07-04, PHOTO: Lily Gontard
Atlin Lit Up! lights up the Yukon writing scene
The Atlin writers’ festival not only offers music but also offers literature, readings and workshops. Yukon author Lily Gontard organizes the festival in cooperation with Yukon Writers` Collective Ink. They receive funding and sponsoring from... Read more
Issue: 2017-12-06, PHOTO: Lisa Martin
Art is in the eyes of the beholder
Art can be in the form of a pencil, paintbrush, or even a scroll saw. My husband and local artist, Murray Martin has been both an outdoor and political columnist for over half a century and his creations just keep getting bigger... Read more
Issue: 2017-08-16, PHOTO: Dan Davidson
Celebrating the Klondike's Literary Legends
During the week that leads to the Discovery Days weekend, the Klondike Visitors Association, Parks Canada and the Writers’ Trust of Canada celebrate the writers who have made Dawson City world famous. Read more
Issue: 2017-05-10, PHOTO: Dave Brosha
Good Advice
Jamie Bastedo is not new to the Yukon. He first came to the territory 35 years ago as a biology graduate student. “Think Never Cry Wolf,” he says. “My head full of book knowledge about northern landscapes and cultures.” Read more
Issue: 2017-05-03, PHOTO: A. Smith
Writing as a Full Time Profession
James Bernard MacKinnon, commonly bylined as J.B. MacKinnon, will be coming to the Yukon from Vancouver to be the Yukon Public Libraries’ choice as a travelling writer to visit a number of communities during the Yukon Writers’ Festival taking... Read more
Issue: 2017-04-19, PHOTO: Roger Lemoyne
A Mentor for Yukon Young Writers
Born in England, but transplanted to Newfoundland when she was very young, Kathleen Winter credits libraries with kick starting her interest in writing. “We moved around a bit and in one village the only library was ‘the bookmobile,’ a van filled... Read more