Cleavage

So today, I promised I'd tell you a little about an upcoming book called Cleavage: Breakaway Fiction for Real Girls. It's a collection of short stories about girls, their bodies, and their relationships with their mums -- and it's edited by two of my friends, Deb Loughead and Jocelyn Shipley. I caught up with Deb and Jocelyn when I was in Toronto on the weekend, and they told me a littleabout what it was like to "play" editor, instead of their usual role as authors.  Both agreed they learned a lot by editing other writers' work. Jocelyn stressed the importance of submitting work that is fresh and original: "I thought, 'Oh my God, some of the stuff I've sent must've been so 'done' -- so old and tired.'" This is the advice Deb offered to young (and not so young!!) writers: "You have to take a fresh approach and read a lot to find out how people are doing it and then find a way to do it differently," she said. We also talked a little about the tendency some writers have to rely heavily on their own experience. Jocelyn said that although autobiography is a good place to start, "let it grow and become fiction." 

One of the nice things about interviewing authors is they express themselves so darned well. So thanks to Deb and Jocelyn -- and keep your eyes open for Cleavage!! It's going to be published by Sumach Press and is due out this fall.

Hey, I haven't told you some bits of exciting news: Maclean's is using my teens and Internet porn story as their cover story this week. And three of my books, All In, Finding Elmo, and Scarred were listed on the Canadian Children's Book Centre's Our Choice List for 2008. And one more fun thing -- I've been asked to go to Winnipeg, Manitoba in July to be part of a jury for the Manitoba Arts Council. Not bad for a curly-haired lady who spends most of her days drinking tea and typing away!!!