Check-in with Alanna Rusnak

In this post, we’ll be hearing from writer, editor, and publisher Alanna Rusnak. She updates us on her writing and publishing projects, while also offering us a glimpse into her inspirations as well as challenges. If you missed our original interview, take a look here: Interview with Alanna Rusnak

Check out Alanna’s author bio:

Alanna was born in the wrong decade and dreams of abandoning everything to live in a van and travel across Canada. She’ll call it “a book tour,” but it’s really an excuse to unleash her inner hippie.

A collector of typewriters and John Travolta VHS movies, she believes life is too short to not indulge in the things that bring you joy and in keeping with that philosophy, she left a stuffy office job of 18 years to launch a full-time indie press out of a chicken coop on her childhood property.

An author of literary and speculative fiction, Alanna likes to play in dark spaces, but always leaves room for redemption. Her latest novel is about burning down the world in order to set things right.

Settled in West Grey as a four-year-old, it has always been her home and source of inspiration and she’s working hard to build bridges between the various arts communities. With no immediate plans to abandon this, she will certainly leave it all behind the moment her husband gets on board with the van-life idea.

Alanna it’s been two years since our last interview. What did 2025 look like for you in your multiple roles as a writer, editor, and publisher? What’s on the horizon for 2026?

It’s actually hard to look back and articulate everything that happened in 2025 because the publishing world requires eyes forward at all times. As a solopreneur, I am keeping many balls in the air and though I’m always tired. I’m also always invigorated by the exciting projects that are constantly on the go.

I made a big decision in 2024 to keep my submissions closed in order to nurture my existing roster, roll out the titles already in my queue, and focus on follow up titles from writers already in my catalogue. This has been a game-changer in terms of workload and time management. I was working on an unsustainable (but totally exciting) publishing calendar that demanded a title was released every month. From a financial standpoint, this makes sense; from a human perspective, something had to give. The de-escalation has given me space to more fully invest in myself as a writer, and I learned that I have to treat myself like a client in order to find a good balance.

Now that we’re in 2026, I’m just beginning to see the effects of that 2024 decision. And as things are feeling more manageable, I’m able to push out titles with more care and discernment.

Who are your mentors or role models in the business? Tell us about one person who has inspired or supported you in your journey as a publisher.

I love following other scrappy little indie outfits who, like me, have a heart for writers and a desire to see them succeed. I’ve built a nice relationship with the owner of Byzantium Sky Press out of Delaware and we are often trading tips and tricks back and forth, commiserating over AI, and celebrating one another’s accomplishments through emails, Instagram DMs, and Zoom chats. It’s refreshing to find people who don’t look at you as competition, but as comrades in the same battle for creativity.

Chicken House Press is a flurry of activity! Alanna, tell us about your authors’ forthcoming appearances and readings. How can interested readers support their work?

Milksop, a beautifully nostalgic coming-of-age debut novel is coming from John Van Rys, a retired professor from Hamilton, ON in May. This summer, Chicken House Press is taking a first step into spicy romance for older women with Mr. Tuesday, a very fun and unexpected beach read from Marina L. Reed, long time CHP author. I’ve just signed J. T. Maxwell (Red Brick Road) for his second novel 15, a speculative YA that’s both hilarious and gripping.

I have two anthologies in late stages of production: The Long Dark is a collection of the eight shortlisted stories from the annual short fiction contest run in partnership with Blank Spaces, and One of Us is a Robot is a collection of twenty stories offering a warning against the encroaching threat of artificial intelligence.

Not only that, but I’m continuing to produce quarterly issues of the magazine, and working hard to get the second book in my own series ready for a September release.

The best way to stay informed about all Chicken House Press activity is to sign up for the newsletter: https://www.chickenhousepress.ca/subscribe – and the greatest way to support the authors I champion is to buy their books, request them at your libraries, talk about them at dinner parties, and leave reviews for the ones you enjoy.

Your magazine, Blank Spaces, is now in its tenth year. What’s on your submission wish list for 2026 and beyond? How can interested writers or artists get involved?

Thinking that it’s been ten years is wild! I’m currently putting together an event to mark that incredible milestone and am excited that we’ll soon get to celebrate that anniversary. The goal of Blank Spaces has been the same since the day I launched it. I wanted to provide a platform for writers looking to break into an industry that often demands an impressive resume. While we do accept submissions from seasoned writers, I am most excited when I learn that I am giving someone their first publishing credit ever. And so that continues to be my whole wish list: writers who need a launchpad for their careers.

The same goes for Canadian artists. It’s such a thrill to give an artist a place to showcase their work. Not only does it help their career, it helps me produce a product that’s vibrant, lively, and always fresh.

Interested writers and artists should explore the website for all the details on submission https://www.blankspaces.ca/, get on the Blank Spaces mailing list https://www.blankspaces.ca/newsletter, and follow the magazine on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/blankspacesmag.

Alanna, what’s the most surprising comment you’ve received on your own writing? How did it help you grow?

I think the most surprising comment I received came from one of my sisters who had asked to be a beta reader on my last novel. She was so frustrated with a character I’d written that she refused to finish reading the book. She wanted a clear villain and I prefer to write in a grey area where I leave things unanswered. She told me she’d keep reading if I told her definitively whether he was good or bad. I refused. We are now a year after publication and she still won’t read the book.

This was a good lesson for me because she tried to push me to change the kind of writer I am, and I got to prove to myself that my storytelling sensibilities take precedent over a negative opinion—even the opinion of someone I love. I am very good at receiving constructive criticism. I’m not precious about my work like I was ten years ago when I released my debut. But I won’t alter my ultimate goal in order to make someone comfortable.

The landing page of my author website says FICTION TO CHALLENGE WHAT YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW and I stand by that; in fact, I get a little bit giddy when I find out someone was uncomfortable with something I wrote. (Not uncomfortable in a gross way, but uncomfortable in a things-that-make-you-go-hmmm way.)  

Your book, When the Trees All Burned, was still a work in progress at the time of our last interview. Tell us how you managed to hold yourself accountable for reaching the finish line with this manuscript. What’s next?

The truth is, I started the first draft of When the Trees All Burned right after I wrote my debut. November 2016 to be exact. So this story has been swirling around my head for a very long time. It was paused and then revisited between writing two other books, but it wasn’t until I decided to consider myself one of my own author clients that I was actually able to put time directly into my calendar to finish writing it.

Talking about something publicly is the only way I know to keep myself truly accountable, and so once I committed to myself that it was time to focus, I began sharing my process through blog posts, social media posts, and podcast episodes where I shared my progress (or lack there of) and read a snippet of what I’d written that week. The pressure of needing to show up share where I was at was enough to keep me moving forward.

What’s next? Book two of my series is written and currently with beta readers (not my sister). My goal is to release it on Labour Day 2026 – and I’ve said that publicly, so I’m motivated to make it happen. Visit my website alannarusnak.ca for a deep dive into the series (including a trailer, a series Wiki, location visits, a fun quiz, and an opportunity to sign up for the newsletter of that character my sister hated).

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Cover Image: Photo by Monica Silvestre on Pexels.com