Tag: Pauline Shen

Interviews

Interview with T.L. Tomljanovic

Pauline Shen

In this post, we’re hearing from T.L. Tomljanovic, freelance writer and communications specialist located in British Columbia, and member of the Federation of BC Writers. We’ll hear about T.L. Tomljanovic’s writing journey, recent publications, and some advice for new writers on ways to branch out and become part of the larger writing community.

You have a background as a freelance communications consultant, and then you got into writing fiction more recently. How long have you been writing overall and what made you decide to explore fiction?

I’ve been writing professionally for about 20 years. My first paid gig was for a Calgary publisher where I worked as a photo researcher. Outside my usual nine to five, I researched and wrote children’s non-fiction books to spec meaning I had a very clear set of guidelines—word count, reading level, chapter headings, etc. I always wanted to write fiction—I was and still am a voracious reader—but my fear of failure paralyzed. It took the bigger fear of the pandemic lockdown in 2020 to spur me into action. I wrote a story about a goat hunter and Carousel Magazine published it.

Your fictional stories span multiple genres—literary, science fiction, horror, and so on. What inspires your stories and what are your go-to strategies to ensure that you can approach your work-in-progress with enthusiasm?

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BONUS Post

Jam Drop Cookies (A.K.A. The easiest kitchen cupboard recipe, ever!)

Pauline Shen

Just to be clear, this is not a food blog. It’s a bonus post. I am sharing one of my tried-and-true recipes as a thank you for reading my blog. That is all.

Hot jam cookies right out of the oven.

This is my go-to recipe for any occasion. My friends and neighbours love these cookies. I get requests for them, and I even give them out as gifts. The funny part: they’re pretty-much a “kitchen cupboard” recipe. You can get fancy with equipment and decorations or just mix them up by hand and serve as a basic thumbprint cookie. You can substitute, add ingredients, or mix-and-match, and they will still turn out cute and delicious! It’s an excellent beginner recipe. There are only a couple areas where you could go wrong, and I’ll be flagging those as we go along. Let’s jam!

Ingredients:

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Writing

Returning to a Work-in-Progress – How to

Pauline Shen

One of my university professors used to say that he found it easier and more productive to walk away from an essay while he was mid-sentence with an unfinished paragraph on the page. His logic was that his brain would pick up the exact train of thought that he had been working with in the previous sitting so that his fingers could simply continue typing the remainder of that sentence and paragraph without much hesitation. Now, that may work for essays, but I’m not certain that it applies to writing scenes. I mean, how annoying is it to have your reading interrupted right when there’s a critical junction in the story? Or you’ve just gotten into a movie and the power cuts out? What a letdown! Creative writing is much the same; there’s some kind of bubble that bursts when disruptions occur—including when it comes time to shift attention to a more pressing task. Leaving the comfort of your home office to attend a dental appointment, for example.

Photo by Mikhail Nilov on Pexels.com
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Interviews

Interview with Galen Gower

Pauline Shen

In this post, we’re hearing from Galen Gower, writer and founder of Toad Shade Zine based in Memphis TN. Galen tells us about his creative process, shares his wisdom on incorporating feedback to develop as a creative writer, and gives us a sneak peek at an upcoming publishing venture.

Galen, you’ve started a Zine! What inspired you to launch the independent magazine, Toad Shade Zine? Tell us how it’s been going so far.

I literally decided I wanted to do a zine, bought the domain, blundered through making the website, and started sharing the submission call all in about three hours. I started out not telling anyone it was me doing it in case I really pet the rabbit with it, but it turned out pretty well.

I mentioned this in the second submission call, but the world really is full of things because people decide to do them and decide not to let fear or common sense stop them. I’ve never let not knowing what I’m doing stop me. Sometimes the results are disastrous, of course, but I’d rather go down swinging, you know?

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Candid Talks, Writing

Why Participate in Writing Contests?

Pauline Shen

You many have noticed that there are a lot of writing contests. You can find lists of upcoming ones in places like Dreamers Magazine or the Funds for Writers website. Some magazines, like Blank Spaces, run a regular quarterly write prompt contest. Many literary journals will simply run a contest for the purpose of fundraising and/or as a method to boost publicity for the volunteer judge(s). There are even third-parties, such as Writing Battle, that specialize in supporting emerging and established writers with very specific prompt-driven, time-limited tournaments.

Each one of these contests is unique in how it handles theme, prompts, judging, awarding “prizes,” and so forth. Entering your work in a writing contest can be beneficial. Depending on the individual contest, you can make great strides by getting involved. Here’s what I mean:

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Candid Talks, Nonfiction

Three Cures for a Book Hangover

Pauline Shen

If you’re a reader, then you might have experienced this situation. You’re so entranced by a book’s plot or characters that it draws you in and touches the very depths of your being. You never want this adventure to end, but eventually you finish the final page and close the book with a tear in your eye. “Alas, no other book will live up to this one!” You’ve just developed a book hangover. It’s real.

The thing is, you’ll have to get over it eventually. But it’s such a conundrum. What to read next? How to move forward in the world, le sigh. There’s a plethora of advice out there about book hangovers, and most of it isn’t all that helpful. “Select another book and start reading it.” Duh! But how? So in this post, I’m sharing my top three go-to options to cure a book hangover. Hope it helps.

Here’s my Big Three:

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Story Reviews

Rawr. Commentary on Alison Wassell’s “A Stupid Rubber Dinosaur”

Pauline Shen

It can all change in the blink of an eye. Or, in this case, with a toy “dinosaur in the middle of the road.” But what changes as the narrator in Alison Wassell’s “A Stupid Rubber Dinosaur” illustrates the story is a matter of perspective. And this narrator tugs the reader into both the incident and the outcome by head and heart.

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Interviews

Interview with S.A. McNaughton

Pauline Shen

In this post, we’ll hear from S.A. McNaughton, author of short stories and flash fiction from Ypsilanti, Michigan. McNaughton tells us how she manages her writing schedule, lists the many benefits of participating in writing contests, and tells us about the surprising social aspect of joining a community of writers.

You work a full-time administrative job while raising a preschooler at home. How do you arrange time for writing?

A very good question! It’s not easy, and it’s one of the reasons that I’ve found short fiction competitions to be a good fit for me. Many of them take place over weekends, and my very supportive husband is very good about giving me time to write.

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