March 2026 Newsletter

“ Have a dream and chase it with your feet on the ground and your eyes on the sky.” Hélène Glykatzi-Ahrweiler

Ms. Glykatzi-Ahrweiler passed away in February. She would have turned 100 years old in August. She was a Greek Byzantine historian, the first female chair (1967) of the History Department at the Sorbonne University and the first female rector (1976) of the Sorbonne University in its 700-year history. An impressive woman I admired for her tenacity and vision. I loved many of her quotes but I shared the one above to honour her memory and to remind us all about the importance of having a dream. You’re never too old.

Hope this newsletter finds you well. Happy March. It’s snowing lightly outside as I type this line. Hope you, my readers, are keeping warm wherever you are.

Writing:

I continued to work on Book 2 of Bouboulina, the graphic novel. After revising and re-revising Chapters 1 and 2, I reminded myself to stop revising and to keep going. Strange how after so many years and writing projects, I still need that reminder.

Awesome Achievements:

My friend and author, Veronique Darwin has a new collection of interconnected stories,Mom Camp, to be published by Assembly Press in May. Véronique’s stories deliver a frothy, philosophical take on modern female archetypes. Having read Véronique’s other stories, I am so looking forward to reading this collection. Véronique has previously published stories inMcSweeney’s Quarterly Concern and PRISM International and was runner-up for the 2024 Austin Clarke Prize in Literary Excellence. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Guelph, where she completed a mentorship with Sheila Heti. Her humour pieces and essays about writing have appeared in Geist, carte blanche , andPorter House Review, and she has written book reviews for EVENT, The Fiddlehead, and the Literary Review of Canada . She writes, teaches, and makes theatre with friends in the mountain town of Rossland, British Columbia.Mom Camp is her first book and can be preordered now through Assembly Press or any bookseller.

My former SFU Writers Studio student, Liisa Atva (2020/21) had her story about her South Pacific Cruise published in the Go World Travel magazine. An enjoyable read. Bravo Liisa. And expect more article from Liisa who was recently travelling in Antarctica.

Upcoming Events:

The Words on the Salish Sea Literary Festival, presented by Hornby Arts in partnership with the League of Canadian Poets and Poetry Hornby Island, will take place on March 13-14, 2026 and feature 14 visiting Canadian writers and six local authors. Information and tickets available HERE.

Just a reminder, I will be reading at the Brock House Society Author event on Thursday March 5th starting at 10 a.m. If you are in the area, please join us. You can register HERE.

Book Recommendations:

Here are the books I read in February.

Recommended to me by a friend and former colleague, this quick read deals with our individual attitudes towards money, the decisions we make about investments and how, at times, our decisions fail us. I very much enjoyed the specific examples and stories Mr. Housel provided in this practical book and liked the messages he lays out. The following is but one: “Do not aim to be coldly rational when making financial decisions. Aim to just be pretty reasonable. Reasonable is more realistic and you have a better chance of sticking with it for the long run, which is what matters most when managing money.” And here’s another quote: “Money buys options: time with family, flexibility, independence. That’s the real return on wealth, not luxury, but freedom.” Here is a review fromThe Financial Pipeline.

This novel follows the friendship of two girls who meet in the early 1950s, become best friends and how that friendship is tested over and over again by what is going on in their country. I very much liked the distinction of voices between the two main characters which was representative of their family background and circumstances. Still both characters are lionesses in their own right. I enjoyed the interweaving of the historical events in Iran during the time period of the book (1950s to 2022) and again, the impact of that history on the two characters. The historical aspects of this novel coupled with what is going on in Iran at the moment is another example of history repeating itself.

Recommended by my former student, Pat Stafford (SFU 2020/21), this memoir, by author, Kathy Page chronicles Page’s journey after her discovers she has Parkinson’s disease. From diagnosis to its impact on her life, this story interweaves both her personal experience and her fight against the disease. This is an informative as well as an emotional, very personal read. Here is a review from The British Columbia Review.

Told from the perspective of Jill Blaine, a dead woman, who comforts the dying as they transition to their death. I know, a very cheerful topic. Sorry about that. Blaine’s latest charge, K.J. Boone, an oil tycoon, is having none of it. He takes out his anger on Blaine and as various people visit him, he refuses to believe he hasn’t led an honourable life despite all the evidence to the contrary. This novel speaks to the issue of legacy and what we leave behind. I very much liked the complicated nature of both Blaine’s and Boone’s characters, showing how we are products of our experiences. Here is a review from Esquire.

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Talk to you soon. Take care. Stella