Author Guest Post – Orca Book Publishers

Students’ and my take—make that double-take—on the doppelgänger

The following post is written by Melanie Jackson, author of Death Drop. Everyone has one. That not-quite-double, that other self. A nicer other self, or a more sinister one. Possibly a deadly one. I’ve been exploring the idea of the doppelgänger with three classes of Grade 8 Creative Writing students at Vancouver’s Lord Byng Secondary. It’s part of a mystery unit I’m delighted to be teaching, with the help, advice, brilliant comments and unwavering cup-of-tea support of Byng teacher and English Department head Amy Hughes. We’re studying the doppelgänger as portrayed in a […]

A Leap of Faith

Author, author reading, book launch, performing, performance

The following post is written by Trudee Romanek, author of Raising the Stakes. Ever thought about performing improv? Standing in front of an eager crowd with no script, no back-up music—nothing but your wits? I’ve had heart-thumping nightmares that were less stress-inducing. I love watching improv but figured I could never perform it. Coming up with stuff off the top of your head is the opposite of what I do as a fiction writer. See, I love control. I research and plan endlessly, creating a timeframe, an outline, character sketches, and so on. And once […]