Two events relating to my newly published YA novel entitled Crusoe and the Stone Gardener will run back to back at the Pictou/Antigonish public library in New Glasgow on November 29th. Starting at 1:30 will be a session for younger readers followed by an author talk for those interested in my own writing process.
In essence, the artist’s book is a sculpture. Often kinetic and interactive, artists’ books are energized by the interplay of form and content. Their infinite variety can not only revitalize and expand our perception of “books” generally, it can also transform our understanding of the basic codex—stacked sheets bound on one side—revealing a surprising, sculptural object hidden in plain sight.
How does one combine diverse materials, ideas, images, words, and structural possibilities into an organic, cohesive whole? In this intensive weekend workshop, we will explore some of the many possible forms an artist book can take, learning to let our materials and intuition guide this mysterious—and satisfying— process. Through discussion, learning a few basic book forms, creating models and quick one-of-a-kind projects, planning editioned work, and dabbling in letterpress and relief printmaking, participants will leave this workshop with many options for continuing to explore artist’s books on their own or in future workshops.
Instructor Bio:
Basma Kavanagh is a Lebanese Canadian artist whose multidisciplinary practice includes writing, drawing, printmaking, artist’s books, textiles, land-based explorations, and performance. She has taught and practiced book arts in various hinterlands since 2010. Basma has been an artist in residence at the Penland School of Craft, the Banff Centre, and the Minnesota Center for Book Arts. Her work has been supported by grants from the Canada Council for the Arts, Arts Nova Scotia, and the Manitoba Arts Council. She lives and works in Nova Scotia, within Mi’kma’ki.
Workshop details:
10am-4pm, Saturday and Sunday November 29 &30 (12 hours total)
Elephant Grass Printmakers, 240 St. George St. (2nd Floor), Annapolis Royal
Cost: $200 for EGPS members, $220 for non-members
Materials available for purchase. Max. 8 participants
For more information, or to register, contact elephantgrassprint@gmail.com
Nov 25, 7 p.m., Halifax Central Library Room 301
Karen Pinchin, David Huebert, Jeremy Thomas Gilmer
Join us for an evening of conversation with three exciting environmental authors. Celebrated environmental journalist Karen Pinchin will discuss her award-winning work, Kings of Their Own Ocean, a riveting account of the tuna fishery and one fisherman’s obsessions. Jeremy Thomas Gilmer will discuss his new book, This Rare Earth, a unique and graphic account of twenty-five years working for some of the largest mining and engineering companies in the world. Award-winning fiction writer David Huebert will discuss his novel, Oil People, winner of the 2025 Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award. Presentations will be followed by a Q&A in which the writers discuss their books and the stories underlying them. Come join the conversation!
Join us for a wordy Who-dunnit? afternoon with Anne Emery & donalee Moulton.
Anne Emery (Collins-Burke Mysteries) won the 2019 Crime Writers of Canada Award of Excellence for Best Crime Novel for Though the Heavens Fall. In 2023, Fenian Street was a finalist for the Award of Excellence for Best Traditional Mystery. She won the 2007 Award for Best First Crime Novel for Sign of the Cross. (The CWC’s awards were formerly called the Arthur Ellis Awards.) She also won a Silver Medal in the 2011 Independent Publisher Book Awards (an international competition) and the 2011 Dartmouth Book Award for Fiction, both for Children in the Morning.
donalee Moulton is a professional writer and freelance journalist from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her byline has appeared in over 100 publications across North America, including Canadian Business, Chatelaine, Equinox, Ford Times, Maclean’s, and The Globe and Mail. Her most recent mystery novel, Melt, is the second in the Lotus Detective Agency series. It’s about what happens when three yogis with a penchant for solving crime are asked to help a 17-year-old boy who is facing life in prison for a crime he did not commit. The first in the series, Bind, takes us back to where it all started. When the yogis first joined forces with two cops to discover who stole a costly watch from a local gym.
Preregistration is required to monitor our numbers. You can register by purchasing a $10.00 gift certificate. This can be done in-person, by credit card by phone at 902-435-1207, or by e-transfer to dbex1187@gmail.com.
“Bringing the Past to Life through Historical Fiction”
Readers of historical fiction often ask how much of the story is true and how much is invented. Historical novelists Jill MacLean (author of The Arrows of Fealty) and Sarah Emsley (author of The Austens) will talk about their approaches to bringing the past to life through fiction and they will invite audience participation.
The Austens brings to life the story of Jane Austen’s friendship with her sister-in-law Fanny Austen, who lived for a while in Nova Scotia with her naval captain husband during the years when Jane was writing Pride and Prejudice and other novels that would eventually make her famous.
The Arrows of Fealty: Haukyn is a serf who owes fealty to the lord of the manor, yet who craves adventure. Warfare in France shows him how armour-clad knights can be brought as low as any serf. His restless spirit untamed, he incites his village to rebel against unjust taxation, and when England’s southern counties march in revolt on London, he witnesses the king grant freedom to every serf in the country. Unimaginable freedom. A freedom that will bring consequences.
Bookmark will be on hand selling copies of both novels.
Author signing event for recently published YA novel entitled Crusoe and the Stone Gardener by Timothy Brushett. A little Dartmouth history; a little fantasy. A whole lot of adventure. Event taking place November 22nd / 2025 from 12 pm until 2 pm at the Coles / Indigo bookstore in the Country Fair Mall, New Minas.
Come and chat with Sarah Emsley about her debut novel, The Austens, and Jane Austen’s connections with Nova Scotia.
The Austens brings to life the story of Jane Austen’s friendship with her sister-in-law Fanny Austen, who lived for a while in Nova Scotia with her naval captain husband during the years when Jane was writing Pride and Prejudice and other novels that would eventually make her famous.
Jane chooses art and the freedom to write fiction instead of marrying for money and thereby selling her body and soul, while Fanny chooses to marry for love. Their disagreements about work and family threaten their friendship in a world that is hostile to art and love, and even the idea of a woman making a choice.
Seniors College Association of Nova Scotia public presentation on Queen Elizabeth the First: “The rise to power and reign of a (mostly) benevolent monarch.”
Talk given by Julie Strong, author of The Tudor Prophecy.
Hosted by Louise Renault, with readings by author Brenda Tyedmers and Louise. Books will be available for sale and signing. 25% of the author’s royalty from books sold at this event will be donated to Ovarian Cancer Canada.
Please join Jill MacLean and Sarah Emsley at LaHave River Books on the beautiful South Shore of Nova Scotia for an afternoon of readings from their historical novels, The Arrows of Fealty and The Austens, followed by time for a Q&A and refreshments.
The Arrows of Fealty: Haukyn is a serf who owes fealty to the lord of the manor, yet who craves adventure. Warfare in France shows him how armour-clad knights can be brought as low as any serf. His restless spirit untamed, he incites his village to rebel against unjust taxation, and when England’s southern counties march in revolt on London, he witnesses the king grant freedom to every serf in the country. Unimaginable freedom. A freedom that will bring consequences.
The Austens brings to life the story of Jane Austen’s friendship with her sister-in-law Fanny Austen, who lived for a while in Nova Scotia with her naval captain husband during the years when Jane was writing Pride and Prejudice and other novels that would eventually make her famous.
The Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia (WFNS) uses the following terms to describe writers’ experience levels:
New writers: those with less than two years’ creative writing experience and/or no short-form publications (e.g., short stories, personal essays, or poems in literary magazines, journals, anthologies, or chapbooks).
Emerging writers: those with more than two years’ creative writing experience and/or numerous short-form publications.
Early-career authors: those with 1 or 2 book-length publications or the equivalent in book-length and short-form publications.
Established authors: those with 3 or 4 book-length publications.
Professional authors: those with 5 or more book-length publications.
Please keep in mind that each form of creative writing (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, writing for children and young adults, and others) provides you with a unique set of experiences and skills, so you might consider yourself an ‘established author’ in one form but a ‘new writer’ in another.
The “Recommended experience level” section of each workshop description refers to the above definitions. A workshop’s participants should usually have similar levels of creative writing and / or publication experience. This ensures that each participant gets value from the workshop and is presented with info, strategies, and skills that suit their experience.
For “intensive” and “masterclass” workshops, which provide more opportunities for peer-to-peer feedback, the recommended experience level should be followed closely.
For all other workshops, the recommended experience level is just that—a recommendation—and we encourage potential participants to follow their own judgment when registering.
If uncertain about your experience level with respect to any particular workshop, please feel free to contact us at communications@writers.ns.ca
