| |

STILL GROWING (and a draw for you to enter!)

ByLee Ann

Getting Inspired by Growth

Hello there!

In this post, I’d like to turn your attention for a moment away from the havoc Nature has been inflicting across the continent: drought, floods, relentless heatwaves, wildfires… I think that sometimes, after we’ve done whatever we can for those in peril, we need to refresh by pulling our focus inward, closer to home. In my backyard this season, plants are especially large and lush; overall, it seems to me to have been one of those glory years for my garden. Is it the same in your neighbourhood?

Bounty from my backyard in August

And there is more growth and beauty to come! Autumn already hints at her arrival with the cooler nights of September, bringing the first tinges of colour to the maple trees at my cottage property. When I can keep my gaze out of the headlines and focus on my own personal landscape, the feeling is of happy anticipation for the fall season: blazing leaf colour (not actual flames); fresh, crisp air (instead of wilting heat); fall’s bountiful harvests (versus devastating losses.) Summer may be over, but there’s still plenty of potential with the fall season!

All this reminds me of something the English novelist Mary Ann Evans (writing as George Eliot) famously wrote:

“It is never too late to be what you might have been.”

Isn’t that fabulous? (Can you think of something this might inspire you to try?)

I’ve been inspired lately along these lines, and I’m excited to share some things that I think reflect what Evans/Eliot was talking about:

  1. My latest Poetry Art, “Still Growing”. A reminder of what can happen in our glorious “autumn years”!
  2. My new feature: Gardening Advice for Your Own Backyard. There’s a timely article available for you, “What to Do and Not Do in the Fall Garden.”
  3. A free event: I’ll be reading some poetry at the League of Canadian Poets New Member Reading, Thursday, November 9, 7:30-8:30pm., EST. This is an online event and you can get a free ticket here.
  4. Most exciting is this newly transformed website, packed with offerings, new information, free resources, plus a shop where you can buy my books and artwork. Click on my name above to get to the home page, take a look around and do let me know what you think!

Enter to Win!

To celebrate new growth and the new website, I’m having a draw! Let me know your favourite thing about the redesigned site (layout? features? Blog?) In particular, what would you would like to see more of from me here? Which of the “Creative Works” are you most interested in? I would love your feedback.

Contact me with your thoughts and I’ll enter your name into a draw for a chance to win one of my Poetry Art chapbooks. There are three to choose from – you’ll find out all about them under “Books”.

Deadline to enter is October 1, 2023. Have fun and remember when you contact me with your entry, to tell me which chapbook you would like when you win!

Good luck everyone – and may we all keep growing with the help of strong feedback!

Lee Ann

BLOG OUT LOUD at the Ottawa International Writers Festival

ByLee Ann

Blog Out Loud Ottawa (BOLO) is the brainchild of my friend, web designer, and fellow writer and blogger Lynn Jatania. For the past three years she’s invited me to sit on the judging panel for this event, which showcases the best of Ottawa’s blog posts and bloggers.

The first time I attended BOLO, about five years ago, I had just begun to write a blog and went out to see what I could learn about that new (to me) world. What I learned was that the best blog posts are like the very best of magazine feature articles: topics explored with a clear beginning, middle and end; a theme; and tight, evocative writing. There are as many topics as there are bloggers: parenting, mental health, travel, food and wine… if there’s an issue, there’s somebody blogging about it. And Ottawa has some of the most respected voices in the country.

This year, BOLO premiers as part of The Ottawa International Writers Festival. It’s a natural fit, with the Festival being a forward-thinking showcase of great writing and big ideas in all possible genres.

We had 61 entries for BOLO this year! Some agonizing choices had to be made to pare this down to 11 featured posts. Come out and hear them – for free! – on Tuesday, April 29, 6:30 p.m. at Knox Presbyterian Church, 120 Lisgar Street (at Elgin.)

INSPIRATION

ByLee Ann

I’m currently immersing myself in the Ottawa International Writers Festival. At this, Canada’s Festival of Big Ideas, I am always moved, inspired, challenged and yes, entertained by conversations with some of the world’s best thinkers and authors.

We’re part-way through the “Fall Edition” and so far I’ve:

  • spent an evening in the Songwriters’ Circle with Jim Cuddy and Greg Keillor from Blue Rodeo, hearing about the inspirations and process of creating their album, “Five Days In July”;
  • learned from Cynthia Flood, Kelli Death and Giller-nominated Lynn Coady about the creation of short fiction;
  • shared in a chat with Michael Winter and the much-acclaimed Joseph Boydon about their newest novels and the issue of being true to yourself – as a writer, and as a person;
  • become aware of the fundamental shift happening around the world regarding women, thanks to  straight-talking journalist Sally Armstrong.

What’s that creaking sound? My mind opening…

NEW DATES FOR MUSKOKA ROAD TOUR!

ByLee Ann

Back by popular demand and thanks to the promotional efforts of the Muskoka Boat and Heritage Museum, I will be conducting two more guided bus tours of the Muskoka Road!

Saturday, August 27

Saturday, September 7

Once again, we will leave from the docks in Gravenhurst and travel through the entire district, following the road that opened up Muskoka and changed it from “wild lands” to the thriving home and vacation mecca it is today.

We meet at 9am at the Muskoka Boat & Heritage Centre, and will be back by about 4:30 for a book signing and draw for a free copy of Muskoka’s Main Street: 150 Years of Courage and Adventure Along the Muskoka Colonization Road.

Tickets are still available at a cost of $20.00 per person and can be purchased by calling Muskoka Boat & Heritage Centre at (705) 687-2115.

Be sure to reserve your seat and join me for a day of history and adventure!

SECOND TOUR OF MUSKOKA ROAD

ByLee Ann

I’ve just received news that the June 9 guided tour of the Muskoka Colonization Road is sold out! But don’t despair! The organizers at the Muskoka Boat and Heritage Centre are collecting names for a second tour. Just call 705-687-2115 to add yourself to the list.

And be sure to check back here for highlights from June 9.

Hope to see you soon on Muskoka’s Main Street!

A GUIDED TOUR OF MUSKOKA’S MAIN STREET

ByLee Ann

On Sunday, June 9 I will be leading a bus tour of the Muskoka Colonization Road!

Organized by the Muskoka Boat and Heritage Centre, the tour will take us  from the docks at Gravenhurst to Washago, then north through Muskoka to just south of the Muskoka-Parry Sound border. Many stopping points will allow us a close-up view of Muskoka’s history as it unfolded along the Muskoka Road.

I get to tell all my favourite stories: the surveyors and their harrowing day jobs, the settlers who battled the Canadian Shield “farmland”, the entrepreneurs who built a transportation network of roads, steamboats and railway. We’ll stop at one of Muskoka’s best ghost towns and get refreshments at a 130-year old general store.

And that’s just after lunch!

We meet at 9am at the Muskoka Boat & Heritage Centre. Participants should bring their lunch, comfortable shoes, a camera and rain gear. Water will be provided. We’ll be back at the Heritage Centre by 5pm, where there will also be a book signing and draw for a free copy of Muskoka’s Main Street: 150 Years of Courage and Adventure Along the Muskoka Colonization Road.

Tickets are still available at a cost of $20.00 per person and can be purchased by calling Muskoka Boat & Heritage Centre at (705) 687-2115.

Step back in time and come explore with me!