Morning frost drawings.

Saturday's bookspine poem: Bad Juliet, the fortune teller is nowhere for very long. But ahead is the lion's den -- "our last resort," she whispers and surges towards fortune's rocks, leaving a dead wake.

"I learned to put away the work when the bad feelings arrive and take a break. To view it with new eyes. Make changes. Add or subtract words. Do it over again. Do this until the piece tells you somehow that it is done." ~ Onjana Yawnghwe, on revising

When I moved out west a few years ago, I struggled to find a creative community in my new town. If you're trying to connect with other writers IRL or online, here are some things you can try.

Morning writing session essentials: inspiration, sustenance, clarity…and a fresh new notebook.

Morning reflections.

In this issue of Petits écrits / Tiny writings, I'm sharing an obituary-themed prompt, and the piece I wrote in response as inspiration. (It's rough and not finished. I might keep going with it. Time will tell!) Happy writing!

My latest issue of Petits écrits / Tiny Writings lays out eight ways a phobia can add depth and layers to your characters and your story. petitsecrits.substack.com/p/issue-19-t...

A whole world of story ideas is right on your doorstep — or even closer. In the latest writing lab issue of Petits écrits / Tiny writings, I challenge you to get hyperlocal with your writing.

I’ve let my morning productivity slide in the last year, and my writing practice has taken the hit. In my latest Petits écrits / Tiny writings post, I share how I’m taking steps to end my lollygagging ways.

A new Writing Lab issue of Petits écrits / Tiny writings just dropped! Today’s exercise is a lot of fun. If you complete it, I invite you submit your “ladder stories” for a future special issue. ✨ Check out the post for all the details. Happy writing!

I tend to be pretty tame in my writing — this month, I’m going to let myself go wild. 🐯

These little blooms make my writing desk more inviting.

Good Sunday morning, Bluesky folks 🌼

In the latest Petits écrits / Tiny writings, I share something I'm calling the “six things” exercise, inspired by writing instructor Lois J. Peterson. petitsecrits.substack.com/p/issue-14-o...

My September ritual read. What's yours? #amreading

🍁Hey Canadian writers! 🍁 The 2026 CBC Short Story Prize is open, and the deadline is November 1. Rules and regs here: www.cbc.ca/books/litera...

“Act as if you’re a writer. Sit down and begin. Act as if you might just create something beautiful, and by beautiful I mean something authentic and universal. Don’t wait for anyone to tell you it’s okay.” ~ Dani Shapiro, in "Still Writing: The Perils and Pleasures of a Creative Life"

You think you have life all figured out, then they go and discontinue your favourite dental floss.

Have you ever struggled with starting a piece of writing all over again? Trashing what you’ve written to start fresh is tough. But sometimes it makes space for the better story to come. petitsecrits.substack.com/p/issue-13-a... #writingcommunity #creativewriting

A good morning begins with coffee and reading.

“When Dorothy Parker Got Fired from Vanity Fair”, @jonnysemicolon on Dorothy Parker — born #onthisday in 1893 — and the beginnings of the legendary Algonquin Round Table: https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/when-dorothy-parker-got-fired-from-vanity-fair

All it takes is a single, vivid image or concept to ignite my creativity. The story builds itself around that spark. Is that how it starts for other writers? petitsecrits.substack.com/p/issue-12-s...

A cat finds a suitcase (a love story)

In Issue #11 of Petits écrits / Tiny writings: On shutting down intrusive thoughts, how to make writing more fun, and six writing prompts. Read it here: petitsecrits.substack.com/p/issue-11-t...

“The best writing is like jumping out of a plane. I know that the parachute will open, though nothing in life is 100 per cent certain. I just have to get out there, count to three, and pull the rip cord.” ~ Margaret Springer, on courage and writing

This piece is by my friend and fellow Restless Writer, Andrea Montgomery. ⚘️

Read, puzzle, read, puzzle, read, puzzle, ad infinitum. Oh, and write sometimes too.

A micro-fiction, book-spine inspired: ... I can't sleep. Is it the demon of unrest? Or just the 206 bones, buried in my secret garden? ... #microfiction #bookspinefiction #bookspinepoetry

I just found my copy of A.S. Byatt's "Medusa's Ankles: Selected Stories" hiding under a Ken Follett doorstopper in my tbr pile. 😱 I had forgotten all about it. Shameful! If you say that maybe I buy too many books if I lose track of them so easily, you and I are no longer friends.

To get to know one of my characters better, I sent him to the zoo, a job interview, a funeral, and a cottage. What I learned helped me figure out his role in the story. Where would you send your characters? petitsecrits.substack.com/p/issue-10-f... #writingcommunity #writinginspiration

What proverbial blanket do you need to do your art? For me it's music without lyrics, a bottomless cup of coffee, and a deadline.

I just found my copy of the 1930 printing of “Tales of the Round Table” from Longmans, Green and Co., which sparked my lifelong obsession with Arthurian stories and legends. Yet so far, I've never written a story or poem inspired by these tales. Time to change that. ✨️

Do you think writing that doesn't contribute to your WIP is a waste of time? In the latest issue of Petits écrits / Tiny Writings, I share some ideas for keeping your writing practice fresh and exciting. petitsecrits.substack.com/p/issue-9-no...

Hold my calls. It's time for the @thewalrus.ca Summer Reading issue!

Thank you to @fiveminutelit.bsky.social for publishing this drabble of mine. (PS the accompanying graphic is *chef's kiss*. 💙)

“Our fate flows with that of rivers—and always has.” In a time of ecological crisis, author @robgmacfarlane.bsky.social explores what we might learn or confront about the world we live in when we give natural entities like rivers rights: thewalrus.ca/if-rivers-had-ri...

Did I run wild as a teenager and raise a little hell? Sure did. 🤘🧷🖤 And that surly punk kid part of me still gets to have plenty of fun when I write. #GenX #WritingCommunity

Are you making time to write this weekend? Here a prompt and what I cooked up with it. The setting for this story was inspired by a friend of mine, who joked about how many fudge shops there are in Niagara Falls.

Good morning ✨️

A slow coffee-filled morning. A walk in the sun. A fresh stack of books and a new mug.

after she paints even the brush water holds a sky #poetry #haiku #wolftwin #micropoetry

Note to self: If you don't eat the fiddleheads, they will reproduce and start to take over. I need bunny reinforcements!

A reflection on finding new ideas in old books, an exercise in taking your characters back in time, and five writing prompts on the theme of time travel. #amwriting #writingcommunity

“You have to be actively engaged in the creative practice for the creativity to hit you.” ~ Ivan Coyote, writer, storyteller, performer #creativity

I felt like dipping into the classics this morning. #amreading

Self-consciousness and—I’ll admit to it—vanity can get in the way of me achieving my writing goals. Does this happen to you? Here’s how I’m resisting the urge to hide and building up my confidence. #writingcommunity #amwriting

The June 2025 issue of The Walrus is here. Read Wesley Wark’s cover story, “How to Save Canada,” then dive into new writing on a controversial Jamaican church, the guilty pleasure of gossiping, and more. 📬 Subscribe: secure.thewalrus.ca/W43CVRSW

✨Last call to register for the CV2 2-Day Poem Contest!✨ Registration closes tonight at 11:59pm! Head to the link in our bio to sign up for 2 days of writing, stressing, & building community - or, as @cincinnatusc.bsky.social‬ put it: SCRIPTURA ~ PRESSURA ~ COMMUNITAS. Carve that on our tombstone😍✨