MaryLou Driedger
@mld-author.bsky.social
📤 193
📥 259
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Author, Newspaper Columnist, Free Lance Journalist
On a cycling tour in the Eastern Townships of Quebec, we visited the community that inspired the Three Pines setting in the mystery novels of Louise Penny. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/09/14/l...
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Louise Penny and French Pastry
Standing across the street from the Brome Lake Books One highlight of today’s biking trip would definitely have to be visiting Knowlton, which is the inspiration for the community of Three Pi…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/09/14/louise-penny-and-french-pastry/?fbclid=IwY2xjawM6R_VleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHn99kubF1UvyO8HMsTfmfq1LazOVBO66AcYv0Uls7eur3dnhqbYAmssC7XCR_aem_qYNd3gHv9EABVI7FgaFNHg
6 days ago
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Read my review of Brittany Penner's new book, Children Like Us.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/09/06/c...
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Children Like Us
I told a friend I had just finished reading an autobiography by Steinbach area author Brittany Penner called Children Like Us. “Is that the same Brittany Penner who is my doctor?” m…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/09/06/children-like-us/?fbclid=IwY2xjawMqXl1leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHnYoEXaL3m82RId5zr0MYlBCketnnqm6qpHiNtmr_uXE81MmbWE4vmN2lNcf_aem_TBwrb0E76gVbljQw2QXvIg
18 days ago
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It was great to see my two novels included in a Canadian Vacation Reading Guide in the latest edition of Book News. Read about it in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/09/04/p...
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Part of A Canadian Vacation Guide
In the summer issue of BOOK NEWS published by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre there’s an article called Traveling Across Canada Through the Pages of a Book. It invites kids to explo…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/09/04/part-of-a-canadian-vacation-guide/
21 days ago
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I attended a memoir workshop at the Mennonite/s Writing Ten Conference in June. It inspired me as I prepare to participate in a memoir writing workshop at the Mennonite Heritage Village Museum in September. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/31/w...
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We Love Memoirs Day
Today is We Love Memoirs Day. First celebrated in 2013, it is a day to recognize the unique writing genre of memoir. Autobiographies tell the story of a person’s whole life, but a memoir focu…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/31/we-love-memoirs-day/
25 days ago
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'Tuberculosis Might Have Triggered World War I was the headline my editor gave to my newspaper column this week, which was about John Green's New York Times bestseller, Everything is Tuberculosis. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/29/e...
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Everything is Tuberculosis
My newspaper column last week was inspired by a New York Times bestseller I read by a popular author, John Green. It is called Everything is Tuberculosis. My editor headlined my column with the wor…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/29/everything-is-tuberculosis/
27 days ago
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When I lived in Hong Kong, I wrote 58 articles for a website called Things Asian. In the post below, I look at five of my favourites.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/22/f...
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Fifty-Eight Stories
During the six years we lived and travelled in Asia I was a regular contributor to a website called Things Asian. I wrote 58 different stories for the travel website about our adventures in many di…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/22/fifty-eight-stories/?fbclid=IwY2xjawMWDTZleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFSUE45T0FBUXhuQ2x5Yk1WAR573mLIdQoF1SyquWmVYyWXY8cb1ds_PShG6GDQdJsWUvbo7JOUGaAU2g-7lQ_aem_HXAmewOmdcxqhYK0FKt-tA
about 1 month ago
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My teenage grandson wanted to know what my top five books in my lifetime would be. A hard task. I've started trying to answer it in the post below. What would be your choices.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/16/t...
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Top Five Books
My teenage grandson is a voracious reader. When we were together in mid-July, he could already list a whole string of books he’d read since his school vacation began. I was telling him about …
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/16/top-five-books/
about 1 month ago
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A presentation by Elsie Neufeld at a recent writing conference had me thinking about some of the people I have interviewed during my journalism career and what I learned from them. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/14/1...
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10 People- 10 Lessons Learned
Elsie Neufeld presenting at the Mennonite/s Writing/Ten Conference at Canadian Mennonite University At the Mennonite/s Writing Ten Conference I attended in June I went to a presentation by Elsie Ne…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/14/10-people-10-lessons-learned/
about 1 month ago
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I used a 1951 painting House at Qualicum Beach by Edward John Hughes-to illustrate a post about my latest newspaper column which my editor headlined The Sacred Space of a Cottage.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/12/t...
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The Sacred Space of a Cottage
House at Qualicum Beach by Edward John Hughes-1951 In my newspaper column this week I wrote about how cottages have become a kind of sacred space for many Canadian families since they gained in pop…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/12/the-sacred-space-of-a-cottage/?fbclid=IwY2xjawMIEnVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFtZG1oeFpUbTBRc21nVlVYAR6ap7Qt7hYrEPb7Ph9DPrjV-N-8rpvLt259AFQokNiwCS0nASlGembA_1vptw_aem_M5cB1scjVo_fufwQfCrEqA
about 1 month ago
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What did you think of My Friends by Fredrick Backman? Read my thoughts in the post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/06/m...
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My Friends
I’ve really enjoyed some of Fredrik Backman’s books, like A Man Called Ove and Bear Town. Others like Anxious People, not so much. Getting into his latest book, My Friends, was a little…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/06/my-friends/
about 2 months ago
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Writers need to have other passions and hobbies. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/05/w...
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Writers Need Other Hobbies
Reading has been a life long hobby of mine In a recent post on the website Writer Unboxed, Julie Carrick Dalton talks about why writers need to have other creative outlets, hobbies and activities. …
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/05/writers-need-other-hobbies/
about 2 months ago
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I just finished reading a beautiful book about environmentalist and best selling author Rachel Carson by Ann E. Burg. Read more in my post below.
@aeburg.bsky.social
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/01/s...
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She Was A Force of Nature
I just finished a beautiful book called Force of Nature by Ann E. Burg that tells the life story of Rachel Carson, scientist, writer, and environmentalist and the author of the classic, best-seller…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/08/01/she-was-a-force-of-nature/
about 2 months ago
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I'll be doing a workshop on writing memoir at the museum in Steinbach in September. You can read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/29/t...
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The Steinbach Heritage Village Museum
Last week, my newspaper column was about a memoir writing workshop I will be participating in at the Mennonite Heritage Village Museum at the end of September. Together with four other local writer…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/29/the-steinbach-heritage-village-museum/
about 2 months ago
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I received a beautiful new book bag from a friend. Click on the link to read more.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/21/a...
2 months ago
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Someone asked me recently if I was still writing. See what I might have replied in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/11/a...
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Are You Still Writing?
I was chatting with someone at a public event recently, who said they’d read my newspaper columns in the Winnipeg Free Press many years ago. “Are you still writing?” they asked. I…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/11/are-you-still-writing/
3 months ago
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Two Winnipeg podcasters tried to figure out how old I was from my writing. Click on the link below to find out more.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/07/d...
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Do You Think MaryLou is Old or Young?
Recently a blog post I wrote was featured on the Winnipeg podcast Made From What’s Left. The particular episode was called Wherein We Have A White On the Town. Statue of George Forest by Migu…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/07/do-you-think-marylou-is-old-or-young/?fbclid=IwY2xjawLYmbxleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFNZGF5MzBiU3dRRWhGckxoAR6W-054xQSE9vpOsuh7ab1MKv6oO66zoLFZp1zLNghCBhNVKhynWAdsdio-lA_aem_aw7wBPEdsaJ9O8nS-drJ3Q
3 months ago
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I was fascinated by Jacinda Ardern's autobiography. Find out why in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/02/i...
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I Was Fascinated
I just finished reading Jacinda Ardern’s autobiography A Different Kind of Power. I found it absolutely fascinating. Jacinda comforts people after a March 2019 mass shooting at two mosques in…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/07/02/i-was-fascinated/
3 months ago
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The ‘here you are singing’ installation at the Mennonite Heritage Centre Gallery on the Canadian Mennonite University campus by Sarah Ens and Jami Reimer is a sensory rich experience you won't want to miss. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/27/h...
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here you are singing
Yesterday my friend Caroline and I went to the gallery at the Mennonite Heritage Centre on the CMU campus to see the installation here you are singing by poet Sarah Ens and inter-disciplinary artis…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/27/here-you-are-singing/
3 months ago
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In my newspaper column this week I ran my annual summer reading recommendations. Read all about them in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/29/s...
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Summer Reading
Every June I write a newspaper column where I recommend books I’ve read over the past twelve months that I think my readers might enjoy in July and August. You can find my summer reading list…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/29/summer-reading/
3 months ago
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What’s a Fraktur?
Becca J.R. Lachman and Lynn Sommer present at the International Mennonite writing conference on the Canadian Mennonite University campus- June 13 I’d never heard of a fraktur before I attende…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/16/whats-a-fraktur/
3 months ago
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Ongoing Reconstruction
David Elias presenting at an international conference about Mennonite Writing at Canadian Mennonite University June 13th,2025 At the Mennonite/s Writing Ten conference I attended last weekend I hea…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/20/ongoing-reconstruction/?fbclid=IwY2xjawLCVjtleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFMU3NteUE4RnN4dEsyMUNzAR6qPB7VW194SSAsKI26HsQz4GbIAOET9aHLe-S6d2YcX7bJjzjuY2ubD4XXTQ_aem_z4k6ZZKwe9_vqX83-g12Zg
3 months ago
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For Father's Day my publisher suggested making some videos that made a connection between our Dad and our writing. Go to the link below to see mine.
@heritagehouse.bsky.social
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/15/m...
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My Novels and Dad
My novels in McNally Robinson Booksellers in Saskatoon this April For Father’s Day my publisher Heritage House asked some of its authors to record videos about their relationship with their f…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/15/my-novels-and-dad/
3 months ago
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I am the editor of NOTES a monthly publication of the Winnipeg Friends of the Public Library. We provide funds for our city's 20 libraries to enrich their programming. Go to the link below to learn more.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/12/f...
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Friends of the Library
I’m the editor of a monthly newsletter called NOTES that goes out to more than a thousand people a month informing them about the activities of the Winnipeg Friends of the Library organizatio…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/12/friends-of-the-library/?fbclid=IwY2xjawK4AWpleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETE4Wk5FMTZBN2dvbU1Qbm1rAR5xGFS4xlg1nW6DyzMPxsAUgdIjIvnT3_BHJw2jg2MQY5DCI-82mfjwaqkYzA_aem_MPsrt_lKO_jEBuuzUg3gTA
3 months ago
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It's springtime when people are planting seeds with hopes of a successful garden. What kind of seeds do writers need to plant if they want to be successful?
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/02/5...
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5 Seeds for Writers
This is the time of year when people are planting seeds in gardens and flower beds, hoping for a summer display of colour and produce. I came across an article recently by Colleen M. Story that off…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/06/02/5-seeds-for-writers/
4 months ago
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In my most recent newspaper column, I look at the need for unity in Canada regardless of political affiliations.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/22/a...
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A Time for Unity
Photo from the Statistics Canada website My latest newspaper column calls for unity nationwide to protect Canadian interests from the bullying tactics of our neighbours to the south. I look at how …
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/22/a-time-for-unity/
4 months ago
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The Winnipeg Public Library is looking for a new Writer-in-Residence. Nora Decter had the post last year, and I heard her speak recently about what a wonderful opportunity the position provides.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/21/a...
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A Wonderful Opportunity for Writers
The Winnipeg Public Library is currently advertising for a Writer-in-Residence for the coming year. Photo of Nora Decter from the Winnipeg Public Library website I had the chance to hear 2024-2025 …
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/21/a-wonderful-opportunity-for-writers/
4 months ago
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I never get tired of seeing the amazing artwork kids create after reading my novel, Lost on the Prairie. A recent classroom visit garnered me a whole new batch of fabulous children's illustrations. See more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/19/m...
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My Novel Comes Alive Again
A new cover for my novel was created by a student One of my favourite things about visiting a school to talk to a group of students who have just finished reading my book, Lost on the Prairie, is t…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/19/my-novel-comes-alive-again/?fbclid=IwY2xjawKYAolleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFOdGRDc3prSU1TckxUOWMyAR40euiwUdrBAQFN0KLiNTNOOCHatO4UcvnITExF81FlLKVKDTu2dMsMfFC8LQ_aem_hI6F7dwlUGijbpm78cg4RQ
4 months ago
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Two beautiful picture books by Maggie Knaus and Robin Stevenson look at how grandparents and grandchildren maintain a loving connection despite being separated by geography.
@robinstevenson.bsky.social
@owlkids.bsky.social
@orcabook.bsky.social
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/15/l...
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Love in the Moon and On the Wind
Two children’s books I bought recently centre on the idea of maintaining connectivity between grandparent and grandchild, even when the two are geographically apart. Eleanor’s Moon, fro…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/15/love-in-the-moon-and-on-the-wind/
4 months ago
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Some members of Canada's new cabinet were holding books when they were sworn into office yesterday. Why? Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/14/a...
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A Holy Book in Their Hand
Dominique Le Blanc holds a Bible as he was sworn in as Minister of International Trade- photo CTV News When the ministers in Mark Carney’s cabinet were sworn into office yesterday, I noticed …
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/14/a-holy-book-in-their-hand/
4 months ago
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I have two treasured writing souvenirs from my paternal grandfather and my maternal grandmother. Read about them in the post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2018/10/26/a...
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A Writing Inheritance From Two Grandparents
For my birthday, my aunt took me out for a lovely lunch and gave me a present that had belonged to my grandfather. My aunt was doing volunteer work in California in the 1960s when my grandpa…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2018/10/26/a-writing-inheritance-from-two-grandparents/
5 months ago
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My newspaper column this week looks at how the various political parties suggest we address the problem of crime.
www.thecarillon.com/local/2025/0...
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COLUMN: Viewpoint - Building more prisons is not the answer
“If our jails are full, we need to build more jails.” That’s a quote from Maxime Bernier, the leader of the People’s Party of Canada. The Carillon ran a story about Mr. Bernier last week because he wa...
https://www.thecarillon.com/local/2025/05/02/column-viewpoint-building-more-prisons-is-not-the-answer
5 months ago
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I just finished the debut novel of Winnipeg author Zilla Jones. Read my thoughts about it in the post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/01/t...
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The World So Wide
I just finished Winnipeg author Zilla Jones’ debut novel, The World So Wide. Photo of Zilla Jones from her Facebook page Zilla has been getting lots of national exposure for The World So Wide…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/05/01/the-world-so-wide/?fbclid=IwY2xjawKAWYZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFwVTdEdlA4WEszUTR3WlJmAR6ML5Y_oygl5B8wZAatD1liQd1WfjuznCeqYnulnlhdAX61h6FlzRpkG9eepQ_aem_AwmEwiezs1nVt4l_K4R_FA
5 months ago
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My friend Beryl is a 90-year-old Canadian author who published a beautiful new picture book this year. Read all about it in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/01/11/b...
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Beryl’s New Book
I’ve never met Beryl Young in person but consider her a friend. It was reading her novel Miles to Go that gave me the idea to submit my Lost on the Prairie manuscript to Heritage House publis…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/01/11/beryls-new-book/
5 months ago
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It's Canadian National Poetry Month, so I decided to write some haikus for this momentous day in Canadian history. Check them out in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/28/h...
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Haikus For Election Day
I’ve been playing around with haiku poetry lately. A haiku poem has exactly 7 syllables and three lines- the first with 5 syllables, the second with 7, and the third with 5 again. Here are so…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/28/haikus-for-election-day/
5 months ago
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It's Canadian Independent Bookstore Day and in my post I celebrate my go-to indie bookstore here in Winnipeg
@mcnallyrobinson.com
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/26/c...
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Canadian Independent Book Store Day
The McNally Robinson Booksellers store at Grant Park Shopping Centre-photo by Mike Deal / Winnipeg Free Press It’s Canadian Independent Book Store Day, a day to celebrate the importance of in…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/26/canadian-independent-book-store-day/
5 months ago
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My latest newspaper column is about how Canadians are rallying around our flag, which has at times had a troubled history.
www.thecarillon.com/local/2025/0...
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COLUMN: Viewpoint - Pride in our flag unites us
My cousins recently posted a social media photo of the huge new Canadian flag they’ve put up on their Saskatchewan farmyard. My nine-year-old grandson in Saskatoon has made a sign for the front window...
https://www.thecarillon.com/local/2025/04/22/column-viewpoint-pride-in-our-flag-unites-us
5 months ago
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I'm taking a great course in writing picture books with
@karenkrossing.bsky.social
courtesy of Whale Rock Workshops. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/23/l...
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Learning About Picture Books
Image from Whale Rock Workshops I’m taking a course right now in learning how to write picture books. Over the years I’ve developed quite a number of picture book manuscripts but none o…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/23/learning-about-picture-books/
5 months ago
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It's National Poetry Month. I still remember a poem I recited at a speech arts festival when I was eight. What poem do you remember from your childhood?
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/03/i...
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I Keep Three Wishes Ready
I’m not sure how many poems kids memorize these days, but when I was in elementary school, we memorized poetry a lot. Steinbach, the community where I spent my childhood, had a speech arts fe…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/03/i-keep-three-wishes-ready/
6 months ago
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I spent most of yesterday reading a charming book about an elderly woman and a mouse. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/01/i...
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I Read This Charming Book in a Day
My cousin recommended the book Sipsworth to me. I wonder now, given my experience with a mouse in the house , if my cousin was trying to tease me with her reading suggestion, because Sipsworth is a…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/04/01/i-read-this-charming-book-in-a-day/
6 months ago
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Does anyone else remember Readers Digest Condensed books. I loved reading them and I think they were formative in my growth as a writer. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2023/12/09/f...
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Fond Memories of Readers Digest Condensed Books
I just read in the Globe and Mail that Readers Digest Publishers are going out of business. That made me feel a little nostalgic because when I was a kid in the 1960s I loved reading the sets of co…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2023/12/09/fond-memories-of-readers-digest-condensed-books/
6 months ago
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My mother-in-law's 85 year old autograph book is a beautiful archive of unique messages from her friends and family members. Read more in my post below.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/03/26/m...
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My Mother-in-Law’s Autograph Book
I was going through some boxes of family memorabilia on the weekend and came across my mother-in-law Anne’s autograph book. I can’t remember exactly how it came to be in my possession, …
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/03/26/my-mother-in-laws-autograph-book/
6 months ago
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Huge thanks to the Canada Council for their support of Canadian writers. Read more in my post.
maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/03/13/h...
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Huge Thanks to the Canada Council
In the last few weeks, the social media posts of Canadian authors have been filled with expressions of gratitude to the Canada Council. Every year the council sends out cheques to Canadian authors.…
https://maryloudriedger2.wordpress.com/2025/03/13/huge-thanks-to-the-canada-council/
6 months ago
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