I can relate to author Robert Kroetsch’s meditation on the Husky Tower, even though the now-named Calgary Tower no longer towers above the surrounding buildings. Over the years, I’ve enjoyed many trips to the upper floor for views of the mountains and Calgary spread below. A few times, when relatives visited for the Christmas holidays, we’ve had breakfast in the revolving restaurant. Being December in Calgary, we didn’t even have to get up early to catch the sunrise.
Alberta Humour
When our book club was recalling the books we’d discussed in recent years, someone asked if there was a type of story that was missing from our selections. One person answered “humour.” Barb Howard’s Whipstock is a rarity – a funny Canadian novel, with depth. It deals with the oil patch and feminism, another unlikely pairing.
Where I’ll be at WWC
Calgary’s When Words Collide writing conference is less than a week away. I’ll be sure to get there in time for the keynote addresses on Friday night (August 14th). These are always a great introduction to the conference’s special guests and are sometimes quite creative. If I’m up to it, I’ll stay on for the Noir Bar Evening Social in the hotel’s Boomtown Lounge.
My events are all scheduled for Saturday, August 15th. At noon, I’ll be moderating a panel on Does the Mystery Protagonist Drive the Novel? – my first experience as a panel moderator. At 2:00 PM, I’ll be reading from my short story “Freezer Breakdown” at the book social for the Alberta crime anthology, AB Negative. Then at 3:00 PM, I’m on a panel that will discuss Thrillers vs. Traditional Mysteries. Again, if my energy sustains I’ll attend the Crime Writers Fandango party that evening.
For the rest of the weekend, I’ll be free to chat with people I run into, browse the booksellers’ tables and attend sessions that strike my fancy. I’ve looked at the WWC program and, as always, it will be hard to choose from the varied and exciting offerings.
Wild youth in Calgary
Calgary gets raunchy in Ophira Eisenberg’s memoir Screw Everyone: sleeping my way to monogamy. I like the surprise twist of the excerpt’s last line. My sons also attended Western Canada High School. They were there later than Ophira, thankfully.
AB Negative Launch
Stacey Kondla captured this photo at the AB Negative launch Tuesday night, at Owl’s nest bookstore. I look kind of goofy, but the picture doesn’t lie when it shows me having fun during my reading.
AB Negative Shout-out
In today’s Calgary Herald, Eric Volmers wrote a great piece about AB Negative, the new Alberta Crime Anthology that will be launched this Tuesday at Owl’s Nest Bookstore. There’s even a line in it about me. I hope to see you at Owl’s Nest this week.
Cemeteries
My husband finds it morbid, but like Aritha Van Herk in Places Far From Ellesmere I like to wander through cemeteries. You can imagine stories from so many of the graves. This reminds me that I haven’t visited any Calgary cemeteries. Perhaps, I will now.
Life-long Calgarians
When I first moved to Calgary, it seemed that no one I met was born here. They’d all migrated from Saskatchewan, eastern Canada, BC and beyond. Evidently, Calgary natives exist. Here are some wise words from Calgary’s first poet laureate on being a Calgary lifer.
Book launch
On Tuesday, August 4, 7:00 PM, I’ll be at Owl’s Nest Bookstore in Calgary to help celebrate the launch of the new Canadian crime anthology AB Negative (Coffin Hop Press). Alberta crime short stories by Alberta authors. Joining me will be contributing writers Jayne Barnard, Robert Bose, Axel Howerton, Brent Nichols and Randy McCharles. I’m thrilled to be part of the pack.
Owl’s Nest Bookstore, 815A 49th Avenue SW (Britannia Shopping Plaza), Calgary. Tues, August 4, 7:00 PM. For more information, phone Owl’s Nest: 403-287-9557 or email: owlsnestbooks@shaw.ca. Free. Everyone welcome.
Music and Calgary Literature
This week’s Writing the City post by Shaun Hunter features a novel I really enjoyed: Love Minus Zero, by Lori Hahnel. Sadly, perhaps, I identified with the novel’s naive protagonist and her hopeless, too-long obsessive love for a creep. I also appreciated the novel’s abundant Calgary setting and glimpse of the city’s 1980s punk rock scene by an author who was there the thick of it.