At the age of ten, I came into the possession of an exquisite, red velvet journal with gild edges. I can’t recall where it came from or who gave it to me but it was wrapped in a clear cellophane pouch. When I unwrapped it, I saw that the edges of the journal were gild in gold, like a bible. Each page was imprinted with delicate dotted lines and most memorably, carried the scent of roses. I still remember that smell. The kind of person who would posses a book like this was worldly, mature, provocative and true. It was the most beautiful book my child eyes had ever seen.
I didn’t begin writing in it right away because I wanted to write my deepest truths and I was afraid that someone would find it. So, I invented a code which would have looked like gibberish to anyone else and soon began writing. I filled the pages with every happiness, sadness, anger and love that a ten-year old would encounter. No one would know that those first handwritten words would mark the beginning of a lifelong practice.
Twenty years later, I began taking courses in writing and later won a scholarship from the University of British Columbia toward my Masters Degree, subsequently earning a 93.5% average.
When my eldest son was born, I left an amazing job as Associate Producer (manager) of the MZTV Museum, housed at the headquarters of Citytv/Muchmusic and began freelancing as a journalist. Soon after, I decided to devote my life to writing and in 2004, won a gold medal at the National Magazine Awards.
Two years later, a docu-drama called 72 Hours: True Crime, brought one of my stories to life. Episode #307 was based on a story I wrote called The Killer Next Door. It was produced by Kensington Communications and was broadcast on the CBC, Bravo!, Bold, Courttv, ichannel, National Geographic and other television stations worldwide. It is also now available on Amazon Prime and Roku.
In 2007, I received a grant from the Toronto Arts Council and in 2009 and 2013, I received further funding from the Ontario Arts Council for my works in progress.
I’ve been spending the last few years focusing on my day job in insurance but I was able to fit in a few blogs for Judo Canada which you can read here on my Excerpts page.
With the support and encouragement of my dear and wonderful husband, I am currently working on a gripping memoir. I am so thrilled and honoured to have been signed by the Bukowski Agency.