Ann Douglas

Thank you, 49th Shelf, for including my most recent book -- HAPPY PARENTS, HAPPY KIDS -- in this thought-provoking and inspiring list.

Today is the first-ever "I Read Canadian Day" -- a day to celebrate the importance of Canadian books in the lives of young readers. I'm celebrating by reflecting on the books that meant everything to me as a young reader and that set me on my path to becoming a writer. I'm sharing this photo of a tiny rug that was made by one of my grandmothers: the very same grandmother who first sparked my love of books and who supported my dream of becoming a writer. She bought me a ...subscription to WRITER'S DIGEST magazine when I was in Grade Four; and, when she died, she left me all the books she had lovingly accumulated over the course of a lifetime. We're talking 13 cartons worth of books. So here's to raising up the next generation of Canadian readers and writers. Because Canadian stories matter. #ireadcanadian #iwritecanadian #canadianbookstagram #canadianauthors #readthenorth #canadianbookstores #canadianbooks

Feel like it's getting harder and harder to find books by Canadian authors? It's not your imagination, writes Susan Swan in this really thought-provoking piece for NOW Magazine. "In 2005...27 per cent of the books bought by English Canadians were by Canadians. Today the figure is only 13 per cent a shocking drop of 50 per cent. No wonder professional authors have seen their incomes decline by 27 per cent since 1998!" ... The good news is that there are things we can do to make the situation better. And it all comes down to making it easier for Canadian readers/booksellers/libraries to actually find Canadian books. What we're talking about is a book distribution problem, not a book quality problem. Canadian readers continue to love Canadian books -- and they're super-supportive of Canadian authors. (Hey, I should know.) Fixing this problem is going to require a lot of hard work by book publishers/distributors and cultural policy makers. In the meantime, while we're waiting for things to get better, why not make a conscious effort to stay in the loop about Canadian books? A great starting point is 49th Shelf. And if you'd like some carefully curated book picks, follow BrinyBooks too. Then, once you've compiled that long list of Canadian books you can't wait to buy, purchase them from an indie bookseller. Indie booksellers do so much to contribute to the health of the Canadian book publishing industry. They deserve our support. https://nowtoronto.com//why-arent-canadians-reading-canad/ (Thanks for sharing this article, Anita Daher Books and The Writers' Union of Canada.)

It's easy to think that the writing process is magical and effortless. Sometimes it can be for a while -- but that's not the whole picture. Not by a long shot.... As novelist Jessica Westhead told me in a recent interview for my blog, "The hardest part [of writing WORRY] was when the rose-coloured glasses fell off, after I'd finished that draft in an exultant haze, and I realized it wasn’t remotely close to being done." More here: http://www.anndouglas.net//book-pairing-3-if-you-loved-hap

Ann Douglas is answering questions about HOW TO TRICK YOURSELF INTO WRITING A BOOK (her six-month course and community for writers which launches on October 1).