SAM Magazine

E34 - K.L. Abrahamson, Through Dark Water

Multi-published author and Ellery Queen author, K.L. Abrahamson is in the dressing room. On Karen’s website, the visitor is greeted with these words, “Writing at the dangerous ends of the earth; The various incarnations of Karen L. Abrahamson.” Karen writes, mystery, fantasy, and romance. She is also a prolific short story author and her stories have appeared in numerous anthologies.  Karen has worked as a special constable, a correctional officer, a probation officer and ESL instructor. She has travelled to East and West Africa, Burma, China, Northern India, and Peru. We talk about stepping out onto the ledge when writing, real camping, and her thrilling and breath-taking novel, Through Dark Water. We had a great discussion even after being podcast-bombed by Shiva and Ozzy.
⁠Writing at the dangerous ends of the earth – The various Incarnations of Author Karen L. Abrahamson (karenlabrahamson.com)⁠
⁠Karen L. Abrahamson | Facebook

E34 - Alisha Sevigny, The Lost Scroll of the Physician

Alisha Sevigny is an author of Young Adult, Middle Grade and Children’s Books. She is a literary consultant for those seeking assistance in writing and publishing their novel. She holds a degree in Professional Writing and Sociology from the University of Victoria, is a film school graduate, former literary agent and yoga teacher. She is passionate about Ancient Civilizations and her new middle-grade series Secrets of the Sands launched in 2020 with The Lost Scroll of the Physician and is followed by The Desert Prince. No matter what your age, this is a thrilling series for any lover of Ancient Egypt, mystery and adventure.
⁠Alisha Sevigny⁠ ⁠alisha sevigny (@alishasevigny) / Twitter⁠ ⁠(2) Alisha Sevigny, Author | Facebook

E33 - Vanessa Asell Tsuruga - Forget-Me-Not Forever

Vanessa Åsell Tsuruga leads the Digital and Content portfolio, weaving in the contractual  sponsorship assets from the sports and entertainment properties in the Rakuten portfolio.  Prior to Rakuten, she worked for ASICS in Sponsorship Activation, Sports Marketing, and PR roles at the Global Headquarter (Kobe, Japan) and Scandinavian office in Stockholm, Sweden.  She also worked as a Tokyo based BBC World Service freelance reporter. Vanessa holds a  Master’s Degree in "Olympic Studies, Olympic Education, Organization and Management of  Olympic Events" from the International Olympic Academy and a BA Journalism from City  University, London. She has run 6 marathons.
Vanessa is also an author. She published her  debut novel in Swedish on International Women’s Day 2020, and had it translated into English. Forget-me-not Forever is available on Kobo as an eBook. Join Vanessa and I as we talk about translations, Frankensteining-sections of text, using the New York marathon as a metaphor for life and why Vanessa is constantly receiving pancake emojis. 
⁠Vanessa Åsell Tsuruga - Senior Manager | Global Sports Digital Strategy - Rakuten | LinkedIn⁠ ⁠Vanessa Åsell Tsuruga | Facebook

E32 - S.M. Freedman, The Day She Died

International Amazon Bestselling author, S.M. (Shoshona) Freedman, joins me in the dressing room. Her debut novel The Faithful was selected by Suspense Magazine as a "Best Debut of 2015." The sequel, Impact Winter, was published in 2016. Shoshona and I talk about writing what we fear, nightmares, keeping the intensity and keeping the story human. Shoshona acknowledges "working" to write the perfect narrative paragraph, and she jokes about the original title for her standalone thriller The Day She Died, a novel I could not put down. We delve into Judaism and Catholicism.
Shoshona is currently working on the third and final instalment in The Faithful Series. Her standalone psychological thriller novel, The Day She Died, published by Dundurn Press, is being released April 27. Signed copies of The Day She Died is available through Book Warehouse. Shoshona is a proud member of the Sisters in Crime, Crime Writers of Canada, International Thriller Writers, and Mystery Writers of America. At my urging, Shoshona shares what it was like to watch the sun set on a rooftop in New York City during Thrillerfest. ⁠S.M.F (smfreedman.com)⁠ 

E30 - SinC - Canada West, Crime Wave anthology

Crime Wave is the  Canada West anthology published by the Sisters in Crime - CW chapter. It features K.L. Abrahamson, J.E. Barnard, Alice Bienia, Marcelle Dubè, Debra Henry, Winona Kent, Charlotte Morganti and Merrilee Robson. Melodie Campbell writes the Foreword in this collection explaining why crime has always been a woman's genre, and each of these talented authors joins me in the dressing room. I learned a lot such as retro-fitting a story, skiing 10 kilometres in -20 degrees in the Yukon, working from a 3-act structure, the snowflake method of plotting and there's even some Shakespeare. As much as these authors are dedicated and serious about their craft, they are also incredibly funny.  Thank you Sisters in Crime - CW for joining me in the dressing room. We have to do this again in person. Cheers.

E31 - Judy Toews, Lucky Jack Road

As a child Judy Toews published the neighbourhood news at $0.25 a pop, then she was the editor of two school newspapers. Her first novel, Give Out Creek, was a finalist for the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Unpublished Crime Novel and the 2019 Lefty Award for Best Debut Mystery novel. Her protagonist, Stella Mosconi, is a newspaper reporter, and we discuss Judy's second novel in the Stella Mosconi series, Lucky Jack Road.
Judy used to work as a nutritionist. She has a love for science and forensic work. Judy shares a few good resources, such as ⁠Howdunit Forensics: A Guide for Writers⁠, written by D.P. Lyle. To learn more about Judy check out her website ⁠https://www.jgtoews.com⁠

E29 - Jennifer Kaddoura, Editor

"Play with words." Editor Jennifer Kaddoura is an artist who has found her perfect creative space. Her devotion to critical thinking, creative writing and empathy is obvious in her editing approach. Jennifer is intensely curious about insights gained through lived experience and finds joy in helping her clients achieve their publishing goals. She encourages her clients to courageously share their insights, helping them to present their vision clearly and, often, compellingly. “What matters in this complex and crowded world is the authenticity and clarity of your voice — freeze-framing your kaleidoscope so that others may benefit from your insights.” She has extensive experience in both customer service and editing. She began her career at an innovative, fast-growing software company. Her client service skills and commitment to meeting every deadline propelled her into positions requiring steadfast dependability. She became the primary relationship contact for numerous large companies in both Canada and the US, as well as the primary contact for white-glove executive services across all clients. When the company sought to better their education materials, her talents in clear communication and document design were put to use in the position of comprehensive editor. She has since moved to Victoria, B.C., where she is employed as a Legislative Editor for the B.C. Attorney General Ministry. Additional Victoria editing experiences include Senior Editor at Hansard Services, with the Legislative Assembly of B.C., as well as editing various projects through her freelance platform — historical fiction, creative non-fiction, online material, professional content for small businesses and local-area artists and academic theses (Master's level), with projects in Canadian and American English.
Jennifer Kaddoura Editorial Services (editmebrilliant.com)

E28 - Andre Gress, Boone and Jacque Saddleton’s Secret

Andre Gress is the author of Boone and Jacque Saddleton's Secret, the first novel in his urban fantasy series. In this novel readers are introduced to the great friendship between Boone and Jacque as they discover there's more going on in Saddleton. Why do the teachers only teach history from grades to 3 to 5? Who is Shammy, the girl who, "smells like cotton candy and cookies," and should Boone and Jacque join the Saddleton Truth Seekers? Andre discusses drawing upon real life events to shape Boone and Jacque's journey and the underlying themes. 
Andre is writing book 3 and when he's not involved with Boone and Jacque's adventures, he writes poetry.