Image use purchased from Adobe First Comes Reading My urge to put words onto the page began with reading. Owen Meany, an elephant whose name is Mud, an Irish boy called Henry, couples sat about a table drinking and talking foolish about love—these encounters with fiction can be as real and meaningful as my actual…… Continue reading Working the Empathy Muscle
Author: Debbie Bateman
Debbie Bateman is a graduate of The Writer’s Studio at Simon Fraser University. Her short stories and personal essays have been published in anthologies and literary magazines. She works as an editor for Thompson Rivers University and was formerly the fiction interviews editor for The Artisanal Writer. Her collection of linked short stories about peri-menopausal women, "Your Body Was Made for This," was published by Ronsdale Press. A proud mother of three sons, Debbie lives in Quw’utsun (Cowichan) on Vancouver Island with her husband and soulmate. She is a Buddhist of Scottish/Irish descent and a quiet rebel.
Flying Pigs
Photo by Debbie Bateman Say Hello to My Friend It’s a good life, no lie. In my office, I have this delightful creature at my back on a bookshelf at eye level. Whenever I turn around, I see its protruding snout and clever wings, and I remember to believe in the impossible. Those beady eyes…… Continue reading Flying Pigs
Star Ratings
Image use purchased from Adobe The Age of Stars We live in the age of stars, not the ones in the sky nor the famous actors, but the system of ratings we issue for everything from toilet paper to movies. I’ll be the first to admit that this system comes in handy, especially when I’m…… Continue reading Star Ratings
Everything in Your Head
Image use purchased from Adobe Stock Being Read A few days ago, as I approached the house where we hold a weekly drumming circle, I was greeted by a fellow member of our happy little group. As we walked the remaining steps towards the house, carrying our djembes inside their own special backpacks, she said…… Continue reading Everything in Your Head
Ideas That Stick
Image use purchased from Adobe Stock About First Drafts In the earlier days of becoming a writer, I’d panic at any lack of fresh ideas. A lot of the advice I read said to keep going no matter what, that first drafts were all a mess, and the trick was to continue. Good or bad,…… Continue reading Ideas That Stick
Laughter and Truth
Image use purchased from Adobe Stock How It Began When people suggested Your Body Was Made for This might be funny, I was surprised. Middle-aged women going through perimenopause? I guess there are things about that which touch upon the absurd and ridiculous. Okay. But of all the things I am generally accused of being,…… Continue reading Laughter and Truth
Why I Write Now
Image use purchased from Adobe Stock Learning to Learn, Otherwise Called Unlearning Practically twenty years ago, I took a course about Writing by Aboriginal Women at the University of Calgary. It’d been added to the curriculum because of student protest. They’d noticed the absence of these important voices and insisted they be added. Yeah for…… Continue reading Why I Write Now
Freshening the Mind
Image use purchased from Adobe Stock An Innocent Start It started innocently enough as a habit formed on sound advice from Stella Leventoyannis Harvey. Early in The Writer’s Studio program I completed a few years ago, she suggested to the workshop group that it can be helpful to retype a story as a final act…… Continue reading Freshening the Mind
The Productive Pause
Image use purchased from Adobe Stock Empty Moments I’m a person who is uncomfortable with inaction. Ask me to work hard all day and I’ll be happier than I might be if you told me to sit down and be still for ten minutes. The empty moments can fill with shadows, the unexpected creeping around…… Continue reading The Productive Pause
Do You Believe in Writer’s Block?
Image use purchased from Adobe stock Smarty Pants Not so long ago, I responded to a general author question on Goodreads asking for my thoughts on writer’s block. Thinking myself smart, I immediately declared that I no longer believe it exists. I scoffed at the very suggestion that a writer could be blocked. A few…… Continue reading Do You Believe in Writer’s Block?
Debbie Bateman 