Robert J. Halliwell: “My own experiences with love and romance influence me massively. I’m not the sort of person who can write things that I have no connection to.” AS WE celebrate Pride Month, I’m thrilled to feature an Own Voice author whose work brilliantly highlights the importance of diverse voices in fiction, including authentic […]
Nicholas Young: “I’m sure my sexuality influences my writing subconsciously. It would be strange if it did not.” I WANT to welcome Nicholas Young to the Blog. Nicholas is a Canadian author whose work delves into themes of queerness, memory, isolation, and belonging through intimate, character-driven storytelling. His debut novel, Under the Covered Bridge, is […]
“Bren’s arm wrapped around A.J.’s chest as the first verse started. It was only then, as music poured from the bud snuggled in his ear, that he realized it–even without his Discman, there was always music when he was with Bren.” – Robert J. Halliwell, And Then He Pressed Play: Track One CANADIAN AUTHOR Robert […]
“I stared out the window, watching the shadowy patterns of the rain-soaked beams pass by. This bridge had always felt like a portal, a passage to somewhere else, a place where the world might change, where I might emerge as someone different.” – Nicholas Young, Under the Covered Bridge WRITTEN IN a beautifully stylized, almost […]
“…if you fish for the glory you catch the darkness too… when you hook twice the glory you hook twice the fear.” — Sheila Watson CANADA IS often portrayed as friendly, relaxed, and picturesque, but readers here have a long-standing love for fiction that dives into shadows, secrets, and emotional complexity. The stark bleakness of […]
IN 2025, I reached a momentous milestone with the release of my second Haunted Hearts Own-Voices Gay Paranormal Romance novel, I Will Always Find You. While the first series revolved around ghosts, this installment immerses readers in the spellbinding world of witchcraft in the collection we named Haunted Hearts: Season of the Witch. This multi-author […]
DURING my time at the University of Guelph, while pursuing my English degree with a focus on nineteenth-century literature and Queer Theory, particularly Victorian Gothic, I came across this book while looking for texts to aid with my studies in the field. I still have my original copy, which I picked up at the now-closed […]
LATELY, I’ve been thinking about the strange relationship readers can have with an author’s work, how some of our books are eagerly picked up while others get dismissed outright. What if a story truly is more than its designated genre? This topic is not new territory; authors have engaged with it since the dawn of […]
“There’s nothing wrong with having fears. Some would say it’s crucial. The fear of never being loved? Never being desired? Feeling like your creativity and vision aren’t wanted, even in a city that seems open to everything? Rejection is a universal fear.” – Christian Baines, Andalusia Dogs SET in Madrid during the early 1980s, when Spain was […]
THIS article was sparked by a discussion I had with my husband about my occasional use of Queer Theory in conversations about contemporary queer issues, as well as in literary and other contexts. He pointed out that some of the terminology felt “dated.” So, I wondered: has Queer Theory evolved, or is it outdated? Am […]
