November's sky is chill and drear / November's life is red and sear. (#IWSG November 2026)

Thank you to everyone who gave me feedback and suggestions last month about setting up a table at a writer's con. I officially got a table at the Indie Lit Market on November 21st, so I will be putting that advice to good use!

Any other tips and suggestions are still welcome. I did go to a couple of events in October to check out how other authors are setting up. Can*Con here in Ottawa was a lot of fun, and next year I need to sign up earlier so I can actually participate in some of the talks and seminars. I did get to see the vendor's hall, but really it was intended for writers to meet and learn. The only thing I learned is that people like to buy stickers, nicknacks and bookmarks more than books! lol

November question 

As a writer, do you have favorite themes that you like to explore in your stories? If so, what are they?

As a primarily horror/comedy writer, my themes generally veer toward absurd things that make you uncomfortable. I love the dichotomy of taking something funny and amusing, and then undercutting it with something horrific. It makes the tragedy all the more scary. I'm not sure if that's really a theme so much as a style or genre though, so I had to go back and think a little harder, and I realized I do have a couple of recurring themes.

All of my books are about normal, usually awkward people with no particular skills or talents, thrust into horrifying, monstrous situations they are not equipped to deal with. Isaac in Ten Thousand Days, a hapless guy who works in a copy shop, losing his wife and travelling to a nightmare world trying to get her back. Fitz the comic book store manager in Hell Comes to Hogtown, blamed for a crime he didn't commit and stalked by an unkillable demon. And the kids in the Gale Harbour series, nerds and losers who are the only people standing between their town and an alien invasion. Definitely some recurring themes there.

Another one I realized is that love never works out nice and clean in the end. None of my books ever has a happily-ever-after, definitely not in the love department (bittersweet is about the best I can manage). Which is weird coming from someone who has been with the same partner for nearly 30 years, but I just prefer stories were the relationships end up tangled and messy. Even in a happy marriage, love is sometimes tangled and messy, and I'm just not fond of stories ending happy and tidy with a neat little bow. (Unless it's a Hallmark Christmas movie, those are okay)

Hope everyone had a good Halloween, and their love stories are ending better than my books do! Wish me luck with my first author table on the 21st.

Hugs & Kisses,

-CDGK

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com

I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers. (#IWSG October 2025)

In September I made Gale Harbour Book 1 free for the Stuff Your Kindle Event (Thrills, Suspense & Dark Tales Edition), trying to drum up some traffic and sales. I also paid BookBelow to help promote it. 

The results? I had 461 free downloads, which lead to $12.20 (Canadian) in further sales and page reads. The promotion cost about $27.50 CAD. 

Back in June I did the Young Adult and Coming of Age Stuff Your Kindle Event. That time I did 205 downloads and made $32.07 CAD in sales in the following 30 days (however that time I paid extra for the "Premium" BookBelow listing so it cost me closer to $37 CAD). 

So what can I take away from this? 

Neither promotion were great, though the June one certainly had a better cost of sale (117% vs 225% in September - both are terrible, one just less terrible than the other). Was this because Psycho Hose Beast fit better in the Coming of Age group? Maybe.

The extra cost of the premium ad did not increase the number of downloads. Would I have had fewer downloads if I hadn't paid extra though? Maybe.

Was the promotion worth it, in the end? Hard to say. Could I have gotten more bang for my buck paying $30 for Amazon or Facebook ads? In my (admittedly limited) experience, those ads don't have a huge return either, unless you're really good at massaging the algorithm to find the right target market, something I've never been able to successfully do. 

In conclusion? I don't fucking know. I'll keep playing with it and maybe I'll figure out what I'm doing one of these days (suggestions are appreciated).

In other writing news, I'm trying to sign up to do an author fair at an event in November (The Unbound Indie Lit Market here in Ottawa). I said "trying to" because I applied for a table awhile ago but still haven't heard back. They said please wait to hear from us, but I'm thinking I should try to reach out again. 

I've never set up a table at one of these events, so.... any tips or pointers from the veterans out there? Like seriously, any suggestions at all?

• How many books should I bring?
• What kind of signs?
• What should I do for handouts? (Business cards, bookmarks, candy, etc?)
• What other things haven't I thought of?

I've been googling and searching for these things myself, but any feedback by real people would be appreciated!

That's my update for this month. In case you haven't noticed, I've been putting a renewed effort into some of the other functions around being in author (besides the writing part, can't forget the writing part!). I also finally got around to contacting my local independent bookstore (it's literally just down the street) and asking them if they wanted to carry my book. They said no. Between that and the store back home in Newfoundland who asked me to take my books back because they weren't selling, I haven't actually had much luck with in person books sales. 

So how is your author adventure going?

Hugs & Kisses,
-CDGK

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com

September is the other January. (#IWSG September 2026)

Ah, September. Kids are back to school. Life is crazy (in a different way). We finished the Summer with the Rocky Horror Picture Show on Friday night (RIP Tim Curry), my daughter's end-of-season soccer team party on Saturday, and the Ottawa Pride Parade on Sunday. It was a lot of fun but exhausting.

Apparently it's the 15th Anniversary of the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Congratulations to Alex and everyone who made this happen and kept it going over the years. I've been a member for 12 years, so for most of its existence, and it has given me a great base from my online writing community. I've met author friends, discovered some great books, and always appreciated the cheering section. Not to mention I've been featured in three of their anthologies!

So congratulations again, and here's to the next fifteen years!

September Question - Do you have a favorite character archetype you tend to gravitate toward in your writing?

I love hapless, awkward losers and oddballs who don't want to be heroes, and would just as likely run from danger as not. And even if they are "brave," their courage stems from some hopelessly misplaced delusion, rather than some sort of skill or ability. Rincewind from the Discworld books is a perfect archetype of this. The kids from IT. Shaggy and Scooby Doo.

Most of the main characters in Hell Comes to Hogtown and the Gale Harbour books fit into this mold. So does Gussy Saint, from a couple of stories I've published (including Gussy Saint and the "Case of the Missing Co-Ed" from the IWSG anthology, TICK TOCK: A Stitch in Crime). Actually I've been meaning to write another Gussy Saint story for awhile. would way rather read about a clumsy doofus stumbling to victory (or not) than a boring, skilled hero overcoming adversity. 

Side Note: Gale Harbour Book 1: Psycho Hose Beast From Outer Space, is available FREE today on Amazon. If you somehow still haven't picked it up in one of the many promotions, check it out now!

Hope your end of summer is going well!

Hugs & Kisses,
-CDGK

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com

August rain: the best of summer gone, and the new fall not yet born, the odd uneven time. (#IWSG August 2026)

Missed last month's IWSG post. Just a quick check in today to make sure I don't fall off the list. 😁

In case you didn't notice from the mess my blog is in, or if you didn't get the frantic email from me a couple of weeks ago, I've been having some email issues. Life has been a bit crazy. It's mostly sorted out now, but I'm having to fix the blog and reload old pictures and such bit by bit. It's a headache, but I'll get it back together eventually. 

August Question - As a writer/author what is something you regret? Or something that you wish you'd done differently in your writing process?

Regrets... I have a few...

Oh wait, you mean writing-related?

The most obvious one is that I didn't start earlier. I mean, I've been writing my whole life, but I didn't start taking it seriously until I was in my mid-thirties. I published my first novel at 35. The self-publishing craze and Kindle Direct Publishing started about 5 years before that. If I had jumped on the bandwagon earlier, especially pre-kids when I had more time and energy, who knows where I would have ended up? Or maybe if I had tried harder to get my work traditionally published in my twenties?

In all honesty I try not to have regrets, or at least focus on them. What will be will be. I can't say everything happens for a reason, but I certainly can't change the past. Better to use my choices to affect the future.

Anyway.

Hope everyone is having a great summer! See in you in the funny pages.

Hugs & Kisses,
-CDGK

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com

Green was the silence, wet was the light / the month of June trembled like a butterfly. (#IWSG June 2026)

So, not exactly writing related, but for those of you at home following my sporting adventures ...

As you may recall, back in December I started playing soccer for the first time in my life. At 45 years old. I had never played any serious sport before, but watching my daughter play 3-4 times a week gave me the itch to try.

In February, I joined a supposedly recreational, co-ed, "casual" league. Spoiler alert: they were not "casual." I tried to keep up and ended up seriously hurting my knee after 2.5 games.

Fast forward to the end of May. After three months of physio and rehab, my physiotherapist said that was all she could do for me, and that I could try easing myself back into playing. This past Sunday, I went to an adult beginner's soccer skills class. After an hour of drills and practice, I was feeling pretty good. My knee was holding up fine, I was running around and kicking with no pain, everything was going smooth. Then we had a scrimmage, just to run around and have fun.

Five minutes into the game, a woman charged me from behind and flattened me. She landed on me hard. 

Right on top of my bad knee.

So here I am, back where I started three months ago, my knee swollen up like a grapefruit, alternating ice and heat while the swelling goes down and the muscles spasm in protest. I don't think it's as bad as last time, because the three months of rehab did strengthen my leg somewhat, but I'll have to wait for the swelling to go down to know for sure. 

Anyway.

How's writing going?

JUNE QUESTION

Do most of your story ideas come from one place (the news, dreams, etc.) or do they hit from all over the place?

All over the place.

My first book, Ten Thousand Days, came from snippets of song lyrics I'd heard, about love and loss. I was also obsessed with time (at the time) and the relativity of it. It also helped that I was about to turn ten thousand days old myself when I wrote it, so all in all I had lots of material to play with. (For reference, 10,000 days is 27 years and approximately 140 days, depending on when leap years fall in the cycle.)

My next book, Hell Comes to Hogtown, was inspired by professional wrestling and comic books stores, both things that have been a big part of my life for as long as I can remember. It started with me thinking of several funny scenes revolving around comic stores and wrestling, and the story grew from there.

I've mentioned before that the Gale Harbour series was very much inspired by Stranger Things, but set in my hometown in the 90s. When I first watched the show it triggered a lot of nostalgia for me (which was the point, I suppose), but I wanted it to be even more specific to my experience. Selfish, I know.

And what I'm currently working on? I have two mostly-finished manuscripts I've been tinkering with, one based on a game I played with my kids, another based on a movie I watched years ago and hated so bad I wanted to rewrite the story.

Then there's a Vonnegut-esque satire I tried to write last year about modern politics. I wrote about 30K words and had to give up because following and studying the news that closely every day was sending me into intense fits of anxiety and depression. I wish I was joking.

So yeah. Ideas come from everywhere. Keep you mind open and your eyes peeled.

Hope everyone is having a good spring, and the world isn't on fire (yet) where you live!

Hugs & Kisses,

-CDGK

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com

May is the month of expectation, the month of wishes, the month of hope (#IWSG May 2026)

Yeah, I know this is two days late.

Happy Birthday to me.

That means it's been one year since the release of Gale Harbour 3: Dirtbag Satan Worshippers From Down by the Bay, and eleven years since my first book, Ten Thousand Days. And there is no new books on the horizon.

That's not to say I haven't been writing. I've been writing quite a bit, actually. I have two mostly-complete first-draft manuscripts and two or three more that are half-finished. I just haven't been able to commit to finish anything. This year has been quite a roller coaster, with my father-in-law's passing and just general craziness keeping us busy all the time. I just haven't had the motivation to write the way I used to.

So now should be a perfect time to go back and read some old reviews for inspiration, right?

May Question: What was the most inspiring feedback you received from readers?

Oh, this will be fun. I've shared a few of these before, but they're too good to not mention again.

"Not rating this as I noped out of this one very early."
- SPFBO reviewer 

"A review will follow."
- a different SPFBO reviewer on a different book (spoiler: a review did NOT follow)

"This book had some errors, relied completely on allusions to the pop culture of my childhood and bordered on cheesy from beginning to end."
- Goodreads review

"too much about 13 year olds thinking about sex."
- Amazon reviewer who has never met a 13-year-old boy.

"Our favorite bunch of Nova Scotian teenage nerds"
-  Goodreads review (and yes, the very first word in the synopsis is "Newfoundland")

"The first book in the series really pulled out all the stops resulting in a book that was as suspenseful as it was hilarious."
- Goodreads review talking about the second book in the series.

"It's not bad, you know, if you've got nothing better to read."
- my father-in-law

"This is pretty good, where did you plagiarize this from?"
- my father

"You should read Patricia Lynne's book. She's a much better writer than you."
- my wife 

I'm being silly of course. There were plenty of good reviews in there, too. In fact, the first Gale Harbour book recently crossed 50 reviews on Goodreads, and it has a 4.3 rating overall (4.7 on Amazon), so I can't complain. But it's always easier to focus on the less-than-stellar feedback. I'm certainly never going to get a big ego, that's for sure.

Anyway.

We're going to an Ottawa Rapid FC game tonight and then to a pirate-themed restaurant for Karaoke on the weekend, so I can't complain about my birthday celebrations, either. Here's my daughter at the Rapid home opener last weekend:

She got to meet three of her favourite players: Min-A Lee, Choo Hyo-Joo and Minyoung Jung, who in addition to being in the starting line-up for the Ottawa Rapid, are all also members of the South Korean National Women's Team. She was very excited, it was so cute.

May all of you have received great positive feedback that inspires you to write more and better. And for all the crappy reviews? Fuck'em.

Hugs & Kisses,
-CDGK

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com

April is the cruellest month, breeding / Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing / Memory and desire, stirring / dull roots with spring rain. (#IWSG April 2026)

April Fools! I didn't forget IWSG.

Well, I did forget it. Kinda. I knew it was happening but I've just been so crazy with work I didn't have time to do anything.

Knee - slowly healing

Writing - stalled

April Question

If you have a playlist (or could put one together) that either gets you in the groove to write or fits with one of your books, what is it? What type of music or what songs?

Well that's easy, since I have playlists for all my books. In case you haven't read Gale Harbour, music is very important for setting the mood and the time period the stories take place. I listened to period-appropriate music constantly while I wrote the books, and you can follow along in the books with these handy-dandy playlists:

And for bonus points, here's the playlists for my other two books. These are not as extensive as Gale Harbour, but they'll still give you insight into my headspace when I was writing them.

Anyway, I really do have to run. That was the easiest post in awhile. ;-)

Happy Easter! 
Hugs & Kisses,

-CDGK

The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Writers post their thoughts on their blogs, talking about their doubts and the fears they have conquered. It's a chance for writers to commiserate and offer a word of encouragement to each other. Check out the group at http://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com