I know Indigenous Peoples’ Day was back on October 12th. Heck, Canada’s National Indigenous Peoples Day was way back on June 21st, but I wanted to share some of my favourite Indigenous Science Fiction and Fantasy authors with you in the interest of diversifying your reading. Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse I first encountered Roanhorse’s… Read more »
In my last article Poetry Can Change the World, I make an argument about how vital poetry still is, even in our mad-pace world. Or, lately, just our ‘mad’ world, am I right? Maybe it’s my lingering ADHD, maybe it’s my fractured, multitasking brain, but the reason I love poetry so much is, frankly, for… Read more »
In an effort to get our fellow word nerds to know Team DIY MFA a bit better, we decided to commandeer one of the #5onFri slots and talk about our favorite book. Predictably, each member approached the notion of “favorite” in a different way and each of us chose a different favorite. We’re a team… Read more »
As the world enters into a winter of COVID, grief hangs over so many people, it’s hard to know how to comfort others, to console oneself, to anticipate the next loss coming round the bend. It seems ridiculous to say with any kind of certainty what’s best to do in these shifting, traumatic and disruptive… Read more »
This week our #ownvoices series shifts slightly from the experiences of BIPOC mystery/thriller writers to share the story of a woman who endured an extraordinary event and became part of a large and varied group – people with disabilities both seen and unseen. Linda Olson was a young med student and wife in 1979 when,… Read more »
Full disclosure: the impetus for this article came from my own writing. I was having fun because I was finally getting to use Bald’s eyesalve in my story – though I’m not so sure the character was enjoying it quite as much as I was. Bald’s eyesalve (from a 10th-century medical text) is made of… Read more »
One of my favorite types of books is historical fiction, so it stands to reason that I love historical mysteries. Imagine my happiness at discovering mystery series starring famous writers as sleuths. I’m surprised I was able to stand my excitement when I discovered mystery series with mystery authors as the sleuths. The following seven… Read more »
Hey writers! In my past few articles we’ve been studying how to read with a purpose, and a fantastic way of leveling up our reading analysis skills is using the Story Grid Scene Analysis Template. As a quick reminder for readers who aren’t familiar with the Story Grid Scene Analysis Template, take a few minutes… Read more »
[Editor’s Note: As a part of DIY MFA’s ongoing mission to promote unique voices, regular columnist, Sara Farmer, has been conducting a limited series of interviews featuring authors with unique and diverse voices. You can check out her past interviews of Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Marcie Rendon, Ausma Zehanat Khan and Adam Smyer.] About Sheena Kamal Sheena… Read more »
Hello, readers! I’m so excited to share with you my interview with Finola Austin, an historical fiction author who just published her debut novel in early August 2020. Finola and I connected at the Writer’s Digest Conference in 2018 and I’ve eagerly cheered her querying and publishing successes. Finola has some fantastic tips for writers,… Read more »
