The Book Nook—February Edition

After my last Book Nook column was a smashing success, the Powers that Be at DIY MFA saw it in their infinite wisdom to make this a monthly column! Henceforth, on the first Sunday of every month, you will see an update of all the bookish goodness I’ve been indulging in over the past month…. Read more »

Mythic Storytelling: The Heroine’s Journey by Gail Carriger

Greetings, Speculators! As you might guess from the title of this column, I’ve found another mythic structure to expound upon. I’m going to take a slightly different approach this time, however. When I read Gail Carriger’s interpretation of the heroine’s journey, it struck a chord with me (imagine angelic chorus here). I thought that Instead… Read more »

reading books

Introducing the Book Nook!

New year, new column! I am so excited to start writing this new column I am calling the Book Nook. As much as I love writing, I’m always reading books. So I was able to convince the Powers that Be to allow me to write a column about books I’ve been reading.  At DIY MFA,… Read more »

Celebrating Indie Writers

I’m writing this as 2020 draws to a close – and you’ll be reading it with 2020 firmly in the rearview mirror. The challenges brought to all of us by MMXX have been unprecedented. For authors, the traditional ways we’ve engaged with readers – book fairs, bookstore signings, book club gatherings, Renaissance festivals, historical re-enactments,… Read more »

Indigenous Sci-Fi and Fantasy Authors to Read Now

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 »

Meet the Team #5onFri—Favorite Books

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 books. 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 »

Picturing Grief

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 »

Cozy to Cold-blooded: Famous Authors as Sleuths

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 »

Interview with Ausma Zehanat Khan

[Editor’s Note: As a part of DIY MFA’s ongoing missions 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 and Marcie Rendon.] About Ausma Zehanat Khan Ausma Zehanat Khan is the… Read more »