Sylvia McNicoll's Blog, page 2

And the Final Cover is….

Climbing the stairs, with a dog standing by for moral support, and surrounded by ribbons of words that 12  year old Ella recites to shore herself up and to help her memorize for  her CN tower recital–here it is the final cover. Coming April 13 in poetry month. Share This:

Whittling Down the Cover Choices

In my family there are three graphic designers and others trained in  photography and art as well as nine grandchildren. I ask everyone’s opinions on the cover in order to see if they conform with mine.  I definitely wanted railings for my stairs, for safety and accuracy. Dogs can’t climb Chedoke stairs because of the […]

Stage one of cover consultation- Blue to the Sky

Twelve year-old Ella wants to conquer her fear of public speaking by climbing the CN Tower to recite her poem on allergies.  She also wants to someday own a dog that won’t make her sneeze or wheeze. Julie McLaughlin prepared these roughs based on my idea that we showed Ella training for the climb on […]

Summer is not over yet!

Cicadas buzz in the soft evening air of August. Local peaches, and corn and watermelon await our eating pleasure at stands and grocery stores, fresh from the farm yards. It’s still warm enough for a swim at the beach or pool. We are going on a second vacation, from a log cottage to a […]

Encore Reading and Writing

\\ Here I am hard at work editing my upcoming novel Blue to the Sky, a story about a girl coping with too many allergies and surviving because of poetry.  Banjo is here giving me encouragement and making sure I take breaks, especially for walks. I’m reading this story for possibly the hundredth time and […]

Bookshelves or Vase shelves

This is  the room that attracted me when we bought our house 30 years ago. Mostly I Zoom to classrooms and meetings from here and I’m often asked whether my shelves are real or a faux background. There’s a stupid pail in the foreground that I must put away, so you know this is real. […]

How are we doing today?–Book Reviews

Reviewers used to be paid to write erudite thoughts about books. Now we rely on you, the reader. Much as Shoppers Drug wants to know how they did selling you toothpase–we want to know how much you loved our work. You don’t have to summarize plot; just say what you liked about the story and […]

Do Dogs Sell Books?

    Teachers and librarians sell books–dogs do not. I post photos of cute canines, with profound advice inspired by their posture, along with my book cover because it’s fun. But if a teacher or librarian holds my book up, reads a chapter or shelves it in a special way,that “sells” books. It sells reading, […]

When an Author Visits a School

Busy, busy. Coding, maker space, Terry Fox Day, report cards–who has time to host an author too? But it’s so easy and Ontario Arts Council is fully funding a few visits per author.The new phonetic approach may teach the ability to read but for kids the currency is always fun. An author can bring that […]

Advice from the Top of the Stairs

Dogs enjoy the basics of life. Food, shelter, a walk, some play and us. My rescue terror, I mean terrier, Banjo loves me more than anyone I know. Doesn’t matter how my latest book What the Dog Knows does on the awards lists or library shelves. I am his person.  Note beside him in this […]