Posts by L. E. Carmichael


Organizational Structures for Clear, Effective Writing

If your January is anything like mine, it's all about getting organized (again). So today, we're talking about organizational structures in writing. Figuring out the best structure for your material is one of the primary benefits of outlining. This ... Read More  

cover of The Boreal Forest by L. E. Carmichael

Welcome to 2022

Two weeks into 2020-too - how is everyone doing? It's been a mixed bag for me so far. In the YAAAAAAY column, I got my COVID booster (woo vaccines! woo science!) and The Boreal Forest won the 2021 Information Book ... Read More  

Author Bev Katz Rosenbaum

Bev Katz Rosenbaum: Playing the Long Game

Like many authors, I have many author friends. I also have all too many friends who gave writing-to-publish a shot and gave up after a short while. Some of them went on to self-publish their books. I think self-publishing ... Read More  

candy cane cookies

Merry COVID Christmas: On the Value of Traditions in the Worst of Times

Last week was tough, you guys. Last week I told a friend I haven't seen in over two years not to fly out for the holidays, because omicron is blowing up in Ontario and it wasn't safe for her ... Read More  

The Legend by Jean Mills

Jean Mills: When “Research” Means Mining Your Own Experience

“Write what you know.” Who said that? I’m not sure, but it’s a phrase – an instruction, really – thrown around as a guideline for writers. It suggests you should draw on what you know, mine your own life experience, ... Read More  

bath and body works collection

Why Can’t All Product Bottles Dispense From the Bottom?

It seems to be Friday again (already), which means I'll spend tomorrow morning doing what a lot of us do - tidying up the house. Part of my tidying process involves restocking: bringing pantry items from basement storage into ... Read More  

Making Seaker by Karen Autio

Karen Autio: A New Story Woven from the Threads of a Classic

All stories are connected, new ones woven from the threads of the old. —ROBIN WALL KIMMERER, Braiding Sweetgrass I used the epigraph above in Making Seaker, my latest book—a contemporary Middle Grade STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) novel. Making Seaker was ... Read More  

The Boreal Forest, illustration by Josée Bisaillon

The Sleep Article For People Who Hate Sleep Articles

You know those articles about how we should all be getting more sleep? The ones where the first half is dedicated to telling you all the terrifying things that happen to the sleep deprived, and the second half contains ... Read More  

Save Writing Time by Outlining Before You Start

One Weird Trick to Reduce Writing Time

Here we are, well into another school year, and I'm betting quite a few of you are already grappling with writing assignments. So, it seemed like a good time to dust off the old Teach Write column. I've been a ... Read More  

cover of Sour Cakes by Karen Krossing

Karen Krossing: Sparking Conversations About Emotions with Sour Cakes

As an author of novels for teens and kids, I’m used to being the sole creator of a book in partnership with a publishing team. When I wrote my first picture book, part of my journey was to understand ... Read More  

And That’s How Two Years Go By

Two years ago today, I submitted the first draft of my forthcoming children's book.* I was burned out and already coughing from what would turn out to be a raging case of stress-induced bacterial bronchitis. And I was getting ... Read More  

C is for Climate: Three Ways to Celebrate Science Literacy Week!

For those unfamiliar, Science Literacy Week is an annual event that celebrates the messy, astounding, wonder-filled thing that is the scientific method and all the knowledge it gives us. It's a time to learn about science, do some science, ... Read More  

Sorry For Your Loss: Funeral Customs and Joanne Levy’s Newest Novel

When I wrote SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS, a middle grade novel set in a funeral home, I actually didn’t think much about the science around death. My book is about grief and friendships and what happens to us when ... Read More  

The Wolf's Curse by Jessica Vitalis

Jessica Vitalis: Death and Hope in The Wolf’s Curse

I never meant to write about a story about death; not in the traditional “I’ve lost everybody I love” or the “I’m about to lose someone I really love” sense. After writing several dark and relatively painful manuscripts, I ... Read More  

cover of The Boreal Forest by L. E. Carmichael

Red Cedar Nomination and a New Presentation!

The Boreal Forest has been nominated for a Red Cedar Award! The Red Cedars are British Columbia's children's choice awards, and I am SO EXCITED to know that kids across British Columbia will be reading my book this school ... Read More  

double facepalm meme

It Turns Out I Am Bad at Vacation

First things first: I am now fully vaxxed - woohooo! - and even though the second dose knocked me flat, I am intensely grateful for it, because next week I get to see my (also vaxxed) Dad and Not-So-Evil-Stepmother ... Read More  

Malaika's Surprise by Nadia L. Hohn

Carnival as a Protest and Theme in Nadia L. Hohn’s Malaika Books

In my presentations, when I ask my young audiences to define a carnival, often, they talk about the rides, costumes and music.  Carnival is also the celebration in which rich foods are eaten before the start of Lent, the ... Read More  

Fox Cousteau joins Team Pfizer

A Desperately Needed Vacation

So, how's everyone doing out there? Frustrated? Exhausted? Burnt out? Yeah. Me too. I've been trying to figure out why I'm so tired - usually after I realize I've been staring into the middle distance for an unknown number of minutes ... Read More