Here we are once again, friends. Another year ending, another set to begin. I hope the balance worked out in your favour and if it didn’t, I feel ya, bud.
As I’ve done in the past couple years, I wanted to take the time here to share a few pieces that have made it out into the wide world, as well as some of the things I’ve enjoyed spending some time with myself this past spin around the sun.
The first part is easy, as I didn’t publish a whole heck of a lotta new stuff this year. Mostly, I spent what free time I usually spend on writing on getting Where the Pavement Turns to Sand ready for publication, then out into the world, and then trying to get people to want to just maybe read the thing. But I did manage to chip away at a few little pieces here, with at least one lined up already for 2024. I also started a new project that it the very early stages but that I’m having a lot of fun with — we’ll see if it goes anywhere.
Paging Doctor Piss - Rejection Letters
Sundown by Gordon Lightfoot - Bullshit Lit Anthology 2 (you can’t read it online, sorry)
If we Make It Through December — Farewell Transmission
That’s it! Like I said, pretty meagre stuff, but so goes the creative life sometimes.
However, my old pal Randy Frykas did use some writing I did for him about pond hockey / ODRs / etc this year in an online trailer for his Outdoor Hockey Club project, as well as a short-film version of the webseries that won an Outdoor Magazine award. The short-film version has now screened over 200 times across North America. Pretty cool, eh?
Now, onto some stuff I enjoyed this year that maybe you will, too?
There was a lotta good tunes put out this year, that’s for sure! The new Turnpike Troubadours, Tyler Childers, and Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit records were real nice. That boygenius record was fine. Mike & the Moonpies, John Moreland, and MJ Lendermen put out fantastic live records that got plenty of spins over here. But my top records were Wednesday’s Rat Saw God, Jess Williamson’s Time Ain’t Accidental, and Ratboys’ The Window.
Saw a few great shows this year, too. Caught Sean Burns and the Lost Country trio at Blue Note Park, enjoyed S.G. Goodman at the Winnipeg Folk Fest, and Boy Golden at both the Burt and old Jamboree Hall in Clear Lake during a big old downpour. Seeing Royal Canoe play at the Park Theatre was also pretty neat. But my favourite moments of the year were catching the War on Drugs at the Folk Fest and taking my son to see KISS on his 8th birthday. Both those shows will live in my mind and heart for years to come.
There were also a lotta great books that came out this year that I managed to read, and probably a lot more that I’ve yet to get to. D.T. Robbins, Tex Gresham, and Meagan Lucas all put out collections of short-fiction I’d urge you to check out (I’ve yet to get to Meagan’s, but the other two are fantastic). I really enjoyed The Red-Headed Pilgrim by Kevin Maloney and Claire Hopple’s Echo Chamber. And of course, there was Cormac McCarthy’s swan song Stella Maris, the companion piece to The Passenger, which was an astounding read, something I look forward to coming back to in a year or two. But the top of the heap, as far as new, contemporary reads for me was The Marigold by Andrew F. Sullivan, which I highlighted as my pick of the year for the Freep year end roundup.
Usually, I’d include a Tweet or two of the year here too. But the turd who runs that sinking ship has done such an admirable job of fucking up a good thing that I can’t even be bothered. Too bad, so sad.
Finally, if you’ve made it this far without securing yourself a copy of Where the Pavement Turns to Sand… please consider rectifying that situation, pronto! I’d love it if each and everyone of you out there, along with your pals, associates, and immediate and extended family all got a chance to read it and, with any luck, enjoy it.
McNally Robinson Booksellers (located in Winnipeg & Saskatoon, ships Canada wide)
Malarkey Books (direct from the source, ships within US)
Here’s a few little promo things that I did or took part in leading up to and immediately following the release of the book. Check ‘em out if you’re into that kinda thing:
An interview with The Uniter. Also, later in the fall, Uniter readers named me their favourite local writer. Ha!
An interview on Tyler Dempsey for his wicked podcast. An interview with Greg Sodden for New Books Network. Spoke with Michael Elves for his show Turning Pages.
And have yourselves a happy new year, eh? Cheers!