Category: Personal
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How AHA moments changed A Study of Ash & Smoke
We all have little aha moments while writing. Those moments come to us either through brainstorming, talking to others about our work, feedback from betas or editors–heck, even the most random of places–but those aha moments spark the changes in the story that pull everything together. You could probably guess I had plenty of aha…
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Exploring Lake Minnewanka
As with most of the well-known tourist spots, we’ve visited Lake Minnewanka before. Just a quick stop, though, as the sheer mass of tourists kept us from exploring the area last time we were there. This time, no such thing happened. We drove mountain-side last weekend, stopped at Minnewanka, and could finally see what the…
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Losing Sunshine
In Johannesburg, where I grew up, the seasons turn in such a predictable manner. You know that the sun will almost always shine, and even in the heart of the winter, the days are basically the same length as those warm, blessed summer days. At the most, summer and winter days differ in length by…
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Johnston Canyon Revisited
The last time we went to this magical place, the ice was thick and we had no spikes on our shoes. We’re noobs. How are we supposed to know you need spike strips when visiting Canadian parks in the winter. 😛 We’ve wanted to go back since that first time–heck, we’ve even tried–but somehow, something…
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SA Bookswap
The South African Bookswap, organised by Tams, or Bibliobookwolf on Instagram, is one of the coolest bookswaps ever, and I wanted in. Of course, South African as I may be, I don’t live in the country. Or even on the African continent. With shipping costs as high as they are, pairing me with a bookswapper…
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Trip to Big Hill Springs
During the Summer Holidays, we headed out to hike in Big Hill Springs with friends. It was a super humid day, with oodles and oodles of mosquitoes. The kind of mosquito that bit while we walked, but only some of us were victims. Jan and Kayla, for example, had no bites at all, while I…
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Wake Me Up When September Ends
Well, I’m back. I’m happy to inform you the two blog-free weeks haven’t been spent in vain, as the first draft of A Trial of Sparks & Kindling is officially done. Did that read first draft? What I really mean is first complete draft. You see, it’s the fifth version of the document on my…
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A Hike to Grassi Lakes
I swear, every time I think I’ve seen all Canada has to offer, we discover a new route to hike and our minds end up exploding. Grassi Lakes is one of those places that will take away your breath and make you want to stay forever. The best part? We’d never even have known it…
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The Random Photo Post
These are the last of the vacation photos, the stragglers who didn’t come in with the rest of the herd. My in-laws aren’t really photo people. I have a wall of photos in my house, a display of all of the faces we love, but the last family photo I have of us and my…
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August Life Update
This thing happened with my hand this week and I couldn’t work on my novel as much as I’d have liked, which got me thinking. I haven’t really updated you on the stuff in my life in a long while. Let’s talk about the hand first, since you’re probably wondering. In December of 2016, I…
Yolandie Horak 