Norm BlainNorm pursued change throughout his life. He moved 39 times, began his work life as a laborer was a successful organizational leader and even spent time in the intriguing world of casino surveillance. He served on a destroyer in the North Atlantic and in some of the most influential boardrooms in the country.
As a former CEO of the Pacific Corridor Enterprise Council and Burnaby Board of Trade, a candidate for Member of Parliament, Campaign Manager for a provincial MLA, founding organizer of Tourism Burnaby and founder of the Leadership and Management Council of BC, Past President of the Surrey Board of Trade and a Fellow and Governor of the BC Chamber, Norm has applied his writing skills to communicate with business audiences throughout British Columbia for over three decades. Now he aspires to entertain readers by exploring a world of possibilities. |
Claire De BoerAn honours graduate of the University of Northumbria in England, Claire holds a degree in Languages (French and Spanish) and International Marketing, in addition to a diploma in Journalism from the London School of Journalism. Claire has written for and edited the Vancouver-based community newspaper The/La Source. She also writes magazine articles, corporate and media materials, and newsletters. Claire has been passionate about creative writing since early childhood and is currently working on her first novel.
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Ed GriffinEd teaches creative writing at Matsqui Prison, a medium security prison in Western Canada. He is passionate about prison reform and is an advocate for the pursuit of all arts in prison. Ed has published six books, including Dystopia, a non-fiction account of prison written with Mike Oulton. Ed’s autobiography, Once a Priest, tells the story of his journey out of priesthood and into writing and activism. Ed has released his new novel about the future of the prison system, Delaney's Hope.
For more information visit Ed's website |
Loreena LeeLoreena Lee is an artist/illustrator who has published tutorial textbooks on drawing and composition, a biography of her ancestors, and has written a young adult novel. She is currently working on an adult novel based on her mother’s early life.
"Dragons I Know" Written by Eleanor Ryan, Illustrated by Loreena M. Lee 28 pages of full color illustrations visually charm the reader when learning about recognition and acceptance of differences among us all. In this story-poem, a boy and his friend go to a park “where dragons are nice”, and watch dragons and unicorns at play. They identify with the dragons, who wear sneakers and play familiar games. Soon they discover a great cave where dragons and other creatures all go to school. The boys are made to feel welcome and everyone comes to understand that they will learn and in time, “…do very well.” The boy dreams of meeting the dragons again, but “…not after dark." "Satin Shoes" A debut novel for young readers. "Written from the heart, Loreena M. Lee's Satin Shoes should delight nostalgic adults with its evocation of a time gone by, and intrigue younger readers with 12 year-old Leanne's efforts to adapt to her changing family situation, make new friends, and uncover the story of the spirit who inhabits her new home." – Lois Peterson, author of Meeting Miss 405 For more information visit Loreena's website |
Former Rainwriters
Paul BurgoynePaul Burgoyne has written a collection of stories and is finishing his first novel, Two Seasons, the story of a boy finding his identity in baseball while his family falls apart around him.
Paul has 40 years of experience working with people as a teacher, counselor and trainer and is now turning that experience into fiction. He has attended writing workshops in New York and California and recently won 3rd prize in the 2010 PEN/Nob Hill Soul-making Literary Contest. Visit Paul's website at: http://paulburgoyne.tumblr.com and see him read his award winning novel excerpt at:www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAWwVr4xqkk |
Anna BarcosAnna Barcos was born in Winnipeg, Canada with a yearning to travel. She lived thirty years of family life between Los Angeles, California and Bogot, Colombia, the familiar landscapes of her novels. While her affection for latin culture is obvious in her writing, Anna is not shy to point out what she perceives to be fundamental inequities or social injustices.
Anna Barcos' stories imitate the murky beginnings of the tango and its struggle for acceptance punctuated with brief moments of glory, authentic despair and self-inflicted tragedy. Like the tango lyrics of old, her protagonists tend to concentrate on their problems rather than implement the solutions which often arrive in the form of ultimatums or last chances. Anna still loves to travel and currently lives and writes in Vancouver, Canada. Anna has published two novels: María's Tango and Walls that Listen, Walls That Talk. Read Chapter One of Anna's next novel, Walls, here |
Carol JohnsonCarol Johnson developed a love of writing as a child. She believes that everyone has a story to tell and that deep inside all of us is a voice yearning to be heard. Carol’s first love is poetry and she is currently working on a collection of poems titled In My Father’s House. She is also working on a young adult novel that explores the thin space between the secular and the supernatural.
In 2005 Carol retired after 27 years as an administrator at the University College of the Fraser Valley. She lives in Langley with her husband and divides her time between grand children, writing, volunteering and running. She teaches creative writing to the inmates at Pacific Institution in the Fraser Valley. |