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  • EP 411 - Small Acts of Kindness in Every Little Thing With Janice Landry

    EP 411 - Small Acts of Kindness in Every Little Thing With Janice Landry
    2025/04/18
    Mark has a conversation with award winning writer and veteran journalist Janice Landryabout her seventh book, Every Little Thing: How Small Acts of Kindness Make a Big Impact, her 2023 diagnosis of Lyme disease which was part of the inspiration for this book, Janice's life as a writer, how having lived adjacent to the ocean in Canada's East Coast has impacted her creative spirit, and so much more. Prior to the interview Mark shares a personal update, comments from recent episodes and reads a word about two Canadian conferences taking place at the end of April 2026: Toronto Indie Author Conference and GritLIT. (You can use code gritLITfriends at checkout to save 25% off the cost of registration). Mark and Janice talk about: Being of the generation that spent their entire summer days outside and not-connected to anything except friends and the world around themThe old school-style desk Janice had when she was young and starting to write which was shoved up against a window that looked out on the oceanTelling herself fictional stories to amuse herself when she was youngThe ocean being one of the single biggest factors on Janice's creative lifeThe importance of Janice's 2022 book EYE OF THE OCEANWhy it's priceless that we create and share Canadian storiesHow so much of what we do is about all of the people who help us in our achievements and why it's one of the core messages in Janice's latest bookThe dramatically debilitating side-effects of Lyme diseaseWhy small acts of kindness and sharing uplifting and positive stories is so importantThe tiny thing (a tick) that ended up inspiring Janice to write the book EVERY LITTLE THINGImportance messages of hope and that you're not alone, which come from the bookA very special note that a teacher gave to Janice when she was 10 years old, and why she carried it around for fifty yearsAdvice Janice would offer to beginning writersAnd more . . . After the interview Mark reflects on three different things that came up in the discussion. Links of Interest: Janice Landry WebsitePottersfield PressGritLIT Special 25% Discount Registration LinkDraft2Digital PRINT BOOKS FOR INDIE AUTHORSBuy Mark a CoffeePatreon for Stark ReflectionsMark's YouTube channelMark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and LibrariesThe Relaxed Author Buy eBook DirectBuy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for AuthorsAn Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & BookstoresWide for the WinMark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story)A Canadian Werewolf in New YorkStowe Away (Novella)Fear and Longing in Los AngelesFright Nights, Big CityLover's MoonHex and the CityOnly Monsters in the Building The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and AutomobilesYippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die HardMerry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation Janice Landry has won four national awards for her writing and work. In March 2025, Halifax West MP Lena Metlege Diab presented Janice with the King Charles III Coronation Medal from the Government of Canada for her body of work, books, and longtime mental health advocacy. Janice is a veteran journalist and proud Haligonian. In May 2025, she released her seventh book, Every Little Thing – how small acts of kindness make a big impact, following her 2023 Lyme disease diagnosis. Janice has since fully recovered and wrote this “small book with big messages” to thank society’s many and varied helpers, including some of her own. Janice’s longtime publisher is Nova Scotia’s Pottersfield Press. Her last two books, Eye of the Ocean and Silver Linings, were both bestsellers. Janice’s biggest inspiration is her family, husband, Rob, and daughter, Laura. Through her writing, she also honours her late parents, Baz and Theresa. Janice began writing longform non-fiction to tell the gripping story of her firefighter father’s national Medal of Bravery for his part in the near-death rescue of an infant from a harrowing 1978 Halifax house fire. The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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    58 分
  • EP 410 - Writer Reflections at Lucifers Pizza with Robert J. Sawyer and Kevin J. Anderson

    EP 410 - Writer Reflections at Lucifers Pizza with Robert J. Sawyer and Kevin J. Anderson
    2025/04/10
    On Wednesday April 9, 2025, Mark had a pizza lunch at Lucifers Pizza on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. It was a place recommended by friend of the podcast Nikki Guerlain. In addition to agreeing that this was fantastic pizza (with wonderful staff), Mark, Kevin, and Rob had a conversation about Writers of the Future, and various aspects about the business of writing and publishing. Links of Interest: Robert J. Sawyer's WebsiteKevin J. Anderson's WebsiteWriters of the Future WebsiteLucifers Pizza WebsiteBuy Mark a CoffeePatreon for Stark ReflectionsEP 353 - Tao Wong on The Toronto Indie Author ConferenceAlex Lifeson's Speech on Behalf of Rush at Rock & Roll Hall of Fame InductionMark's YouTube channelMark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and LibrariesThe Relaxed Author Buy eBook DirectBuy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for AuthorsAn Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & BookstoresWide for the WinMark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story)A Canadian Werewolf in New YorkStowe Away (Novella)Fear and Longing in Los AngelesFright Nights, Big CityLover's MoonHex and the CityOnly Monsters in the Building The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and AutomobilesYippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die HardMerry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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    27 分
  • EP 409 - Show, Don't Tell With Suzy Vadori

    EP 409 - Show, Don't Tell With Suzy Vadori
    2025/04/04

    Mark interviews Suzy Vadori, Calgary Bestselling author of The Fountain Series, the founder of the Inspired Writing Community, a Resident Writing Coach for Writers Helping Writers, and the host of the Show, Don't Tell Writing Podcast.

    Prior to the interview, Mark shares a brief personal update and a word from this episode’s sponsor.
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    41 分
  • EP 408 - Definitely A Chat With Definitely The Real Alex Lifeson (AKA Tony Binns)

    EP 408 - Definitely A Chat With Definitely The Real Alex Lifeson (AKA Tony Binns)
    2025/03/27
    Mark interviews Tony Binns, an award-winning stand-up comedian and screenwriter whose feature #ROXY was nominated for 3 Canadian screen awards, 3 Canadian Comedy Awards, and took home Best Feature at the Ampia awards as well as Best Feature for Teens at the Kidscreen awards. Tony is also the man behind the parody profile on Facebook called Definitely The Real Alex Lifeson where he pretends to be a guy pretending to be the real guitarist from Rush. Prior to the interview, Mark reads comments from recent episodes, shares a personal update, which includes a few engagements he'll be speaking at in person and virtually: IN PERSON: (Brantford, ON) Brantford Public Library (April 2, 2025 from 6 PM to 7:30 PM) – Inside the Writer’s Mind: Mark Leslie Lefebvre on Ghosts and Paranormal StorytellingVIRTUAL: (Online) The BookFest (April 6, 1:30 PM Eastern). Keynote: Writer, The World Needs You: Why Your Writing Is More Important Than EverIN PERSON: (Los Angeles, CA) Writers of the Future. Week of mentoring winning writers and Gala Dinner/Evening celebrating this year's winners on April 10, 2025 Mark then shares a word about this episode's sponsor. This episode is sponsored by Toronto Indie Author Conference, taking place April 26 & 27, 2025 in Toronto, ON. The schedule appears below Learn more about Toronto Indie Author Conference 2025 here. In their chat, Mark and Tony talk about: How Tony is a multi-faceted nerd who used to tape episodes of SCTV so he could play them back and memorize themBeing big into Monty Python and, of course, RushAlways thinking that he was going to be an actor and his love of Shakespeare, but always getting the comedic partsBeing a good actor but not being so good at auditioning because he freezes when put in a pressure situationFounding a comedy sketch troop called Obscene But Not Heard which was partially inspired by his love for Kids In The HallEvolving into doing stand-up despite being a shy personDeciding to leave stand-up comedy around the time that Covid hitThe movie XROXY (a modern tale based on Cyrano de Bergerac) that Tony wrote after he pitched it to some producers he had done some other work forHaving a strength for dialogue but a weakness when it comes to plotBeing brought in to help punch up an episodic YouTube series that was a campy horror flick and make it funnier (TRUCKSTOP BLOODSUCKERS)Tony's most recent script entitled SAVING MR. CHRISTMAS and how it evolved into a completely different movie than the one that he originally pitchedThe "we love this, change everything" thing that happens with moviesTony's WAITING FOR WAITING FOR GODOT which is a show about two women waiting for a production of the play Waiting For Godot which never happens, and how that play was inspired by the way that days could blur together for people, particularly as we get older and "become that guy"Being a Rush fan since he first heard "Spirit of Radio"How Tony was inspired to create a fake Alex Lifeson account on Facebook after he's seen a fake Geddy Lee accountThe relation between ADHD and being "all in" on something -- like Rush, Monty Python and Rush for TonyHow, during Covid Tony did a one-man reading of Monty Python and the Holy GrailDoing a Canadian overdub of Dragonball ZAdapting a pilot from a Canadian novel called The Smeltdog Man by Frank Macdonald and leveraging the "Deadpool" style of breaking the fourth wallAdvice that Tony would give to the young nerdy Mark and TonyHow Tony used to write sketches even though he didn't have an outlet for themThe Dungeons & Dragons podcast that Tony is a part of called The +2 RodcastAnd more . . . After the interview Mark reflects on a few things that came up in the discussion. Links of Interest: Tony's Definitely The Real Alex Lifeson Facebook ProfileTony on Twitter/XTony Binns on IMDB #ROXYTruckstop BloodsuckersFugget About It Buy Mark a CoffeePatreon for Stark ReflectionsEP 353 - Tao Wong on The Toronto Indie Author ConferenceAlex Lifeson's Speech on Behalf of Rush at Rock & Roll Hall of Fame InductionMark's YouTube channelMark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and LibrariesThe Relaxed Author Buy eBook DirectBuy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for AuthorsAn Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & BookstoresWide for the WinMark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story)A Canadian Werewolf in New YorkStowe Away (Novella)Fear and Longing in Los AngelesFright Nights, Big CityLover's MoonHex and the CityOnly Monsters in the Building The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and AutomobilesYippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die HardMerry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By ...
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    1 時間 19 分
  • EP 407 - An Evening With A Drink And A Friend With Kevin J. Anderson

    EP 407 - An Evening With A Drink And A Friend With Kevin J. Anderson
    2025/03/20
    Mark has a virtual beer with Kevin J. Anderson while they talk through various aspects about writing and publishing. This episode is from a live chat that was hosted on the evening of Sunday March 16, 2025. This episode is sponsored by Superstars Writing Seminars: Teaching you the business of being a writer which takes place in early Feb 2026 in Colorado Springs, CO and where Mark will be a guest speaker. Use code: STARK100 to get $100 off your registration. In their chat Mark and Kevin talk about: The loss of author and poet Danny Peart, Neil Peart's brother and how the first story Kevin and Neil wrote together named the main character after Neil's brotherMark and Kevin's Rush and beer connectionKevin's "music starter kit" to his grand-kidsThe significance of the Rush album Grace Under Pressure to both Kevin and MarkHow the Columbia Music Record Club is what led to Kevin discovering Rush (because he was looking for sci-fi style album covers and Rush's 2112 jumped out at him)The back-story to Kevin's Terra Incognita novelsWriting a novel that was a tie-in to a Rush albumHow Kevin has been able to leverage Kickstarter to produce products that no New York publisher would likely ever get behindThe way a tribute song "No Words" about Neil Peart led to a new friendship and collaboration with KevinThe music behind the Terra Incognita trilogyKevin's Kickstarter for Terra Incognita funding in 14 minutes, but the ultimate goal of earning back the high investment he has already put into itThe number of novels that Kevin has writtenBenefits of being able to order books directly from the author versus going through the multiple layers of traditional publishingSuperstars Writing Seminars, the conference that Kevin, his wife Rebecca, Dave Farland, Eric Flint, and Brandon Sanderson started more than 15 years agoThe Masters of Creative Writing with a focus on Publishing that Kevin teaches at Western Colorado UniversityThe annual anthology that this program publishes thanks to sponsorship from Draft2DigitalThe latest musical collaboration Kevin recently announcedKevin coming to Toronto's Massey Hall for RushFest on August 1, 2025What books Kevin and Mark are currently working onFavorite advice for running a Kickstarter and the real costs of shipping and handlingKevin's love of hiking and dictating when he writesAnd more . . . Links of Interest: Kevin J Anderson's Website WordFire PressKevin's Terra Incognita KickstarterWestern Colorado University Publishing Masters Superstars Writing SeminarsBuy Mark a CoffeePatreon for Stark Reflections How to Access Patreon RSS Feeds Mark's YouTube channelMark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and LibrariesThe Relaxed Author Buy eBook DirectBuy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for AuthorsAn Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & BookstoresWide for the WinMark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story)A Canadian Werewolf in New YorkStowe Away (Novella)Fear and Longing in Los AngelesFright Nights, Big CityLover's MoonHex and the CityOnly Monsters in the Building The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and AutomobilesYippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die HardMerry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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    1 時間 22 分
  • EP 406 - How Authors Can Engage With Their Library

    EP 406 - How Authors Can Engage With Their Library
    2025/03/14
    In this solo episode Mark shares an excerpt from his forthcoming book A BOOK IN HAND: Strategies for Optimizing Print Book Sales via Signings and Other In Person Events. Prior to the main content, Mark shares a brief personal update and a word about this episode's sponsor. Learn more about Toronto Indie Author Conference 2025 here. The content for this episode is an excerpt from the work in progress: A BOOK IN HAND. Links of Interest: Notification for when A BOOK IN HAND becomes availableBuy Mark a CoffeePatreon for Stark Reflections How to Access Patreon RSS Feeds Mark's YouTube channelMark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and LibrariesThe Relaxed Author Buy eBook DirectBuy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for AuthorsAn Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & BookstoresWide for the WinMark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story)A Canadian Werewolf in New YorkStowe Away (Novella)Fear and Longing in Los AngelesFright Nights, Big CityLover's MoonHex and the CityOnly Monsters in the Building The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and AutomobilesYippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die HardMerry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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    55 分
  • EP 405 - Ask Not What Your Bookstore Can Do For You

    EP 405 - Ask Not What Your Bookstore Can Do For You
    2025/03/07
    In this solo episode Mark shares an excerpt from his forthcoming book A BOOK IN HAND: Strategies for Optimizing Print Book Sales via Signings and Other In Person Events. This episode is sponsored by Superstars Writing Seminars: Teaching you the business of being a writer which takes place in early Feb 2026 in Colorado Springs, CO. Use code: STARK100 to get $100 off your registration. Links of Interest: Notification for when A BOOK IN HAND becomes availableBuy Mark a CoffeePatreon for Stark Reflections How to Access Patreon RSS Feeds Mark's YouTube channelMark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and LibrariesThe Relaxed Author Buy eBook DirectBuy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for AuthorsAn Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & BookstoresWide for the WinMark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story)A Canadian Werewolf in New YorkStowe Away (Novella)Fear and Longing in Los AngelesFright Nights, Big CityLover's MoonHex and the CityOnly Monsters in the Building The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and AutomobilesYippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die HardMerry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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    36 分
  • EP 404 - Elbows Up, Canada!

    EP 404 - Elbows Up, Canada!
    2025/03/05
    In this special additional solo episode, Mark reflects on the term "Elbows up!" and recent events in Canada/US relations and the tariffs being needlessly opposed based on completely fabricated issues. He also discusses the disease of division that is so prominent today, and shares a clip of Canadian Prime Minster Justin Trudeau from a press conference held on March 4, 2025. Links of Interest: Buy Me a CoffeePatreon for Stark Reflections How to Access Patreon RSS Feeds Mark's YouTube channelMark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup)An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and LibrariesThe Relaxed Author Buy eBook DirectBuy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for AuthorsAn Author's Guide to Working with Libraries & BookstoresWide for the WinMark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story)A Canadian Werewolf in New YorkStowe Away (Novella)Fear and Longing in Los AngelesFright Nights, Big CityLover's MoonHex and the CityOnly Monsters in the Building The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and AutomobilesYippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die HardMerry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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    28 分