Miss Lou was cited for her achievement in getting the Jamaican people to throw off the yoke of colonialism and to accept their own language and culture as legitimate. Her monumental body of work – songs and poems – have been recited and performed by Jamaicans all over the world.

Fabian Coverley receives the award on behalf of his mother.

 
Carlos Malcolm was cited for his work as a music composer, arranger and orchestra leader and particularly for his role in establishing technical standards by example that ultimately became the foundation on which modern Jamaican popular music was built.

Carlos Malcolm, music

 
Dr. Rita Cox, storyteller par excellence was recognized for her lifetime of work in the Ontario Library service and especially for her successes in building cultural awareness among Canadians across Ontario province.

Mike Jarrett receives the Palaver Award on behalf of Dr. Rita Cox who was unavoidably absent.

 
Dwayne Morgan was cited for his foresight and energy in creating opportunities and empowering young poets in the Greater Toronto Area. He was applauded for his many initiatives, events and promotions that collectively provide a platform for the growth and development of young poets and writers.

Dwayne Morgan, poetry and leadership

 
The mementoes presented were original works of art by Maria Papaefstathiou.
In its inaugural year 2015, Palaver acknowledged and applauded the pioneering work of the late Dr. the Honourable Olive Lewin, musicologist, social anthropologist, author and teacher; and, in particular her monumental research and documentation of Jamaican Folk Music and the establishment of the Jamaican (folk) memory bank.

There were moments when laughter pierced the air. And there were moments of great emotion and tears. There were moments when poets and novelists read from their published works. And there were those moments when they put the book down and, in candid, unrehearsed talk with host Mike Jarrett, shared really personal experiences in life’s journey with an enthralled and appreciative audience.
And there was that magical moment at the very end of the after dinner show at the Palaver Awards Dinner at the RecPlex on Saturday August 6 when the audience spontaneously erupted in standing applause for a concert and a finale that was, as one guest termed it, “top shelf”.

The second annual Palaver International Literary Festival, held over two days (August 6 and 7, 2016) attracted to Wasaga Beach novelists, poets, musical performers and those who appreciate literature and the arts. They came from the southern Georgian Bay region, southern Ontario and the GTA; and from further afield, the USA (New York, Florida, California) and Jamaica. Visitors found accommodation in Wasaga Beach but many stayed at some eight hotels and rental properties in Collingwood and the Blue Mountains. In all, nine published novelists and poets; a 22-voice folk music ensemble (The Heritage Singers); and, Orville Hammond, Jamaican jazz composer-pianist along with accompanying musicians performed at Palaver 2016 (at Beach Area 4 and at the RecPlex). And the two food events (the Palaver Awards and the ‘Feast on the Beach’ Sunday brunch buffet (a signature event of the Palaver festival), planned and prepared by Chef Selwyn Richards (theartofcatering.com) received accolades from those in attendance. In particular, the dinner at the Palaver Awards (boneless jerk chicken with a roulade stuffed with spinach and carrots, with carmelized mango; and, the alternative – escoveitch red snapper filet with a light coconut cream sauce) drew the appreciation of guests and underscored why Selwyn Richards is regarded as one of the best.

“This is the second year of Palaver and it had its challenges,” said Mike Jarrett, founder-director of the festival and resident of Wasaga Beach. “However, the gains and advances, in terms of acknowledgement and recognition of both the festival and Wasaga Beach as a destination, were significant. The expanded advertising and promotion of the event, on broadcast, print and social media resulted in a high level of interest and a high volume of traffic to the Palaver Facebook. This augurs well for the future,” he said. []

Archaeological studies at White Marl in Jamaica and elsewhere, over time, show that they lived in structured communities and that order and governance sustained a communal existence. And so, even before the first European arrived at the end of the 15th century, more than 300 years before the Shawnee people chose Tecumseh, Caribbean nations had organized viable communities within a political structure, led by the wisdom of the cacique.

When Huareo inherits the role of cacique, he leads the Taino people into a prosperous life until he receives word one day, from neighbouring Haiti, about invading strangers sailing in and plundering villages. Determined not to have the same fate befall his people, Huareo did not welcome or trust the Spanish strangers when they first arrived in Yamaye (Jamaica) in 1494. In 1509, the Spaniards return to the island with the sole purpose of gaining control and the result is something Huareo and his people could never have imagined, said Fred Kennedy, author of Huareo (Ian Randle Publishers 2015).

“Huareo and others like him were our first, ancestral heroes,” Fred Kennedy states.

Huareo, Kennedy’s second novel, tells the story of the life of a Jamaican cacique and the indigenous people of Jamaica at the start of Spanish colonization in the early sixteenth century. With the assistance of editors in Madrid and Dominican Republic, he has since translated this work into Spanish, with the title Huareo: Cacique de Jamaica (2016).

Meticulously researched from original sources such as the journals of Diego Mendez and Hernando Colon, who were marooned in Jamaica on Columbus’s fourth voyage, along with other primary and secondary sources and consultation with historians and archaeologists, Huareo reveals much of the history of the first Jamaicans and their direct descendants, the “ancestral heroes” as he referred to them. Fred Kennedy writes history.

“With my background in Caribbean history, I became interested in my retirement in researching the lives of Jamaica’s National Heroes. In 2008, I published (the critically acclaimed) Daddy Sharpe, a historical account of the life of Jamaican National Hero, The Honourable Samuel Sharpe, 1801-1833. Given my fluency in Spanish, I later became fascinated with the early colonial period of our history,” Dr Kennedy said.

WORK IN PROGRESS
“My present work entails the study of the life of Montague James, who came to Jamaica as a boy in the early 18th century, joined a slave rebellion to later become the leader of the Second Maroon War (1795-1796). It is the story of his leadership and of his betrayal by the British who shipped him and 500 other Maroons to Nova Scotia in 1796 and four years later to Sierra Leone, Africa. It is the story of another one of our heroes, and once again, one of resistance and survival. The publication will be entitled, Where the Pineapple Could Not Grow.

Authors learn from what they write but before the first word is written, there is inspiration, the intention, the objective and the expectations.

“Through my writing, I have discovered that the heroes of our past teach us about those who helped shape the course of our history. They tell us about who we are as a people, (and about) the resilience and steadfastness of character that enabled them to triumph against seemingly impossible odds. These stories are inspired not only by a love of history but by my passion for education. They are written in the hope that the young men and women of Jamaica may learn by example of the greatness of those who helped define our nation and shape the kind of people we are,” he stated.

A graduate of the University of the West Indies (BA and Graduate Diploma in Education) Fred Kennedy began a teaching career in Jamaica at York Castle High School and Trench Town Comprehensive. He migrated with his wife to Canada in the late 1970s and continued his career in Education, obtaining both Masters and Doctoral degrees of Education at the University of Toronto. In 2004, on leave of absence, he returned to Jamaica to the post of Principal of his old high school, St. George’s College and subsequently returned to Canada where he now works with a number of not-for-profit organizations and support groups. Over a thirty year period, he taught at several secondary schools and served as school administrator with the Toronto District School Board.

Fred Kennedy comes to Palaver 2016 with two publications and a third manuscript on the table. He comes with knowledge gathered through research to lead a fascinating journey to a pre-Columbian time when independent peoples with political acumen chose their leaders and structured viable communities, until they were invaded. He will intrigue the audience with stories on Saturday, August 6 at Wasaga Beach Area 4 during Storytelling segments; and, will present Huareo during Books and Authors on Sunday, August 7 at Wasaga Beach Area 4.

©MSLJ-2016-07-23

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The Palaver Awards Dinner this year falls on the 54th anniversary of Jamaica’s Independence and Hammond and the Heritage Singers will perform in a tribute to a country that is regarded by many in the worlds of academics, music, cuisine and Track & Field as ‘the greatest little nation on Earth’. The event and tribute, dubbed A Birthday Toast to Jamaica, will be held at the Wasaga Beach RecPlex Auditorium starting with cocktails at 7.00 pm. Awarding-winning writer and poet, Professor Lorna Goodison will raise the toast. Her theme is: The mystery that is Jamaica.

Orville Hammond, who flies into Toronto specifically for this event, began piano studies at age seven and showed an early passion for jazz. As he honed his natural talent his music progressively revealed varied stylistic influences and an affinity for his Caribbean cultural roots. Indeed, his multi-dimensional ability is evident at all levels of his music.

An accomplished performer, Hammond has opened for Bill Cosby, Tony Bennett and Gary Burton and he has performed with some of the best, including John Blake, Jamey Aebersold, Benny Golson, Richard Davis, Branford Marsalis, Delfeayo Marsalis, Jimmy Cliff, Hermeto Pascoal and Kenny Wheeler. Hammond’s performances have been well-received in Spain, Brazil, Morocco, throughout Kentucky and the Southeastern United States, at the famous Montreux jazz festival and at the Ocho Rios jazz festival in Jamaica. He has appeared as a soloist with the Louisville and Knoxville Symphony Orchestras and with the Czech Martinu Philharmonic, under the baton of Maestro Kirk Trevor.

Hammond’s innate gifts earned him respect and prestige at a young age. He gained diplomas from the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, under the tutelage of the late Jamaican pianist, Fay Ennever-Robotham. At Oberlin College, in Ohio (USA), where he earned the Bachelor of Music, Hammond studied with pianists Frances Walker and Sanford Margolis. He holds the Master of Music in jazz performance from the Eastman School of Music. He has also studied with pianist Jim McNeely, the late Sanford Gold, at the Taubman and Golandsky Piano Institutes and taught piano and jazz at the University of Kentucky.
A versatile composer, his compositions have been premiered in Martinique, the Czech Republic and New York City. He scored the music for the documentary film Ellis Wilson – So Much to Paint, produced by Kentucky Educational Television (KET). He is a recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Kentucky Arts Council. The Orville Hammond Trio had its New York debut in the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and has been featured on Black Entertainment Television.

Orville Hammond is currently department head of Performance Studies at Jamaica’s Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts where he coordinates the jazz studies programme and is artistic director of the College’s annual celebration of International Jazz Day.
The Palaver International Literary Festival is an annual celebration of Caribbean literature, music and cuisine. It takes place in Wasaga Beach, Ontario, known as the longest freshwater beach in the world, on August 6 and 7, 2016.

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A lawyer by training and currently a research student specializing in terrorism, peace and mediation, Samuel Tabi (alias Othello) comes to Palaver 2016 with the heart, passion, conviction and dedication of a writer.

A poet, playwright, literary critic and story teller, Samuel Tabi Tanyi-Mbianyor, who arrived in Canada in 2008, discovered a penchant for writing fairly early in life. He found fascination in the written word during his years in primary school in his native Republic of Cameroon on the west coast of Africa.

A beautiful country with gorgeous beaches, spectacular deserts, majestic mountains (up to 4,100 metres or 13,500 feet), expansive rainforest and breathtaking savannas, the Republic of Cameroon came into world focus when its soccer team laid low many of the great football nations on the planet to reach the FIFA World Cup soccer quarter-finals in 1990. Images of their main striker, Roger Miller, in widely televised celebratory dance following each of his goals persist. It was a dance that was to remain en vogue throughout the world of soccer for years to come. Cameroon went on to win the gold medal in the sport at the Olympics 10 years later, thus establishing the country as one of the great soccer nations of Africa. Dubbed “Africa in miniature” because of its amazing geological and cultural diversity, Cameroon has more than 1,700 linguistic groups in a population of over 20 million.

“In secondary school, although a law student, I was a member of both the literary and journalism clubs. In the University, I was a member of the University Poetry Club and the Theatre club, where I took part in acting some plays and in poetry recitation and dramatization.”

Othello is twice winner of the National Book Development Council Award (Cameroon) for poetry (1995 and 1996). In 1998, his poem Seasons of Blood was shortlisted for the BBC African Poet of the Year Award. Even after being called to the Cameroon Bar in 2003 and the subsequent establishment of a private law practice, Sam never stopped writing – poetry, stories and drama being his main focus. He is founder of The Othello Players, a Buea-based (Cameroon) theatre troupe.

“I have written two plays, yet to be published and completed two poetry anthologies,” he said as he discussed his literary calling. “I can say I have a comfortable grasp of the spoken word and I am full of gusto. My stories are both long and short. Some are combined tragedies and comedies. They have thick skin and a huge heart,” he said.

Having failed the entrance examinations for the School of Journalism in Cameroon, the young university graduate volunteered to work at Cameroon Radio and Television (CRTV). Between 1995 and 2000 he worked CRTV but he also wrote for many newspapers in Cameroon.

“For CRTV, I presented a bi-weekly programme called Literary Half Hour. For the print media, I wrote features articles and news stories, some of which made me stand out as a goad and gadfly.”

An advocate, a Solicitor and Notary Public, Samuel Tabi is a member of the Supreme Court of Cameroon, the Cameroon Bar association, the Canadian Bar Association and the American Association for Public Administrations, Sam read law at the Universities of Yaoundé Cameroon and Toronto, Canada. His current studies in Public Administration with specialization in terrorism, peace and mediation has him enrolled at Walden University’s School of Administration and Public Policy.

As Othello, he comes to Palaver 2016 to share his thoughts, ideas and values as captured in his poetry and stories from his homeland. He appears at Wasaga Beach Area 4 on Saturday August 6.

© M.S.L. Jarrett 2016-07-08

Horane Smith has been one of the most prolific Canadian writers, having written 12 books since his first success, Lover’s Leap: [ISBN: 0 75410 589] was published in the United Kingdom in 1999.

In his Palaver workshop ‘First Steps to Becoming a Writer’ the author will take participants through the basic elements of writing fiction, short stories and poetry and, in so doing, discuss the ‘dos and don’ts’ of creative writing. He will help participants to address matters related to clarity, coherence, focus, organization; and, basic ‘nuts and bolts’ issues of good writing. He will help participants to analyse their own efforts and the language they employ – Language that can kill; language that enhances; language that sells. Participants should carry notebook and pencil as there will be some writing exercises to reinforce the points and tips passed on.

Smith intends to take participants the whole way by explaining and discussing the process and issues related to publishing and current trends in the business.

By Mike Jarrett

When young Garfield Ellis came to the realisation that he would be a writer, he knew he could not become one, at least not immediately. People like him – who lived where he lived, where life was so marginal that the pangs hunger demanded desperate survival strategies – those who ‘suffered’ did not become writers. He certainly knew of none.

“My family was so poor that my mother taught us that the best way to combat hunger was to lie on our bellies. It works too!”

The family of eleven lived in a two-bedroom house with three beds. His mother did not work and his step-father was a peddler.

“I had to sell Kisko (icicle frozen in a baton shaped plastics bag) on the street, to make money to go to high school.”

Often there was no electricity in the house. Rigid conservation had to be implemented in order to save on horrendously high light bills and co late night studying was not encouraged. And when it got to the point that electricity was disconnected, the family used a kerosene lamp at nights and young Garfield bought candles so as to study late.

“I had to buy candles to study and hide them till everyone had gone to bed. My parents would at times take them away to share with the family. It was selfish to want to have candles all to myself – even though I had saved my lunch money to buy them for studying. For my last years at St. Andrew Technical High, the school gave me uniform and food on a special welfare programme and paid for my O-level exams.”

With such obstacles, Garfield Ellis successfully completed high school but cannot boast of a spectacular academic journey through the secondary stage of schooling. However, by the end of that process, he had found what he recognized as his true calling.

“I dreamt of being a writer all through my teenage years. But the decision that this is what I would do with the rest of my life came at eighteen years old. And I wrote it in my diary as a promise to myself. A promise because I knew I was too poor to become a writer immediately. First I had to become an engineer and set a foundation. Then I would write fulltime.”

It was in January 1984 that Garfield made his diary entry: “I think I have come to an important decision in my life. I am going to write. …Writing is now the horizon to which I march.

When he wrote those words of intent he had no road map for getting to his destination, nor did he have a guide.

“I knew no writers. There was no one to discuss it with. There was no precedent in my community, not for writing, not for any kind of success. Those who succeed, leave?

He studied marine engineering, management and public relations in Jamaica and worked at the Caribbean Maritime Institute. It was not long before his application for the Master of Fine Arts degree programme was sent off to the University of Miami. He completed that course of work on a full scholarship as a James Michener Fellow and Garfield Ellis subsequently settled down to a career of writing.

Garfield Ellis appears at Palaver 2016 as author of six books: Flaming Hearts, Wake Rasta, Such As I Have, For Nothing at All, Till I’m Laid To Rest and The Angels’ Share, published in January 2016. He has won the Una Marson prize for adult literature on two occasions. And he has twice won the Canute A. Brodhurst prize for fiction. In 1990 he won the Heinemann/Lifestyle short story competition.

MJ: Why do you write?

GE: I write because I must. Seriously, for me there is nothing else. I have always wanted to see my story and the story of my people told the way I saw the stories of other people told in the books I was reading. So I write to tell these stories. And in the process popularize the archives of Caribbean literature.  For I discovered, that our stories, though written, exist in theses in the library of universities. I want to bring these stories of the people to the people.

MJ: What has writing taught you about life, people or yourself?

GE: Writing has taught me that there is nothing more rewarding than achieving one’s dreams and no greater gift than the ability to create. … the ability to dream of something that does not exist in shape or concept and to create it from scratch with enough beauty and truth to make someone’s life better; and, to serve the world long after you are gone – is the closest to immortality that any human can rise.

© M.S.L. Jarrett 2016-06-06

Thirty and more years ago when Grace Carter-Henry Lyon thought about establishing a musical ensemble that would give life to the history recorded in the traditional folk songs of the Caribbean, she was acutely cognizant of the importance of achieving excellence.
As a member of the Jamaican Folk Singers in the land of her forefathers, Grace’s talents and work ethic were honed in a learning environment created and sustained by the celebrated and renowned Jamaican folklorist and musicologist, Dr. The Hon. Olive Lewin. The ‘Jamaican Folk Singers’ as an ensemble, like the country’s National Dance Theatre Company, became icons of excellence in newly independent Jamaica. And the meticulous care and attention to detail; the relentless work and drill that ensured high quality standards were acknowledged as the key elements of the respect earned even among their compatriots.
Excellence was therefore the watchword of the Heritage Singers. It is this measure of the highest standard that inspired the organization at the time of its founding and today. Celebrating its 30th anniversary next year (2017), the ‪‎Heritage‬ Singers ensemble has thrilled audiences at home and abroad with pure, exhilarating sounds and cultural authenticity.
The 30 member group blends a range of voices and cultures. Its membership of Canadians embodies cultural nuances from the Caribbean, Africa and South Asia. In three decades it has developed an expansive repertoire of sacred and secular songs – work songs and lullabies, sad songs and happy songs.
“The language of these songs range from discernible Standard English Creole with an English‐Lexical base, to French patois … even bastardized Spanish and African dialect,” Grace explained.
The rich, delightful strains of authentic ‪‎folk music‬ from this now famous Canadian ensemble will highlight the after-dinner entertainment programme at the ‪#‎Palaver‬ International Literary Festival’s Awards Dinner in Wasaga Beach on August 6.
The ‪‎Palaver Festival‬ Awards Dinner this year falls on the anniversary date of Jamaica’s Independence and the theme for the event, to be held at the ‪#‎WasagaBeach‬ RecPlex, is ‘A Birthday Toast to Jamaica’

One of the most admired and accomplished poets of the Caribbean, Professor Lorna Goodison comes to Palaver with an international reputation, a stellar bibliography and a string of awards dating back almost 30 years. Included are a Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for the Americas; a Musgrave Gold Medal from the Institute of Jamaica; the 2008 British Columbia Award for Canadian Non-fiction; and, the Shirley Verrett Award which acknowledges the work and achievements of a faculty member at the University of Michigan.

Photo by Dennis Valentine

Lorna Goodison’s academic career, crammed tightly into a biography of 12-pages, includes assignments as: Visiting Professor, Women’s Studies Program, University of Toronto, 1990; Visiting Professor, Department of English, University of Michigan, 1992, 1994-99; Associate Professor, University of Toronto, 2000-2001; Associate Professor, University of Michigan, 2002-2007; and Professor, University of Michigan from 2008.

One of the most gifted and prolific writers of our time, Lorna Goodison pursued an illustrious academic career, punctuated with professional assignments for the advancement of literature and culture in Europe, North America and the Caribbean, yet she made time to author numerous short stories and some 15 volumes of poetry. And, even with an already full schedule, she demonstrated her support for the Palaver International Literary Festival by penning a special poem for the inaugural event. That poem was published in the first edition of CHAPTER (the souvenir booklet of the Palaver festival) in 2015.

Lorna Goodison published Tamarind Season, her first book of poetry, in 1980. That was followed by I Am Becoming My Mother, her first ‘big’ success, which won for her the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize. Later volumes included Heartease (1988), To Us, All Flowers Are Roses (1995), Turn Thanks (1999), Guinea Woman (2000), Travelling Mercies (2001), Controlling the Silver (2005), and Goldengrove (2006). Included in her biography are three collections of short stories including Baby Mother and the King of Swords (1990) and Fool-Fool Rose Is Leaving Labour-in-Vain Savannah (2005) and From Harvey River: A Memoir of My Mother and Her Island (2008). (See lists below.) Her work appears in the Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces.

Her writings, characterised as insightful, honest and unpretentious, celebrates humanity and the determination and indomitable spirit of the peoples of the Caribbean and particularly from her own Jamaica. Professor Lorna Goodison travels to Palaver 2016 from her home in British Columbia to recall and share moments, thoughts and the experiences that influenced and moulded generations of Caribbean people, whose collective contribution in various fields of endeavour have influenced and indeed changed the course of history.

The Palaver International Literary Festival, an annual celebration of Caribbean literature, music and cuisine, celebrates the monumental contribution of Lorna Goodison at its second renewal, August 6 and 7, 2016.

Writing has helped bring me back to life

By Mike Jarrett

The life of Cynthia Reyes is a story of unrelenting determination and ultimate triumph.

Seriously injured in a car accident, the journalist and award-winning broadcaster witnessed in helpless horror as her stellar career and a happy family life seemed to crumble.

It was on a lonely country road in 2005 when another vehicle crashed headlong into the rear end of Cynthia Reyes’ car. Although there were no bloody injuries, she suffered more extensive damage than even the doctors at first realised. It took some time before the full extent of her injuries was diagnosed and the resulting post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) identified.

Up to that time, Cynthia had already published a number of non-fiction features in Toronto Life Magazine, Toronto Star and in two book anthologies. She was a journalist on staff at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).  At the CBC she was executive producer, CBC Children’s and Youth Programming in CBC Arts and Entertainment .  Three years later she was appointed Executive Producer, Development and Training at CBC Television. More than a hundred episodes of her programmes appeared on network television. During this period and beyond she was Canadian board member and Secretary General of INPUT (an international public broadcasting board), and was co-founder and consultant of DiversiPro Inc. – a consulting firm.

One assignment in particular stands out among thousands. In the early 1990s her boss at CBC, Les Lawrence, asked her to lead a project. She and her team, working in Canada and South Africa, guided South African radio and TV journalists in preparing for their post-apartheid role in a new South Africa. The historical significance of this assignment was not lost on the  Canadian executive producer and when she returned she admitted: “I left a part of my heart in South Africa.”

Then everything seemed to crash for the Ryerson (Bachelor of Applied Arts) graduate on that regrettable evening in 2005.

Recovery was far more complex than Cynthia and her close-knit family could possibly imagine. “It was a tough time,” she recalled in an interview.

“There were long stretches where I couldn’t walk. And when I could walk, I couldn’t talk properly. I was ashamed, so I wouldn’t venture out (of the house). I wouldn’t even venture out to the gate. I didn’t love the house at that stage. I hated it.”

INDOMITABLE SPIRIT

Fully coming to terms with her new situation and accepting what life had now presented her, Cynthia Reyes, with the care and love of a supportive family, her husband Hamlin Grange and their two daughters, began, in earnest, her journey to recovery. There was pain, emotional distress, uncertainty, fear, anxiety but through it all the indomitable spirit of Cynthia Reyes struggled and prevailed.

Her first book, A Good Home, was published in May 2013. The memoir received accolades from a wide variety of sources and repeatedly made Amazon’s bestseller lists. The book tells the story of Cynthia’s life and relationships in dwellings as varied as a small pink farmhouse in Jamaica, a mountainside log cabin in Vancouver and a Victorian farmhouse near Toronto.

“My stories all followed the same theme: home. I think that must be connected to the fact that I left my home in Jamaica on two weeks’ notice to come to Canada. It was wrenching. So I was constantly writing about home … about Jamaica,” she once said.

An Honest House, published just recently (May 2016), is the sequel to A Good Home. It tells the story of a family determined to find beauty, joy and faith in a life much-changed by a car accident. It is an intimate story, set in a Victorian farmhouse that was built when Canada became a nation in the late 1860s.

Co-founder of the Harry Jerome Awards and the Innoversity Creative Summit, Cynthia has won several national and international awards for trailblazing work as a leader in the television industry, including the Children’s Broadcast Institute Award and the Crystal Award for Outstanding Achievement in Film and Television.

In preparing this article, I asked Cynthia two questions.

MJ: Why do you write books?

CR: I hate writing. It is back-breaking, mind-crazing work that pays the grand sum of about five cents an hour.

I don’t know why I write. Except that I also love writing. There is a joy I feel when a phrase; then a sentence; then a paragraph; then a page; then a chapter — comes together. It’s as if there are a million puzzle pieces, but if I choose the right ones and put them together — in just the right order, just the right angle, just the right place, I will create the most glorious picture – with nothing but words and imagination.

Mind you, what the reader takes away isn’t always what I expected. An Honest House deals with tough issues – a marriage buffeted by catastrophe. But my recovery has also deliberately emphasized the three Bs – the beauty, bounty and blessings of our life. Did this come across? I think so … I hoped so. Then, in just two days, three early readers in different countries wrote to tell me how moved they were by the book. Each also expressed love for “all the great food” in it. All the great food? I honestly didn’t realize there was so much food in the book till they told me!

MJ: What has writing books taught you?

CR: “Writing books has taught me that life is worth living.  The car accident smashed my life and made me want to die.  I live with pain, a head injury and post traumatic stress disorder. But being able to write again –  yes, me, a woman who could barely talk or walk some days – that has been a saving grace. Writing has helped bring me back to life and shown me that I have something valuable to contribute.

Now if only it paid more than five cents an hour!”

Cynthia Reyes has confirmed her participation in the Palaver International Literary Festival, August 6 and 7, 2016 in the beautiful Ontario resort town of Wasaga Beach (the longest fresh water beach in the world). She will share her work in the segment Books and Authors on August 7 at Wasaga Beach Area 4, immediately following the ‘sumptuous feast on the beach’ Sunday Brunch, catered by award-winning executive chef, Selwyn Richards.

© M.S.L. Jarrett 2016-05-22