Carolyn Molnar is a full-time psychic medium living in Toronto. She teaches psychic development classes throughout North America and was a correspondent for Psychic News, a Spiritualist newspaper published in England. In the following Q and A she discusses her latest work, Compassionate Messenger: True Stories from a Psychic Medium: a captivating collection of stories that delve into the deeply emotional and spiritual experiences of Carolyn and her clients.

Tell us about your book. 

Compassionate Messenger: True Stories from a Psychic Medium is a series of stories about the fascinating people I have met as a psychic/medium.  The stories reflect the love that continues when people who’ve been close to us pass into spirit. There was a lot of soul searching to come up with the title.  “Compassionate” is the key word – it conveys the service that mediumship provides to those who are grieving.

What was the hardest part of writing your book? 

Parts of the book made me weep. I didn’t want to write a sad, depressing book, but I knew I needed to be honest with the emotions of my clients and myself. So I worked extra hard to infuse the heartbreaking moments with poignancy.

Did you have a specific readership in mind when you wrote your book? 

I think we get to a point in our lives when we realize “things” don’t cut it anymore.  We might have a taste of our own mortality.  I call it “The Age of Reckoning”, where we think about what happens when we quit this world.

What was the creative process like for you? 

Thankfully, my husband is a professional writer.  We each worked with our strengths – I told him the stories and he shaped them into tight, cohesive prose.  Benjamin is truly gifted.  I was given the message while brushing my teeth recently – “You could not have done this without Ben.  You had to wait for him…”

What are you reading right now? 

I have to laugh whenever I look at my bookcase, which is next to my husband’s bookcase. My shelves are filled with romantic novels by Nora Roberts, Diana Gabaldon and Amanda Quick, while my husband devours horror and bloody whodunits. I like lots of sighing with happy endings, while he enjoys – yeesh!

What is your next project? 

 Benjamin and I are looking at two projects: a book on hospice from a medium’s perspective, and the other is on life in a well known Spiritualist community, again from a medium’s perspective.

It’s June 1^st – finally, it’s time for summer to begin! As cottage season approaches, there’s no better time to immerse yourself in all that Canada’s wilderness has to offer. Just ask Dundurn author Carol Bennett McCuaig. Her recently released book Encountering the Wild contains several exciting stories and up-close observations on wildlife and nature from a personal perspective. Carol, who lives on a 250 acre property in Renfrew, Ontario, is a naturalist, a former columnist for birdwatchers, and the author of several fiction and non-fiction titles. Indeed, Encountering the Wild is Carol’s 50^th book! Read on to find out more about her work, her inspirations and what she’s planning next…

Tell us about your book.

Encountering the Wild describes my adventures with wildlife on my country property in the Upper Ottawa Valley. I’ve had a bear on the roof, an ermine in the bedroom and a cougar on the lawn. I’ve been privileged to observe the courtship rituals of turkey vultures, red foxes and ruffed grouse. This is a book for country folk, and for those who wish they were.

This is a special year for me because Encountering the Wild will be my fiftieth published book!

What was your first publication?

An historical novel called Woman of Ireland. It was published in Canada under the name Jane Barrett.

What inspired you to write your first book?

It’s a true story based on the life of my children’s ancestor, a woman who married a sergeant in the 100th Regiment of Foot, when he was serving in the 1812 War. They settled at Richmond, near Ottawa. In1819 they had the distinction of entertaining the Duke of Richmond, just days before he died of rabies.

Describe the most memorable response you’ve received from a reader.

A woman who received one of my non-fiction books for Christmas told me she’d been so engrossed in it that she forgot to turn on the oven to cook the turkey. Their Christmas dinner was late that year!

 What is your next project?

I write fiction, published in Britain under the name Catriona McCuaig. I’m about to start work on a third mystery novel about my series character, Nesta Davies, who is a midwife in Tudor England. Her story began in Snares and Nets, which was published in November, 2009.

Whether you’re drinking your java or putting on your woolies in preparation for work, make sure you tune into CBC’s Metro Morning (GTA) and Ontario Morning (Ontario outside the GTA) for Deborah Brennan’s interview with Karen Horseman on Tuesday, Nov. 25 th at 7:20 am.

 

Labours of Love: Canadians Talk About Adoption
Deborah A. Brennan
9781550028454
$28.99 / £16.99 (paper)
Publication date: November 8, 2008

There are so many titles and so many authors that are a part of Dundurn, it’s easy to miss out on some great reviews and interviews that take place.  Sometimes we just happen to stumble across them.  I happened to come across one that took place in June between author JoAnn Dionne (Little Emperors) and host Sarah Passmore of RTHK, a radio station based in Hong Kong.

It’s a great interview that reveals JoAnn’s experience teaching children in China back in 1996.  She offers her thoughts on how these children might impact China’s future.  Considering all the talk about the current state of China during the recent olympics in Beijing, this is actually quite timely!

Listen to the interview here!

Photograph of Beijing Olympic Stadium by poeloq

First, radio personality Dick Williams’ review of Lake Erie Stories ran in the The Lake Erie Beaconon August 1st. Here’s a snippet from that review:

“Whether you are a boater, a student of history or simply looking for an engaging summer read, first-time author Chad Fraser’s Lake Erie Stories: Struggle and Survival on a Fresh Water Ocean  will more than intrigue and inform you … Fraser brings to life the ferocious Battle of Lake of Erie during the War of 1812, complete with broadsides of cannon-fire, toppling masts and dying sailors and puts you in the thick of the conflict … A fast-paced read, Lake Erie Stories  will lure you to revisit an old friend you may have taken for granted for far too long.”

Kayaking by Point Abino Lighthouse on Lake Erie

This past weekend, saw Chad in Leamington, Ontario where he taped a half hour interview for the local program The Story Teller, which will air shortly. Check back here for updates as to the exact time and date. Yesterday saw Chad on CBC Windsor’s The Early Shift. And in about three weeks time on September 8th at 8:45am Chad will be on A Channel Morning in London, Ontario. Whew! When it rains it pours!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Alex speaks to the students of Henry Wise Wood High School

The guys ended their Calgary stay with a reading and signing at the Calgary Public Library.

 

 

 

 

 

Andrew prepares for his CTV News at Noon interview by catching some zzzzs on the bus to Edmonton.

After a brief 24 hour stay in Edmonton, it was off to Vancouver where Alex and Andrew appeared on Global TV Morning News. The guys said farewell to Vancouver on May 20th, but not before having a standing room only book signing at Blackberry Books.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Andrew lets Alex take the lead in talking about Kickstart.

 

 

 

 

 

 
Alex signing books

Alex and Andrew then headed East and made stops in New Brunswick, including a signing at Westminster Books, before stoping in Halifax, their final tour stop. They were busy bees in Halifax with interviews on CBC’s Maritime at Noon, where they were the phone-in guests for the hour (click here to listen to the interview, which requires Real Audio), CTV News at 6pm, and Global TV.

While on tour Kickstart  not only received media buzz out west, but also in Montreal on May 17th when the Montreal Gazette ran an interview with Alex. Click here to read the interview. And we received wonderful news on May 16th when Kickstart received 3 out of 4 stars from the prestigious CM Magazine. Here’s a snippet of what reviewer Val Ken Lem had to say about the book.

“In Kickstart, Herman, Matthews, and Feindel, three young members of the ‘Twixter Generation,’ have produced an interesting biographical work that has the potential to encourage and inspire anyone who reads it.”

To read more of this insightful review click here.

And for your enjoyment here are some more pictures from their cross-Canada tour!

To read more about Alex and Andrew’s tour adventures check out their blog and Open Book Toronto where they are this month’s Writers in Residence. And for more pictures from their author tour became a fan of Kickstart on Facebook.

 Steven Skurka, author of the highly anticipated Tilted: The Trail of Conrad Black, will be featured on Canada AM/ CTV Newsnet and on The John Moore Show on Monday February, 18th.

Other Upcoming Media Appearances:

 - February 16th, The National Post runs excerpts from book

- February 19th, on  Metro Morning.