I wrote my first book when I was in Grade 2, for a beloved teacher who was in hospital. It was a collection of my stories and poems, and some by my favourite poet at the time, Ogden Nash. Since then I’ve written books, essays, reports, articles, and more.
Fiction
I’m finally tackling my lifelong goal of writing a novel. Red Rules is the story of a teenager in early 1900s Russia who, after seeing friends slaughtered by a government-supported mob, joins a socialist revolutionary cell. He’s determined to end the reign of the Czar and usher in a world order of peace and prosperity. When his former mentor, who has risen quickly in the new Bolshevik government, turns on him, he must find a way to get himself and his family to safety while reconciling his ideals with harsh reality.
Travel Writing
I’ve been traveling since I was 3 years old. (As a result, I’m aware of cultural differences such as my innate desire to write travelling with a double-l because I’m Canadian, as opposed to the US spelling.) This page gives you an overview of my travel history, and there’s a button link below to take you to my travel articles.
I’ve also had severe allergies since I started solid food, so that adds a unique angle to my travel experiences and travel writing. Traveling with allergies is tricky, but worth the challenge.
Personal Essays
Personal reflections on topics such as:
- why I hated Christmas as a child,
- current risks to democracy,
- how family circumstances can affect your future plans,
- life as a disabled person.
These aren’t as formally structured as they would be if I’d written them as focused personal essays for sale to magazines or other publications. However, they do give you some of my personal thoughts on life.
Business Books
After an early career in the political world and then in bank marketing, I wrote my first book about women in the workplace in the mid-90s.
Intrigued by the Internet in its early days, in 2000 I launched Web Mystery Shoppers International. It was one of the first companies worldwide to do remote usability testing of websites. From there I evolved into customer experience consulting & speaking, and in 2016 published the bestselling PeopleShock: The Path to Profits When Customers Rule.
