Welcome

This blog and podcast series celebrates reading and writing in rural communities with a focus on Port Dover and Norfolk County, Ontario, Canada.  It features interviews with local authors.  

For more info contact:

Dick Bourgeois-Doyle 

bourgeoisdoyle@gmail.com

Gregg Brown - Change Management

Gregg Brown is a popular keynote speaker and internationally recognized expert on change  management and the future of work.  He is also best-selling author of Spark Action.  

Link to Interview

Autumn Demarest (Ongaro) - Cooking-Agri-Food

Autumn Demarest – formerly Ongaro – is the author of FEAD – a reference on seasonal cooking that celebrates the foods in Norfolk County. 

Her book mixes high quality photography with  stories of local farms, agricultural history of our area, and recipes that make the most of seasonal foods.

Link to the Interview

 

Kari Guson - Ecology and Wildlife

Kari Gunson is a road ecology expert and principal of the consulting firm Eco-Kare International. 

She is co-author of the book Wildlife on Roads – a handbook and reference drawing upon her years of experience working to reduce wildlife mortality in Long Point and other areas in Norfolk County, Ontario, Canada.  You can help too. Click here.

 Link to the Interview 

Deborah Ellis - War and Writing for Young Adults

 Deborah Ellis is a multi-award-winning writer whose works include the celebrated Breadwinner series which inspired an Academy Award nominated film and raised millions for Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan, Street Kids International Children in Crisis, and UNICEF. 

She describes her experiences in difficult circumstance around the world, writing for younger audiences, and her life in Norfolk County.

Link to the Interview

Peter Ivey - Fantasy and Adventure

Peter Ivey was raised in Port Dover, visits often, and taught for a number of years in area schools. He is an educator with experience in varied media and works as a freelance research analyst. 

He also writes fantasy and adventure novels.  

His books include The Lost Tribe series.

Link to the Interview

Janice MacLeod - Travel, Art and Romance

 

Port Dover resident Janice MacLeod is an artist and the author of the New York Times Bestseller Paris Letters.  

Janice describes her roots in Norfolk County and her path to publishing success.

Here is her website with info on her art, other publicaitons, and writing courses. 

  Link to the Interview  

  

Mary Fairhurst Breen - YA and Memoirs

 

Mary describes herself as a late blooming author of queer tragicomedies.  But she also writes creative nonfiction, op-eds and works for younger audiences such as her most recent book Pride and Persistence.

Mary's book featured at Port Dover's 2024 Pride in the Park event, and afterwards talked on the phone about her books and her work helping people record their own stories.

Link to the Interview

David Beasley - History & Library Research

David Beasley is a  long-time Norfolk County resident and an author whose publications include poetry, plays, novels, nonfiction, and texts on library science. His works draw upon his travels abroad, and years as an activist and senior research librarian in New York.  

He talks about hurdles in his writing career, advantages of being a writer in Norfolk County, and his favourite pastime which may surprise given his age of 93. Dr. Beasley's website 

Link to Long-form Interview

Dick Bourgeois-Doyle - Humour Writing

The interview below was a Canada-Reads-style broadcast on CBC around the launch of my book on humor writing and the Leacock Medal history.  

Here is a link to my writing-oriented bio and one to a Youtube presentation on Canadian humorous literature with my best guesses about technique.  

The Norfolk County Public Library flattered me with this platform and opportunity to share my book.

Link to CBC Interview