How/why did you start
to write?
I was born into a
storytelling family. I could visualize the tales my mother told me about World
War II so vividly, I had nightmares about being bombed. When I was about eleven
or twelve years old, I wrote a story about the apocalypse that scared my
teacher. I was hooked.
How did you become an
author?
I decided that was
going to be an author when I was eighteen years old. That’s when I sent my
first story off to a professional publication. After a handful of rejections, I
decided I wasn’t good enough, so I gave up. Gave up trying to get published,
not writing.
Twenty years later, I
was still writing, and still entertaining family and friends. I was also a
freelance copy writer and editor. My success writing and editing for clients
gave me the confidence to put my fiction out there again. Before I had the time
but not the courage; now I had the courage but not the time.
When I was taking care
of my terminally ill sister, she insisted that I write the novel I had been
telling her as a story. She arranged respite and babysitting for me so I could
have a couple of hours every day. When someone gives you that kind of gift, you
don’t throw it away.
What was your first
published piece?
I had a couple of
pieces of poetry published in Scarborough College’s literary anthology - which
was cool since I never went to Scarborough College. That was my earliest
publication.
My first published
short story was in Women’s Work 2000 - a day planner with stories that I edited
for a publisher I partly owned.
My first novel was
published in 2011 by Imajin Books. I was applying for a editing job when I
found out they had a call for new authors. The day after I sent my ms, I got an
email telling me that I wouldn’t be getting the editing job because Imajin
wanted me as an author instead.
After thirty years, I
was an author overnight.
What did you do
before embarking on your writing career? Was it an asset to your writing? How?
What have I done? What
haven’t I done? I guess the answer to both questions is “plenty”.
I did a double major
in history and philosophy at University of Guelph - but first I did a year at
Ryerson, was in Katimavik, hitchhiked halfway across Canada and worked at a
variety of jobs. After university I worked as a lab tech for an optical company
and then managed a comic book store for a few years. It was with the comic book
store that I started writing marketing copy and designing display ads. Then,
between jobs, my cousin asked what I was writing. I responded: “What do you
want written?”
Later, in addition to
writing, editing and layout, I went into partnership with my sister and an
artist friend to create Women’s Work - which we published for five years -
until my sister was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Everything I’ve done,
every story I’ve told, every project I’ve researched, every step I’ve taken is
grist for the mill. Being a professional writer has hardened my shell and
enabled me to work well with my editors. Having been a publisher - albeit
micro-publisher - I also have a good understanding of the business end of books
and marketing.
What inspires you?
Six months before she
died, my sister was working on designing promotional materials for the Guelph
Jazz Festival and editing the first draft of my fantasy novel. She did this
flat on her back with her desktop computer set up on a rolling microwave tray.
That memory inspires
me.
The way that Terry
Pratchett writes, so that I can read his books multiple times and still laugh,
cry and find something new, is my model for writing. The fact that he continues
to write while under the Damocles sword of Alzheimer’s Disease reminds me to
keep going.
Most of all, my
children inspire me. If I keep doing what is important to me, no matter how
challenging it gets, they’ll be more likely to pursue their own dreams.
Website:
http://www.alisonbruce.ca/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/alisonebruce
