Chris Benjamin's Writing Blog

Hi folks,

My first radio documentary was aired on CBC Radio One this past weekend. It is now available online for your listening pleasure at CBC.ca | Maritime Magazine | The Forest and the Trees.

Here's what it's about:

In Nova Scotia, decades old leases negotiated between forestry companies and the provincial government led to clear-cutting on crown land. The end of those leases - and the election of an NDP government - led many environmentalists to see a golden opportunity, a chance to move toward a more sustainable industry.

But so far they say it isn't happening.

[Click on the book cover image to learn more about the book from Goodreads.com.]

Fiction

The Way the Crow Flies by Anne-Marie MacDonald - based on the Stephen Truscott story, set in early cold war in Ontario at a military base. A murder mystery, abuse of power, divided loyalties, and great writing.



This Way for the Gas, Ladies and Gentlemen by Tadeusz Borowski - horrifying and unforgettable stories based on Borowski's time as a prisoner in two concentration camps during WWII.


The Rest is Silence by Scott Fotheringham - Kind of a gentle apocalypse story, with gender bending.



The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall - The genius is that he gives a sympathetic portrayal, yet shows exactly how fucked up polygamy is.



Room by Emma Donoghue - I blitzed through the first half to see how the five-year-old narrator and his mom escape their cruel captor. The second half was an usual surprise: the story of the post trauma, the healing process. Gripping story (especially for a parent of small kids I think), masterfully delivered.


Germinal by Emile Zola - Craziest story I ever read. Scenes I thought would never end - miners marauding through the countryside leaving a swath of angry destruction, women ripping the penis off their tormentor's dead body, the collapse of the mine and the drawn out survival of some miners among the relentless corpses of others floating in the floodwaters. Thank holiness I wasn't born in northern France 1860.



Non-Fiction

Mothers and Others: The Evolutionary Origins of Mutual Understanding by Sarah Blaffer Hrdy - academic, but helped me understand parenting (not only mothering) and community and the work I do and why.



Out of the Depths: The Experiences of Mi'kmaw Children at the Indian Residential School at Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia by Isabelle Knockwood - A sad, powerful story that helped me better understand the attempted genocide of First Nations people.



A National Crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System by John S. Milloy - Context for Knockwood's survivor stories. Milloy tells the stories of how these horrible facilities of systematic abuse, and the attempt to destroy First Nations culture through their children, came to be.

I'm pleased to introduce the second Eco-Innovators video, Green Island Getaway, by Halifax filmmaker Kevin Moynihan, featuring Travis and Alan Burland.

There are great ways to vacation within our own region, and this is one of them. The project also shows that small, low energy living is a beautiful thing. Please share this, my friends.

Hi folks,

I'm happy to announce that Drive-by Savious is now available as an e-book on Kobo ($12.39) and NOOK Book ($11.37).

So, for all those who have been waiting patiently overseas, or those who wanted to save paper and space, or those who simply prefer this format, have at it!

All the best,

Chris

So I was tagged in a meme just for authors, and it gives me a good chance to talk about my new novel, which is seeking a good home. Here goes:

What is your working title of your book?

'Burban Boys

Where did the idea come from for the book?

Before Drive-by Saviours came out Lesley Choyce read it, liked it, but suggested writing something with more local content. I thought about that and figured maybe it was time for the great contemporary Halifax novel. But everything I know about Halifax takes me back to the old Halifax County, where I grew up. And I remembered something Russell Smith said when were on a panel together and the MC, Stephanie Domet [having fun literary name dropping now here], noted that both our novels were very urban, and asked was that part of a trend away from country and village settings. Smith said maybe, but if so it would quickly be surpassed by suburban settings, which have the fastest growing population in the country, and a literarily under-explored one. So I set out to write a novel about suburban Halifax - the County as we called it - in the 80s and 90s. It's a tinderbox world created to meld affordable, safe, quiet green spaces with the convenience of the city; for the kids growing up there, it is neither convenient nor safe. 

What genre does your book fall under?

Literary fiction, contemporary bleak, dark comedy

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

James Duval, Christian Bale and Larry the Cable Guy would play the three protagonists as adults. I'm not up on my child actors.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Three best buds, forever bonded by youth's shared masculine brawls and verbal jabs, struggle with their respective chosen careers in eco-terrorism, managing a cult and polygamous family, and welding; somehow their friendship no longer helps matters. [That semi-colon was a bit of a cheat, wasn't it?]

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Probably not. A quality independent publisher is my hope for it.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Five days. [My wife and child were out of town, so I got wild on that manuscript.]

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Stephen King's The Body, sort of. Though it's not even the same genre exactly. It's a modernized Stand by Me with a different body and a lot more drugs.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Aside from Lesley Choyce, it was inspired mainly by a lot of the guys I was tight with growing up, and also some of the guys I knew and did my best to avoid.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Prostitution. Pimping. Proselytism. Polygamy.

There's riot cops. 1990s Halifax memorabilia. The Cafe Ole. Violence. Sex. Bad swears. Drugs.  Frat parties. 

Did I mention eco-terrorism?

Include the link of who tagged you and this explanation for the people you have tagged.

Jeff Bursey, author of Verbatim (a truly innovative novel). I guess I'll be trying to line up my authors after the fact.

Hi folks,

Halifax filmmaker Kevin Moynihan and I are teaming up to make a series of videos based on my book, Eco-Innovators: Sustainability in Atlantic Canada (which won the 2012 best Atlantic-published book and is a finalist for the 2012 Richardson non-fiction prize).

Our first video featured Off the Hook, an innovative community-supported fishery co-op. The video was featured by David Suzuki on Facebook and can be seen here.

We're now teaming up again to complete the series on sustainable food in the region, and are giving crowd-sourcing a try as a means to fund the endeavor. Up next for videos are Speerville (a large organic wholesaler in New Brunswick), Local Source (a small local food retailer in Halifax), and Fair Acres (an organic family farm on P.E.I.).

Any help you can give - whether in the form of a contribution or simply spreading the word through your networks - would be much appreciated. Please click the link below to visit our indiegogo page and get full details:

Lots going on so far in 2012. So much I need to categorize:

Multimedia:

I've finally created a snazzy webpage just for Eco-Innovators stuff - video, pics, words and links. See the whole shebang at http://www.chrisbenjaminwriting.com/eco-innovators.php.

It includes several new videos that I uploaded from recent book events. See those on youtube at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTQzNk335W0&context=C33d990fADOEgsToPDskIWhoIbcM7iHQ0-a90LryT6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xxs9z9MHKIs&context=C3cf5865ADOEgsToPDskJOJpGL6dx4D_ceSzw7W5_2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyfKlIKAELM&context=C3315d16ADOEgsToPDskJqzihNr2S7N5Av5EhDzvBP
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl3Jrg_K4Ec&context=C3f8f72aADOEgsToPDskI4P6nBPzg_61H0Fm-bj2Ag

Stuff featuring your humble scribe:

I've seen lots of book reviews, but this review of the "PEI Drive-by Saviours book launch" is a first for me:

http://surveyoronline.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/art-imitating-life-writers-showcase-their-works-during-a-reading-at-upei/

Writers are often asked why we write. "We're nuts," is maybe the truth, but not the most satisfying answer. Here's my attempted explanation, along with that of Kathleen Winter, Russell Wangersky, Leslie Vryenhoek, and Lorrie Nelson Glenn: http://saltyink.com/2012/01/27/five-writers-on-one-reason-they-write/

Upcoming opportunities to buy me a coffee:

On Jan. 31 at noon in the Sobey Building at St. Mary's University I'll be giving a talk on how Halifax's inferiority complex hurts the environment, and how self-esteem could make us greener.

On Feb. 3 and 4 I'll be speaking at Mount Saint Vincent University's "How to be an Environmentalist" conference. Details at https://www.facebook.com/events/232261773517924.

On Feb. 12 at 1 p.m. at 1113 Marginal Road, Halifax (by Pier 21, at the Writers' Federation office) I'll be one of many writers reading (aloud) the work of the great poet, Elizabeth Bishop.

On Feb. 23 the Eco-Innovators tour comes to Fredericton: http://tbgmedia.ca/c/greenshops/sustainablefeb23/

Stuff I wrote recently:

It probably won't surprise you that I like to read. Here are the 13 best books I read last year: http://www.chrisbenjaminwriting.com/chris-benjamin-writing-blog/best-books-i-read-in-2011

My latest column in The Coast explores opposing perspectives on what exactly makes a house qualify as sustainable: http://www.thecoast.ca/halifax/net-zero/Content?oid=2918635

It's time for my annual "Best Books I Read Last Year" list, this time featuring 13 works of poetry, novels, nonfiction and anthology. As usual, these books didn't necessarily come out in 2010; that's just when I read them. This year, you should too. [Click on the picture to find out more about the book.] Happy reading!

Poetry

Goyette’s imagery is evocative, precise, tangible yet layered with meaning:


I'm beyond biased here because I've got two poems in this anthology of Halifax guerilla poetry, and I like the idea so much I've written a feature about it. But I was genuinely impressed by the quality of work from my town's closet poets:

Nonfiction

Rogers elucidates how the failures of "green" or "natural" capitalism are the failings of capitalism itself:


Paradoxically dense and sprawling, but worth the effort. You know when people say, "This is how the world really works!" Well, this is part of it:


It's actually a novel interspersed among reflections on a campaign to ban uranium mining in Nova Scotia. I never quite figured out how they fit together, but the former is engaging and entertaining and the latter is inspirational and thought-provoking:




Fiction

Rushdie, having accomplished everything a writer could hope for, seems to be just having fun now. And it's a lot of fantastical fun to read too:



This novel was a rollicking fantastic adventure through the idealism of the 60s and the coming of age bestowed by Vietnam. Above all, it had an enormous sense of wonder:


Counter-intuitive to the title, for me these stories resonate with the sad truth of being a grownup:


MacDonald is a natural story teller and he connected all the emotional dots, providing a poignant tale of cultural change, the erosion of old ways and the maturation of young talent and pride:


The lady dialing 911 for love with all the wrong paramedics, the crack-addicted mathematician scoring rock for Robert Oppenheimer, the single condo-dwelling web designer more easily accepting the flaws of his Andalucian woolfhound than those of human companions – all serve Christie well as he masterfully illustrates the interwoven highs and lows of urban isolation:


Takes you right there, with the protagonists, feeling their fears, anxieties, pain and stress:


This is a good old-fashioned slog that probably wouldn't be published in the modern Canlit scene. It's prose is poetry and it's best scenes are heart-wrenching. In its entirety it is an unforgettable, honest portrait of rural life, its hardship and its absolute dependence on community even when community gets nasty:


Once again I'm totally biased because I have a short story in this one. But once again I was genuinely impressed to find myself in such accomplished company:

Hi folks,

I'm happy to say that Arts East Magazine has named Eco-Innovators: Sustainability in Atlantic Canada to its Top 10 Atlantic Canadian Books of 2011 list - coming in at number 5.

It's fabulous company to be in, with legends like Sue Goyette, Wayne Johnston, Ami McKay, Marq de Villiers, Harry Thurston, David Adams Richards, well...the whole list. Check it out:

Top Ten Atlantic Canadian Books of 2011!

1. Facing the Hunter – David Adams Richards
2. A World Elsewhere – Wayne Johnston
3. The Virgin Cure – Ami McKay
4. Our Way Out - Marq de Villiers
5. Eco-Innovators – Chris Benjamin
6. outskirts - Sue Goyette
7. The Atlantic Coast; A Natural History – Harry Thurston
8. Chasing Freedom – Gloria Wesley
9. Incidents in the Life of Markus Paul – David Adams Richards
10. David Askevold – David Diviney

Honourable Mention: The Antagonist by Lynn Coady, A Possible Madness by Frank Macdonald, Gulf by Leslie Vryenhoek, That Forgetful Shore by Trudy Morgan-Cole, The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by Steven Laffoley, How Hockey Explains Canada by Jim Prime/Paul Henderson, deluded your sailors by Michelle Butler-Hallett

Thank you Arts East!