Writing Archives - Helen Walsh

Location, Location, Location.

By Helen WalshPosted on November 30, 2022Posted in WritingTagged pull focus, putin, russia, writer-in-residence, writing life, writing setting

*This was published by Open Book as part of my writer-in-residency appointment. I’m writing to you from the plane to London. I’m headed to my favourite city for ten days, following by a few days in Edinburgh visiting friends. Interspersed are trains to Cardiff and Cambridge. It’s a research trip for my third novel, set in London. The project continues the exploration of global money-laundering, political corruption and the illegal but highly profitable actions of the […]

Why TV is Good For You.

By Helen WalshPosted on November 28, 2022Posted in WritingTagged helen walsh, publishing, scriptwriting, writer-in-residence, writing life

*This was published by Open Book as part of my writer-in-residency appointment. If your mother was like my mother, you were told to turn off the television as a child (in my case, Family Ties or Miami Vice or Murder She Wrote or. . .) and pick up a book. Any book. Because everyone knew reading was better for you than staring at the idiot box. Now, far be it from me to suggest my mother wasn’t right about everything. I […]

Ask Jane (Agony Aunt)

By Helen WalshPosted on November 26, 2022Posted in WritingTagged agony aunt, helen walsh, publishing, pull focus, thrillers, writer-in-residence, writing characters, writing life

* This was published by Open Book as part of my writer-in-residency appointment. Hi, I’m Jane, and I’m the protagonist of Helen’s novel, Pull Focus. I’m taking over the blog today to answer questions readers may about me, or the book, or anything else. What’s an Agony Aunt? A woman who replies to reader’s letters, usually in a newspaper or magazine column, and gives advice. What qualifies you to give advice? Probably not too much, but […]

How to Cook A Look

By Helen WalshPosted on November 19, 2022Posted in WritingTagged canadian designers, helen walsh, localmade, publishing, pull focus, writer-in-residence, writing life

*This was published by Open Book as part of my writer-in-residence appointment. In March 2021, my house was completely destroyed by fire. Thankfully, I wasn’t home at the time. Although the fire incinerated only one floor, the smoke and soot travelled everywhere, including via the firemen’s heavy boots as they ran up the stairs with their axe chopping holes in the walls to ensure no sparks flew unseen. Smoke and soot are carcinogenic, so the […]

The Marketing Salsa

By Helen WalshPosted on November 12, 2022Posted in WritingTagged pull focus, writer-in-residence, writing life

*This was published in Open Book as part of my writer-in-residence appointment. You’ve finished a book. Congrats! Now, you’ve got a book deal, decided to self-publish or signed with a hybrid publisher (the ‘pay to play’ option, which provides some editorial and marketing support, but at a fee). The hard work of marketing is about to begin, and you’ll need to become an author-entrepreneur, regardless of your publisher, or whether you’ve engaged some freelance PR help yourself. It’s […]

How To Cook A Book

By Helen WalshPosted on November 8, 2022Posted in WritingTagged cooking, helen walsh, how-to, publishing

* This article is published by Open Book during my writer-in-residence appointment. This failsafe recipe will transform your bottom drawer of manuscript pages into a tasty treat for readers everywhere. Meatier than paleo, the steps below will spice up your journey from secret writer to successful author. Think of it as your breakfast of champions. A power lunch. Your new favourite weeknight dinner. . .obsession. Prep Time: 7-9 years Cook Time: 18-24 months Yield: Did you sign with […]

Characters That Capture The Imagination

By Helen WalshPosted on November 4, 2022Posted in WritingTagged Borghese Gallery, Flawed Female Protagonists, helen walsh, Pauline Borghese Bonaparte, publishing, writer-in-residence

*This article is published by Open Book during writer-in-residence appointment. I visited the wonderous Borghese Gallery and gardens in Rome this summer for the first time. Originally a powerful merchant family from Sienna, the Borgheses moved to Rome in the 16th century. Cardinal Scipione Borghese, nephew to Pope Paul V (reign 1605–1621), built this breathtakingly grand palazzo in an effort to expand the family’s influence and telegraph their wealth at a time when art was at the very centre of power, government, […]

The Writing Life

By Helen WalshPosted on November 1, 2022Posted in WritingTagged helen walsh, publishing, Sylvia Fraser, writer-in-residence, writing life

*This article was published by Open Book during my writer-in-residence appointment. It’s late October and I’m writing this on a cold, rainy day after learning my friend, the writer Sylvia Fraser, has passed away. Such profoundly sad news. Author Sylvia Fraser. Sylvia was three decades older than me and more alive than almost anyone I knew. She backpacked alone around India for three months in her sixties. She took ayahuasca (a plant-based psychedelic) in the Amazonian jungle. She demonstrated […]

My house burned down, I contracted Covid, and I moved to the country—all in the past six months

By Helen WalshPosted on October 8, 2021Posted in WritingTagged helen walsh, publishing, pull focus

Published September 22, 2021 via Toronto Life. In late 2015, I bought a house at Yonge and Summerhill, just down the street from my partner, Michael. I fell in love with the village pocket of small streets and independent shops. At the end of my street are graffiti-strewn stone steps that descend into the Vale of Avoca ravine—a glorious urban forest with paths winding around Yellow Creek that fill with families and dog owners every […]

Shiver Me Timbers: A Little Murder with My Fall

By Helen WalshPosted on September 7, 2021Posted in WritingTagged autumn, feminist, gripping, helen walsh, intrigue, mysteries, pull focus, thrillers, women writers

Published September 7, 2021: 49thShelf.com “Is there anything more delicious than a chill up the spine as nights grow longer and shadows lurk?” Helen Walsh’s debut novel Pull Focus—a feminist thriller set behind the scenes at an international film festival—publishes September 7 in North America and October 7 in the UK. Autumn’s long shadows cut across the darkening sky. A director frames a close-up shot of a woman in an armchair clutching a book, legs curled […]