I began writing women’s fiction in earnest after retiring from a rewarding career in the non-profit sector in 2022. In my work life, I wrote a ton of funding proposals and accountability reports. Dry stuff. Really dry. Creativity was not encouraged. Now, though, I’m having fun writing stories with happy endings, stories for and about contemporary women. I admit, many of the characters in my stories are based (oh so loosely) on people who have touched my life. So if you are part of my circle, you may see a bit of yourself (or our shared history) in my work.
Yes, my stories include romance. Why? Well, the way I see it, this world can be a dark, scary place, especially right now…and we all deserve a little happiness in our lives, don’t we? The stories also include food, and I’ve added a page on this website with some of my favourite recipes.
Although I’ve always dabbled in writing, my journey as an author began in earnest in 2021 when Romance Writers of America (RWA) partnered me with a mentor in the inaugural RAMP program for emerging authors. Her name is Barbara Longley and I’ll never be able to repay her kindness. I’ve since completed several manuscripts (mostly crappy), and taken loads of courses to learn how to improve them. In the local 2024 Words of Warmth literary festival, I received my first accolades, with first place prizes in both poetry and short prose. I’m currently serving my second term as secretary on the executive of Romance Writers of Atlantic Canada (RWAC), and I’m a member of Writers NL.
Maybe someday, I’ll write about my own love story that started in the summer of 1974. I was fifteen years old, and flew half way across Canada to spend the summer with my sister in the remote village of Mud Lake, Labrador. She had accepted a job teaching in a tiny two-room school, but was spending the summer in a log cabin (that did not have electricity or running water). I met my soulmate that summer. We wrote to each other and I returned to Labrador a couple more times to spend time with him and my sister, but life moved on and we lost touch. Twelve years later, we reconnected by chance and realized the spark was still there. I left my life in southern Ontario to be with him. We married in 1992, and have been blessed with two wonderful and very successful adult children.
Now that I’m retired from the 9-5 world, when I’m not writing, I’m probably elbows deep in our garden or busy baking. We have perennial strawberries, raspberries, rhubarb and chives. Every spring, I grow vegetables: carrots, onions, lettuce, spinach and radishes, and I planted winter garlic for the first time last fall. In an homage to my late father, I plant giant sunflowers at the back of the garden each year. My other passion is all things textiles: sewing, needlework and quilts. The lower level of our house (formerly the family room) is my craft haven, with threads and scraps on the floor, cupboards full of fabrics, drawers of patterns, notions and trims, and my dress Judy standing guard. Did I mention that I studied fashion design in Toronto in the 1980’s and created bespoke formal wear until the mid 1990’s?
Here’s a shout-out to my mentor, award-winning author Barbara Longley, and to the RWA for connecting us in 2021.
Carol Best