Oh, my goodness, we are into March 2025, and the days just keep flying by. I suppose that’s what happens when you live in interesting times?

I'm working on the sixth book in the Circus Salmagundi series, ‘A Bitter Tide’, which is due out this summer. Because of this, I’ve been spending time in Nanaimo, strolling along downtown streets and studying old photographs, and trying to re-create the city as it existed in the autumn of 1921.

I won’t give too much away, but this has been a fun novel to write, and I’m really looking forward to sharing it with you! I aim to release it in June 2025, and so far, I’m on target — but the stress and uncertainty of current events is pretty damn distracting. One thing I didn’t foresee when I started writing this series would be the stress of watching modern history unfold alongside my research of post-WW1 Canada, with key themes and unsettling echos ringing down through the decades. I even had one reviewer contact me to talk about the parallels between ‘Knife and Bone’ and certain current events in the US — she had to check the date when the novel was published, because it was mirroring that day’s news.

The old adage is true: those who don’t learn history are doomed to repeat it. And those who do learn history? Well, apparently they’re doomed to scream their unheeded warnings into an abyssal void.

Anyway. Enough of that. It’s late and I’m worn out, and I’m sure you are, too. Let’s look with hope and optimism towards the future, and talk about what the spring has in store.

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The latest news:

• Today started with a review from BC Studies for ‘A Place Called Cumberland’, and despite all the other ups-and-downs, it brought a ray of joy to my heart. If you haven’t picked up a copy, I highly recommend it! You’ll find copies for sale through the Cumberland Museum and Archives, as well as other BC-based booksellers.

• Market season is gearing up, and it’s going to be BUSY! So far, I’m booked at the River City Spring Market on April 5, 2025 in Campbell River and at the Union Bay Easter Market on April 6, 2025 in Union Bay. There’s more in May and June, but I’ll leave those for the next newsletter! Come by and say hello, and pick up a little bit of springtime reading, too.

• Sharon McInnes of the Comox Valley Writers Society also interviewed me for the CVOX program, Beyond the Page, and we had a great conversation about writing, landscapes, unreliable narrators and historical fiction. I’ll add a link here for you to listen.

Thanks again for all your support, friends! Happy reading, and keep telling and sharing your favourite Canadian stories.

Once upon a time, many years ago, a clever monkey smashed a stone into pieces and, discovering one edge was quite sharp, used it to cut some meat. With this small act, that monkey created the very first tool.

The universe just hasn’t been the same since.

I like making things. I’m sure you do, too. And just like loads of artists and writers, I’ve spent years enjoying social media, but (as you may have noticed) these avenues have become increasingly fractured and distracted, with no clear path to replace them. Social media was once a tool but, lately, I fear it’s evolved into something more akin to a weapon. I’m rankled by the idea that the fundamental human need for connection and community has been reduced to a commodity by large-scale industrial complexes, bereft of humanity and genuine interaction.

Consequently, I’ve been wracking my brain, trying to figure out the best way to continue to interact with groups that have, in years gone by, made me very happy. Community pages, digital meeting places, tweets and updates and daily reels and snaps and good-natured pokes aimed at friends… it’s all too much. I can’t tell my blue apps from my green apps anymore. My message threads are tangled up. I’m thinking, maybe it’s time to streamline.

You know what I DO love? I love meeting people in bookstores, libraries, book clubs, markets, etc etc etc… so maybe I should continue to grow that? I want to meet every single person who reads one of my books, face-to-face. Is that even possible? I think I might make it my personal mission for 2025.

I also want you to know that I don’t use AI when writing novels or artwork. I try my hardest to avoid AI in research, even when Google insists on throwing up AI-generated results at the top of my searches (some of which are laughably wrong).

I get it — for some people, AI is a tool that helps them get through a laborious chore, but I’ve never thought of writing like that. Yes, writing can be a struggle, but it’s also a joy. It’s a blissful challenge that sharpens my mind and engages my spirit. Even at its worst, the act of writing is wonderful, and I’d never wish to relinquish a single second of my time, inspiration, or creativity to AI. Why would I? If I didn’t passionately love to write, I’d find something else to do.

This is all to say: I am a real person on the other side of the keyboard, and I believe that you’re a real person, too, on the other side of the page. We’re both physical and fallible creatures navigating an uncertain universe, and when we share a moment’s connection through art and word, together we make something beautiful. Storytelling is a sacred pact, so let’s strip the meddlesome gaze of Big Brother out of that equation.

In a world increasingly dominated by AI-generated content, we can be real genuine human creatures connecting with each other, and I love how much that feels like a radical act.

So here’s my promise: I’ll keep this newsletter going, and I’ll also post the same content on a blog on my website — that’s not going to change. I’ll try to post twice a month, but let’s be honest: a monthly update is much more likely. I’m going to taper off my involvement on big social media behemoths. Less time doomscrolling, and more time writing stories, meeting people, and supporting the art/poems/weaving/pottery/stories/jokes/music/stone tools that — in rapturous joy and awe of the universe — we remarkable human beings love to create with our own powerful hands.

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The latest news:

• On my quixotic quest to meet every single reader out there, I’ve already signed up for a few markets this year. I’ll be at the River City Spring Market on April 5th at the Campbell River Community Center, between 10 am and 4 pm. Mark your calendar and come say hello!

• Sometimes, “labour-saving device” sounds a bit like “remove the human so the corporation saves money”, and if that makes me a Luddite? Okay! I’ve started weaving, and holy moly, it’s given me a huge respect for weavers and people who craft items by hand. I wouldn’t mind reading Brian Merchant’s book, ‘Blood in the Machine’, but until I do, here’s a link to the New Yorker’s article.

• Yeah, yeah, yeah, I complain about leaving social media, but I’m also on Bluesky at kimberbannerman.bsky.social. Come join me (for now).