Terry Fallis

Here's my latest Substack post wherein I explore the idea of artistic departures and how they are reflected in some of my previous books, and most significantly, in my upcoming eleventh novel. Here's hoping you'll subscribe (it's free, fast, and easy) so you don't miss future posts.

Departures Writing life:

Here's my latest Substack post wherein I reveal a little secret about the voices of my narrators in my novels. Here's hoping you'll subscribe (it's free, fast, and easy) so you don't miss future posts.

A little secret about the voice in my novels Writing life: 108

Here's my latest Substack post wherein I take at look at the growing popularity of audiobooks, and my experience with them. Here's hoping you'll subscribe (it's free and easy) so you don't miss future posts. Many thanks.

In praise of audiobooks Writing life: 107

Well this is a pleasant surprise. The 2026 Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour longlist is out and The Marionette somehow made the cut. When you decide to write a comic-thriller (where the humour undercuts the suspense, and the suspense undercuts the humour), you don't expect to make this list. But I'm grateful to be there alongside several writerly pals (for whom I'm thrilled), including Brad Smith, Susan Juby, Susin Nielsen, and Sue Hincenbergs. Congrats everyone!

Here's my latest Substack post wherein I answer that all important question: Do I think about my readers when I'm writing? My answer might surprise you. Here's hoping you'll subscribe (it's free and easy) so you don't miss future posts.

Do I think about my readers when I'm writing? Writing life: 106

John Stuart Mill's On Liberty now officially has a co-author, his wife, Harriet Taylor Mill. It's about time! In my fifth novel, Poles Apart, I wrote about one of John Stuart Mill's lesser known books, The Subjection of Women (I have a treasured first edition) and how JSM wanted to have his wife on the front cover as his co-author. But in Victorian times, this simply was not done. His request was refused. So glad to see her pivotal role in his writing is finally being recognized at least in their most famous book, On Liberty.

After 150 years, John Stuart Mill’s wife gets credit for role in political opus It is ironic that it has taken more than 150 years for Harriet Taylor Mill to be credited, given that one of her husband’s most famous books is called The Subjection of Women

Here's my latest Substack post wherein I share plenty of updates on the state of my eleventh novel. Here's hoping you'll subscribe (it's free and easy) so you don't miss future posts.

Update on my eleventh novel Writing life: 105

Here's my latest Substack post wherein I compare the demands made on our imaginations by films versus books. Here's hoping you'll subscribe (it's free and easy) so you don't miss future posts.

How do you give your imagination a workout? Writing life: 104

You only have three more days to register for the Canadian Authors Association Karen Gansel Short Story Contest. All the details can be found here: https://canadian-authors-association.circle.so/KarenGansel
I'm happy to be serving as one of the three jurors for this contest alongside Gail Anderson-Dargatz and Richard Stursberg.

Karen Gansel Short Fiction Award Open to writers and authors from across Canada of all skill levels, this award is to showcase the great literary talent our nation has from coast to coast. The challenge is simple, write a new original piece of fiction no longer than 5,000 words based on the prompt provided. The entries will be blin...

Nice to spend a few minutes with a fellow writer last night at Drunk Fiction.

Shortly after its publication, around 2008, I read, and thoroughly enjoyed "The Best Laid Plans" by Terry Fallis. This was also the time I started writing my very first manuscript (it was never published, and that is a good thing! haha). After I finished Terry's book, looking for any encouragement I could get, I emailed him to congratulate him on his book and to see if he had any advice for a new writer like me.

I've done this with other writers as well, but unlike them, Terry actually replied! Not only that, he wrote a much longer response that I could have hoped for, and even replied a few more times afterwards. That encouragement, those kind words, from a writer who had "made it" meant the world, and kept me going.

Fast forward to 2026, and Terry was a guest reader at the always enjoyable "Drunk Fiction" event created and hosted by the wonderful writer Emily Weedon at the The Caledonian. I attended - as I almost always do - and asked Terry for a moment of his time, which he gave me graciously (just as he did years earlier via email), and I told him how much his words meant to me, and he told me writers he respected did the same for him and he believed in paying it forward, something I have tried to do myself whenever possible.

If you're in a position to encourage somebody - whether you know them or not - do it, while reminding yourself how much it meant to you, because it will most likely mean that much to them.

Thanks Terry!

Here’s my latest Substack post wherein I take a look at the city of Paris as the epicentre of a cultural revolution in the 1920s that left few artistic disciplines—including literature—untouched. Hope you’ll consider subscribing—it’s free and easy—so you don’t miss future posts.

Paris: A writer's dream destination Writing life: 103