We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful KAREN GROSE. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with KAREN below.

KAREN, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

As a child, I loved to read and still remember the feeling of getting lost in a good story. I also loved to write. I spent hours poring over poems and short stories and essays in school. It was no surprise when I became a teacher, where watching students find voice in their writing is one of the best parts of the job.

Near the end of my career, the idea of crafting a mystery novel kept calling out to me. The foggy pieces of The Dime Box lingering in my mind were taking up too much real estate, so one day I shared the concept with a colleague, who said, “Sounds solid. Giddy-up and write it. How hard can it be?” Ha! Famous last words.

Over the next year, I pumped my heart out onto the page. I was flying with high hopes, completely absorbed in what Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi coined flow. Once finished, I put my masterpiece in a drawer. A month later, I pulled it out to review. What a hot mess. No one would read it, let alone ever buy it.

For a few days, I wallowed. How did this happen? What do I do now? All I knew was that I couldn’t stop writing. The themes in The Dime Box are ones we need to act upon to build a more just and equitable society. They include poverty, marginalization, gender, domestic violence, the search for identity, adoption, and how we define family. But if the story was to end up in the hands of readers, it had to be written in a more compelling way.

Undeterred, I set out a new path. By that point, I’d served the education sector as a teacher, a principal, and superintendent. I’d also been a student in higher education and was an executive in a digital learning organization. Some may wonder why these roles matter. Each afforded the opportunity to draw on prior experience to develop new skills focused on the craft of writing, the process of learning, and the business of writing itself.

Students modelled resilience. Kids and youth are remarkable today. They are beacons of hope. Despite the world moving so fast with many pressures, they adjust and move forward. Drawing upon their inspiration, I needed to do the same. Restart. Reset. Refocus.

Higher education demonstrated the importance of research. To develop the craft of writing, I took online courses about story structure, character development, plot, and conflict. As a learner, I applied this knowledge to new drafts of the story. I still hone my craft with research today.

Effective leadership is built on a culture of collaboration. I sought out writer’s groups to share craft development, provide feedback, discuss promotion and marketing, and to cheer others on and celebrate their success. In those groups, I was happy to share the benefits of project management and setting targets and deadlines as we worked together to achieve our goals.

Leadership also relies on mentorship. The only way to fill knowledge gaps is by honouring and tapping into the rich talent of diverse teams. No one is an expert. My gaps in the inner workings of the justice system were glaring. Fortunately, I had a mentor who answered my firehose of questions about the ins and outs of the system, as well as police interview techniques.

In fact, I’ve amazed how generous people are, when I reached out with questions. Here’s an example. There’s a scene in the novel that takes place twenty years ago in mall parking lot in northern Ontario. I had trouble with it, so I took a leap and called the Parry Sound Tourist Centre to ask if I could speak with anyone who might help. As the phone rang, I crossed my mind they may think I was a bit odd, but when I explained what I needed, the voice at the other end of the line said, “Oh yes. That’s Marg. She worked there back then. Here’s her number, but call quick. She’s retiring at the end of summer.” I did, and for the next hour Marg described every shop, every part of the parking lot, and even the style of shopping carts back then.

By tapping into prior experience to co-learn, learn, and relearn within a caring and supportive community, I developed the craft of writing and pushed through. It took time from that first messy attempt. It stretched me in ways I didn’t know I was flexible. To be frank, there were moments I struggled and wasn’t sure I could finish. But as the story unfolded, there was no choice. Twenty-seven drafts and five and a half years later, The Dime Box was released.

Shortly after, I made the decision to write full time. Not retiring, only rewiring. While I am still growing and learning each day, I’m having fun nurturing my creative spirit. Stories are how we build empathy, which connect us together. They encourage us to walk in another’s shoes, question the world, and visit places we could never go. I truly believe if we take time to listen to each other, everyone has a wonderful story to tell.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a writer from Toronto, Canada. My debut novel, The Dime Box, was selected by Amnesty International for its 2021 Book Club. The Chinese language version, retitled as The Lost Daughters, was published by Sharp Point Press, Taiwan, in 2023. Flat Out Lies is my second novel, and I recently signed a four-book deal with Kingsley Publishers. I have flash, poems and short stories in journals and anthologies, both in print and online. I’m a member of Crime Writers of Canada, Sisters-in-Crime-Toronto and National, and the #thrillsandchills writing group. Track me down on X: @kgrose2 or at www.karengrose.ca

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I believe writing should be entertaining and in the case of mysteries and thrillers, they should include fast-paced intrigue with provocative characters and high stakes. Yet I also believe stories should illuminate social issues with the intent to make the world a better place.

When i write, I choose topics with a social conscience which readers may choose to reflect upon, or bookclubs may wish to discuss. The Dime Box reflects the challenges and impact of domestic violence. Flat Out Lies touches on recidivism. The novel I’m currently writing highlights ageism. Social issues brought forward in art mirror societal complexities. To make them compelling in a novel, I try to write about characters who face moral dilemmas and are forced to make difficult choices. This is a way to inspire thought about how we can take action to make change in our communities where we live, work and play.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

What a great question! I immediately thought about the joy of working and learning alongside other artists and celebrating their success as the most rewarding aspect of being a creative, yet after pausing to reflect I realized the power of the feedback from readers is just as fulfilling.

I often receive messages via my website from readers. It’s an honour and I respond to each one. The year after The Dime Box was released, I received a note I will never forget. A reader wrote: “Thanks for writing this. I feel seen.” Seven words said everything. It was humbling. This message made every frustrating moment and every tear I shed while writing worthwhile.

I also enjoy visiting book clubs. While the invitation is usually from readers who want to discuss the novel, writing rituals or the business of writing, every book club I visit teaches me far more than I can share with them. The conversation is always lively and I’m grateful to each one.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://karengrose.ca/
• Instagram: _karengrose
• Facebook: Karen Grose
• Linkedin: Karen Grose
• Twitter: @kgrose2