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Fran Thiessen, new writer and former Toastmaster, emcees the monthly WordStorm spoken word competition in Nanaimo.
She writes short stories and belongs to two writing groups.
During the last three years she has read at Creative Magic and WordStorm in Nanaimo, the new open mike at the
Cup and Saucer in Port Alberni and at Port Alberni’s Forestfest. She has recently completed creative writing courses at North Island College and The Victoria School of Writing.
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A nub of an idea floating in my brain is usually the beginning of my stories. When the story takes shape I write down the ideas, only to discover the story has taken a left turn! The completion is usually achieved by an extreme case of “Friday-itis.” Why do I write? Simply because I want to tell a story.
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I live in the small community of Port Alberni on Vancouver Island, an hour's drive west from Nanaimo, past Cathedral Grove
and the magnificent Douglas firs and cedars. Because of the downturn in the forestry industry "Port" is reinventing
itself as a tourist destination featuring salmon and lake fishing, hiking (from easy to difficult), fabulous scenery,
and for retirees less expensive real estate. My house, in a subdivision, is next to the Cherry Creek green belt.
It is not unusual to see raccoons, squirrels, deer and even a black bear in my back yard, and once we had a
farmer's errant pig!
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View of Port Alberni from Forestry Lookout
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Front Yard of Fran's House
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Back Yard of Fran's House
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WRITING EXCERPTS FROM ONE SWEET RIDE
Mildred ran into the frigid air and hurtled down to the drift by the garage, Robert sobbing at her heels. She looked at the snow tunnel, top caved in, and desperately began clawing at the suffocating snow. Each agonizing swoop of her hands accelerated her frenzy to uncover the boy. - From: “The Snowdrift”
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