My Monthly Journal
Officially Summer
You spend half the year longing for it — dreaming of long days and the smell of warm earth — and then summer arrives and pulls a sleight of hand. Blink, and the blossoms have already turned to fruit. The trick, I’ve learned, is simply to take the time: to notice the small pleasures, breathe a little deeper, linger a little longer, and relish what the season keeps quietly offering.
1. On the Road: BMFA Art Market — This Saturday, June 27
Tomorrow I’ll be set up at the Blue Mountain Foundation for the Arts Collingwood Art Market, held in the heart of the Creative Simcoe Street district. It’s a wonderful annual summer gathering — over 90 local artists and makers filling the street with paintings, ceramics, textiles, and jewelry, all with free admission and live music in the air.
I’ll have all my books on hand, and yes, I’ll happily sign them for you.
There’s something fitting about showing up as a writer in a room full of painters, potters, and jewellers. We’re all making something from nothing. And I get to say I work with a genuinely exceptional artist — Joshua Miller, illustrator of all my books, a person of rare talent and even rarer warmth. My words try to earn his pictures. From early readers and picture books right through to middle grade — it’s a collaboration I’m proud of every time I hold one of these books in my hands.
2. Looking Back: Newmarket Farmers Market & WCYR Bookshelf
Last Saturday I had a wonderful time displaying my books at the Newmarket Farmers Market alongside fellow writers from the WCYR (Writers Community of York Region). The WCYR Bookshelf is an annual celebration of all things written, and this one delivered — great conversations, enthusiastic book lovers, and a few signed copies that found good homes.
A sincere thank you to everyone who stopped by to chat, browse, and support independent authors. It means more than you know.
3. New Book: The Adventures of Willy Weasel
Another one in the works. This is an early reader chapter book featuring a wily weasel named Willy — you may remember him as one of the antagonists in Life on the Beaver River. He’s since assured me he’s turned over a new leaf. His terms: good behaviour in exchange for his own feature. It seemed fair.
So here we are. The Adventures of Willy Weasel brings some fresh and lively new characters into the Beaver River community, and officially becomes Book 3 in the Blue Mountain Series. More to come on that.
4. Two Tributes
I’ve recently written tributes to two musicians whose artistry moved me deeply — and whose recent passing left real quiet in the world. Tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins left us on June 5th. Piano master Abdullah Ibrahim followed on June 15th. Both pieces appear under my music journalism pen name, Paul J. Youngman.
The Ibrahim tribute is live now: Remembering Abdullah Ibrahim
Rollins with Monk. Ibrahim with Roach. And then the question that always follows: who carries it forward? The young lions are out there — listening, practicing, honouring the tradition. The music endures.
5. Reading & Writing This Summer
Do you have a daily writing practice? Something you come back to without fail, even when the page feels empty? I do, and I’d encourage anyone with a creative life to build one. Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way helped shape mine, and something always comes from it. This week I’ve been chasing an idea sparked by a painting of a waterfall. Chasing Waterfalls — that’s the working title.
On the reading side, I’m deep into Nino Ricci’s Where She Has Gone, set between Toronto and Italy. Ricci has a fluidity of prose that manages to be both quietly moving and genuinely gripping. Up next is a commitment: John Irving’s Until I Find You, one of those magnificent doorstop hardcovers that requires its own packing strategy. As with every Irving novel, I’m going in for the characters.
Thanks for reading, as always. If you think someone else might enjoy this journal, please pass it along.
I hope to see some of you at upcoming events — check the news and events page for the full schedule. All my books are available through your favourite bookstore or local library. If your library doesn’t have them yet, do me a solid and ask your librarian. They love a good request.
All my books are available online through your favorite bookstore retailers.
Have a wonderful summer. Stay safe, be well, stay curious and keep reading.
Copyright © 2026 Paul Yanuziello, PNJ Services, All rights reserved.
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