Sherrill Wark

Sherrill Wark is fast becoming one of the Ottawa area's best-loved editors. "We're not all anal meanies," she laughs. Her reputation has reached as far as Winnipeg MB, Chisasibi QC, and Newport Beach CA.

She's the proprietor of crowecreations.ca -- and its sole employee, so there's a waiting list. She's also the editor/designer of Byline, the Canadian Authors Association-National Capital Region branch's bi-monthly e-mag.

Using wit, wisdom and kindness, she has put her considerable knowledge and experience together under an attention-grabbing title, Really Stupid Writing Mistakes: How to Avoid Them. (Hint: She says the stupidest mistake is not writing; the second stupidest mistake is thinking you don't have anything to say.)

Sherrill also writes poetry -- "the angsty stuff," she calls it. "Teenagers love this sh*t! But so do a lot of adults because I've tossed a few 'opinions' into this book, too." Here's a sample:

FAITH

When I was a kid

I always wondered,

questioned why

they needed lightning rods

on churches ...

Sherrill has written A Girl Dog's Breakfast, scary stories and rude poems, under the pseudonym Christina Crowe and, as Christina, is working on a book of short creepy scripts called The Unkindest Cut. The latter is slated for spring publication on Amazon.com.

She also sings in an Italian choir so by necessity is learning Italian.