Before & After - Gordon Leenders

I'm delighted to announce I'm working with Gordon Leenders, who has just completed a novel entitled Before & After. Gord's a Canadian author living near the shores of Lake Erie, and is a two-time winner of Best Fiction Book at the Hamilton Literary Awards. 

In addition to being an acclaimed author, he has worked for the past fifteen years as a Rehabilitation Therapist for people with acquired brain injuries, experience he's drawn on for this new book - a work of fiction that explores the consequences of a tragic car accident at Niagara Falls.

Here's a quick Q&A with the author.

1. What inspired you to write this book?
Simply put― the many, many families I’ve worked with over the past fifteen years. Sharing in their hopes and heartaches, their resilence and regret, their daily struggle to put the pieces of their shattered lives back together provided much of the inspiration for writing Before & After. 

2. How long did it take you to write?
I pecked away at it for a couple of years, writing in the typical ‘ebb-and-flow-mode’ that comes with having a full-time job and being the parent of two young, energetic boys.

3. Would you say this is a departure from your previous books?
Before & After is definitely a departure. It’s more ambitious, emotionally layered and deeply felt than previous work. Blending an intense family drama with a mystery is also something new. 

4. What are you reading right now?
I’m currently splitting time between Alice Munro (Selected Stories) and Giles Blunt (Forty Words for Sorrow) with Brad Smith’s latest (Shoot the Dog) on deck. 

5. What's your definition of success as a writer?
In no particular order: Writing a really good sentence. Transforming an idea into a novel. Having someone I’ve never met tell me they really like my book. 


Great answers. I hope we'll be seeing the book in print before long. 
Find out more about Gordon's work on his website:
http://gordonleenders.com/Home_Page.html