Our 2025 White Pines Authors Part 4

The Port Moody Public Library created the White Pines Local Author Collection to highlight and support local authors, poets, and illustrators from our community. We launched the collection in May 2019 with 12 inaugural authors.

Now, with over 100 authors represented, the collection has grown to house even more creative and diverse submissions from members of our community. You can browse our White Pines Collection online to place holds on items, or in person at the Library under the green White Pines sign.

Ming Louie Stein

Ming Louie Stein is a first-generation Chinese-Canadian immigrant and began writing after retirement by attending Port Moody Creative Writing classes. Her debut book, Kintsugi: A Woman, is an auto-fictional account of growing up in East Vancouver. She has also published a children’s book and continues to tell women’s stories. Her upcoming works include Saint Annie (Spring 2026) and Bella and Bear (2027).

Find out more about Ming from her website at https://minglouiestein.com/, on Instagram at @minglouiesteinwrites, and find her book on Amazon at https://a.co/d/b3YRCrI

Kintsugi: A Woman: Worthless to Gold

In 1960, a spirited four-year-old girl, also the first generation of a Chinese immigrant family, is beaten to submission. She endures repeated episodes of what her mother calls corporal punishment -- the Chinese Way to show love. Physical, emotional, and constant verbal abuse leads her to believe she is a worthless daughter. At school, she blooms under encouraging teachers and the camaraderie of friends, retreating at home. As the years pass, her confidence erodes, leaving her vulnerable and unprepared to face adulthood. Lacking healthy role models and essential life skills, she searches for love and acceptance through a series of failed relationships. But it is only through these interactions that she's able to learn to live like she never knew was possible.

Borrow Kintsugi a Woman: Worthless to Gold from the Library.

What inspired Ming to become a writer?

Writing presented a voice to tell her story.

Her debut book, Kintsugi: A Woman serves as her self-help book, and she is hearing from readers how they relate on many levels and topics that explore a dysfunctional family, a strained mother-daughter relationship, immigrant identity, corporal punishments, and the search for self-worth. It is trauma to healing through storytelling. Using Kintsugi as a metaphor, resilience and transformation illustrates from worthless to gold. It lends well to book club reads.

What is the most challenging part of being a writer for Ming?

The most difficult thing about writing for Ming is the business of writing - especially promotion and marketing.

Nancy McNeil

Nancy McNeil is an award-winning Canadian author. Her debut children’s picture book, Becki’s Farming Adventures: Becki and the Trailer Kids (Spring), won a 2025 Global Book Award, Silver Medal for Children’s Farm Life. She enjoys writing children’s picture books for five to eight-year-olds who love goats, llamas, farms, and adventure.

Born a city kid in Vancouver, Nancy always wanted a farm with acreage. After marriage, Nancy and husband, Jim, purchased an acreage in Coquitlam. There they raised twins and had two German Shepherd dogs. Once their twins left home, their focus shifted to farming. Starting with a tree nursery of dwarf Japanese Lace-leaf Maples, they then decided to raise farm animals.

Initially, they helped neighbouring farmers raise goat kids, sheep and lambs, piglets, chickens, an alpaca, and a llama. Soon after, they acquired the goat kids, alpaca, and llama. Raising animals created many life experiences which became book ideas for a series called Becki’s Farming Adventures. The four-book series includes three other children’s picture books, including Becki and the Blue Ribbon (Summer) which is currently in the illustration phase and will be published in early 2026; Becki and the Flyers of Meyer’s Marsh (Fall) which will soon undergo professional editing; as will Becki and the Christmas Hummingbirds (Winter). Their publication dates aren’t set yet but will most likely occur from 2026 to 2028.

You can find out more about Nancy from her website at https://nancymcneilauthor.com, or on Instagram at @nancymcneilauthor.

Becki's Farming Adventures: Becki and the Trailer Kids (Spring)

Do you know how to raise seven orphaned goat kids? Nine-year-old Becki is up for the challenge. She learns how to care for baby goats inside an old trailer until one day, the gregarious kid Blackie disappears through a hole in the trailer! Join Becki and her new best friend, Jane, as they use their STEAM skills to prevent losing more kids and in their search for Blackie. Accompanied by farm dogs Luna and Branta, will they find Blackie first before a bear, cougar, or coyote does?

Borrow Becki's Farming Adventures: Becki and the Trailer Kids (Spring) from the Library.

What inspired Nancy to become a writer and write Becki’s Farming Adventures?

Nancy’s always been a reader and a writer. Early days included writing short stories, drawing, and painting flower and animal pictures.

Having four grandkids was Nancy’s inspiration to create the Becki’s Farming Adventures series, with the debut book, Becki and the Trailer Kids (Spring). Wanting to leave a legacy for them about the fun and unique farming adventures shaped her writing. Raising baby goat kids inside an old trailer led her to create a fictionalized children’s picture book for five to eight-year-olds.

What have Nancy’s biggest challenges been while writing?

For Nancy, the least challenging part was writing the story. Self-publishing has been her greatest challenge because there are so many things to learn about the industry. For example, as a self-published author, you are completely responsible for everything about your book such as writing, having your book edited professionally, and finding/working with an illustrator before publishing and marketing occurs.

Nancy’s advice to young writers is to work with an experienced writing coach in the genre of your choice. You’ll learn a lot, stay focused, and produce your book.

Katy Black

Katy Black has been thinking up stories instead of sleeping for as long as she can remember. It's only recently that she's managed to turn those dreams into real novels — thanks to her sister (and fellow paranormal romance author) Marie Mackay.

Find out more about Katy from her website, on Facebook at /katy.b.902839 or Katy Blacks Book Club, and on Instagram at @booksbykatyb

The Anointed's Paladin by Katy Black

This Pack of Ours

After a dangerous heat destroys my life, I know I’ll never have my happily ever after. I’m a reject omega from a rundown part of town, and all I have is Kit. He’s my best friend, and the sweetest omega I know. But one day, he’ll find true love and leave me too. So, I have no choice except to learn the names of my heat helpers. They’re different. Unfairly attractive for alphas I want to dismiss. They slip past my defenses, making me feel safe, even without Kit at my side. In my haze, I start to wonder if maybe I could start to hope this could be something more. The possibility drags up old wounds and panic drives me to sabotage it.

This is a spicy standalone paranormal romance for mature readers. The book contains dark themes that are detailed in the front of the book.

Borrow This Pack of Ours from the Library.

The Anointed’s Paladin

A monstrous paladin. A bloodsucking rulebreaker. An innocent sprite. All searching for a place to belong.

Talon, a holy Paladin with a demonic heritage, is surviving on borrowed time. Under threat of death, he accepts a thankless quest from a God he hates. He sets out on his mission, but his heart isn’t in it, instead longing for the new life that just slipped out of his reach. That is, until his attention is drawn by a fateful encounter with an unlikely pair:

Nidori—an innocent sprite, endangered by her own pure heart.
Kaine—the alluring and deadly hellspawn who has stolen Nidori’s freedom.

Even though he is disgraced and reviled by the world, Talon cannot abandon Nidori. And in seeking to free her from Kaine, he finally finds a purpose he believes in.

Borrow The Anointed's Paladin from the Library.

What inspired Katy to write?

Katy was an avid reader growing up and especially loved fantasy stories about heroes and magic. She’d play games with her siblings where they'd make up their own worlds, and Katy thinks that's where it all started. When she got a bit older, she'd write fanfiction for her favourite books (Harry Potter; the Hunger Games). Around this time, she also began to start writing her own stories.

What have Katy's biggest challenges been while writing?

The whole thing has been a learning process! Katy thinks the biggest challenge for her was that she initially thought you had to write a book from start to finish. She found this really hard as she'd often have to stop to figure out a certain world mechanic, or place name and it'd interrupt her flow. Not to mention when she'd have a new idea and then have to go and re-write everything. It was so liberating when Katy realized she could add in placeholders like [add reaction here] or [nightclub name]. That way she didn't have to interrupt her flow, and she'd get a lot more done!

Russell Cullingworth

Russell Cullingworth is a thought leader in imagination-based StoryStyle™ learning. He is the author of Learn to Imagine: A Leader’s Journey to Discover the Powerful Secret to Effective Professional Learning. Russell blends creativity, neuroscience, and an understanding of corporate learning to bring a solution that not only encourages imaginative engagement but also develops creativity, imagination, and critical thinking.

Russell and his wife Christine co-founded ProDio Audio Learning Inc., the world’s first formal audio-learning company for professionals. ProDio partners with thirteen professional associations and LinkedIn Learning. Their imagination-based learning has reached over one hundred thousand learners with highly rated learning experiences, delivering immersive, scenario-based audio learning that consistently earn top-tier reviews. Before starting ProDio, Russell was a corporate and professional development trainer in Emotional Intelligence.

Find out more about Russell and ProDio Audio Learning Inc. on their website at
https://www.prodio-learning.com/

Learn to Imagine by Russell Cullingworth

Learn to Imagine: A Leader’s Journey to Discover the Powerful Secret to Effective Professional Learning

What if the secret to better workplace learning isn’t more content or technology - but more imagination?

When CHRO Nicki Peeps is tasked with fixing CardioTech’s outdated learning program, she discovers the real problem runs deeper than low engagement and completion. Through a journey of resistance, reflection, and real-world insight, Nicki and her team uncover a revolutionary idea: the power and importance of imagination for learning, creativity and critical thinking.

Blending story, strategy, and heart, Learn to Imagine is a sharp, inspiring corporate novel that reimagines how people truly learn and grow at work - one bold idea at a time.

Borrow Learn to Imagine: A Leader’s Journey to Discover the Powerful Secret to Effective Professional Learning from the Library.

What inspired Russell to write?

Russell was inspired to write Learn to Imagine because very little is written or understood about imagination as the brain’s most important integrative function – one that brings many separate brain systems together - especially for adults. Russell has been doing this work about imagination for eight years and deeply desires the adult world to know what he’s discovered about the true power of imagination.

What have Russell’s biggest challenges been while writing?

Russell thoroughly enjoyed his writing experience, because he wrote a fictional story, a “corporate narrative”, to share his experience of a non-fiction topic. He also interviewed expert guests, and in his book, Russell’s fictional characters have conversations with real-life experts. He loves mixing up formats to surprise people. His biggest challenge was his own lack of discipline. To counteract this, he had to force himself to write for two of his most productive hours each day for three months.

Keira North

Keira North is a queer, nonbinary author who uses storytelling to explore their heritage and identity. Keira was born in Romania and traveled the world before settling in Port Moody. Their works explore themes of belonging, identity, found family, and second chances.

They're also the founder and president of Ciolna Press, an upcoming boutique press in B.C.

Find out more about Keira from their website at https://www.keiranorth.com/ and get in touch with Ciolna Press at contact@ciolna.com

The Rivers Will Run Red

In the wake of a devastating attack by a rogue coven of vampires, hunter-turned-werewolf Ileana returns to the ruins of her family home. Believing her sister, Tamara, survived the attack, Ileana seeks the help of Liviu, the werewolf who turned her, and Evdochia, a hauntingly powerful vampire descended from Vlad Țepeș himself.

The attack is the first strike in a looming war threatening the fragile truce between humans and mythical nightwalkers. With time slipping away and danger closing in from all sides, Ileana and her allies must race to find Ravenswatch, the ancient fortress where the vampire coven is preparing to strike again.

Borrow The Rivers Will Run Red from the Library.

Gifted

Even seen a wall tie itself into a knot?

Lynn Reid has, and that’s not even the weirdest thing that’s happened to her in the last ten minutes.

Lynn’s ability to see things outside human perception makes her the ideal candidate to join the multiverse police. However, after a bungled first mission and an unfortunate encounter with a basketful of anchovies, Lynn starts to wonder if she’s really cut out for multiversal work. When she turns to her copy of the Field Agent’s Manual for reassurance, she stumbles across a faded note that leads her to a cover-up spanning two decades and several worlds.

Now, Lynn must work to uncover the damning secret behind the note before the next End of the World, Amen.

Borrow Gifted from the Library.

What inspired Keira to write?

Keira started creating paracosms (imaginary worlds) long before they knew what the word meant. Their stories took on a life of their own, so Keira wrote them down to make room for new ones. They wrote their first "book" when they were eleven -- a fan story about the X-Men going on holiday -- and they liked it so much they just kept writing.

What have Keira's biggest challenges been while writing?

There are two sides to being an author: the creative side and the business side. Keira has no problem creating. What they're really not vibing with is how traditional publishing has turned into a gatekeeping carousel. Meanwhile, indie authors are expected to hustle on social media whether they like it or not. Before they started their own publishing company, Ciolna Press, Keira got turned down by an agent because they didn't have TikTok, even though the agent liked the book. Made them wonder what the heck traditional publishing is even supposed to be anymore.

Michelle Leung

Michelle Leung obtained her bachelor’s degree from Simon Fraser University, where she majored in Chemistry and Molecular Biology and Biochemistry. She has previously worked as a lab and research assistant and plans to attend graduate school next fall. Besides reading and writing, she enjoys eating, cooking, and travelling. The Distance from Lost to Found is her debut work.

The Distance from Lost to Found

When Katrina Easton’s family receives news of the death of Mr. Lok, a close friend they lost contact with years ago, her dad is overwhelmed with guilt. She sets off for Hong Kong to attend the funeral with her brother, Max, hoping to reconnect with Mr. Lok’s son and find answers to help save her dad from himself. When the flight is delayed, however, their plan falls apart.

In one instant, Ethan Lok lost his parents and his younger sister in an accident. Since then, he has been concentrating on getting through one day at a time, trying to adjust to his new life. But at the funeral, he suspects that his relatives are hiding a secret from him, and somehow it is connected to the Easton family and the event that led to their estrangement.

Katrina, Max, and Ethan’s paths take them through the bustling streets and packed subways of Hong Kong. They journey through the vibrant, fast-paced city, where gravity-defying skyscrapers abound and where sweltering days turn to neon-lit nights, to find each other and bring their families back together.

Borrow The Distance From Lost to Found from the Library.

What inspired Michelle to write?

Michelle’s love for reading and writing began in elementary school. Just like how she cannot help but read everything she sees (words on cereal boxes, shampoo bottles, fire extinguishers, Skytrain ads . . .), writing is simply something she has to do.

Part of the idea for The Distance from Lost to Found came about because she wanted to write a contemporary novel that takes place in Hong Kong. She had noticed that there are very few books set in the city, and those that exist tend to be historical fiction. Through this book, she hopes to inspire readers to visit for a vacation or to try a Hong Kong restaurant (there are a lot in Metro Vancouver). Many of the events in this book were based on her actual experiences during previous trips to Hong Kong.

What have Michelle’s biggest challenges been while writing?

Some challenges Michelle found while writing this novel were avoiding redundant words and phrases, creating the cover, and figuring out the self-publishing process. Another challenge was staying focused, because she kept getting sidetracked when doing online research, or procrastinating by reading a book instead. Finally, finding time to write on top of school and work was also difficult. In fact, she started writing this book in university and was still working on it after graduation, but it took getting laid off from her job in order for her to have the time to finish it!

Rhea Rose

Rhea Rose has published many speculative short fiction stories and poems. She is a four-time Canadian Aurora Award Nominee, a Rhysling nominee, and a recipient of several Ellen Datlow honourable mentions. She was the featured author in a recent issue of Pulp Literature. She is an active member of HWA, SF Canada and SFPA and is the editor of Polar Starlight, an online magazine of speculative poetry by Canadian authors. Her latest short stories appear in ParSec Magazine’s 2024 issue #11, and her flash fiction and poetry in Polar Borealis, Polar Starlight 2025, and Gavagai 2025, Editors’ Picks, which can be found at https://www.gavagai.com/

A collection of her earlier publications can be found at https://www.amazon.ca/Pandoras-Progeny-Science-Fiction-Fantasy/dp/1492323683

Rhea worked in School District 43 for over twenty-seven years, teaching a love for English and Creative Writing, and storytelling in the arts. She wrote before she started teaching and during her time teaching; and she’s still writing today! She loves creative energy and brings it into her life whenever and wherever she can find it. Rhea works to keep her craft honed and stay a part of writing communities near and far by taking part in advanced workshops. She also continues to teach writing, editing, publishing, and runs the occasional workshop! While she's an editor for a Canadian speculative magazine, Polar Starlight, she also runs a small Indie publishing venture called RainWood Press. She’s published a collection of speculative Canadian short stories and poetry, Stellar Evolutions, which can be found here: http://bit.ly/4j9qRqK

Find out more about Rhea from her website , on X (Twitter) at @rheaerose1; on Instagram at @roseypoesy577; on TikTok at @rosewriter7, and on Bluesky at @reerose.bsky.social

Fractured Reveries: A Storied Imaginarium Salon

A dance with Death. The perils of colonization. A memorable gustatory experience of cosmic proportions. Whether it’s paying the price for resistance, shouldering the responsibility of ancestral power, or seeking the comfort of a secret friend, the characters in these twenty-five stories and poems take readers on an adventure that crosses traditional boundaries and challenges expectations of the many forms a fairy tale can take. Deliciously dark and sumptuous, Fractured Reveries is like a walk in an enchanted forest. Which path will you take?

Borrow Fractured Reveries: A Storied Imaginarium Salon from the Library.

What inspires Rhea to write?

Reading has always inspired Rhea. She’d read stories that would make her think, cry, and wonder, and when she was younger, she really wanted to emulate what other authors were doing. When she gets inspired by something she's read, Rhea wants to write like the author who inspired her. When she had success with publishing in her early years, she really became inspired to write. That's not to say she writes to publish. She does, but she has lots of writing she keeps to herself.

Rhea has never stopped writing since she was a child. There are times when she’s more productive, but she's never stopped having a finger in the writing pie. At a very early age, her parents encouraged her, and her teachers supported her writing. She loved to write little poems and songs at school, and that never went away.

What have Rhea’s biggest challenges been while writing?

The main challenge with writing is "life gets in the way." Rhea thinks this is especially the case for women. It becomes more difficult to carve out the time to write, and the desire to write at the same time. Writing is lonely, so that's why it's so important to be part of a community. To nurture writing, Rhea often goes back to her favourite stories, poems, and songs; reading and listening to build that energy to write. As well, she likes to read local authors' works and hear about how they're coping and what they're doing to sustain their craft. As an older writer, she's seen it all. She started writing by hand in notebooks, then graduated to a typewriter, followed by a more advanced typewriter, and finally a computer and keyboard. As a youngster in high school, she never thought she'd learn to type. Now, with the advancement of keyboards, it's second nature. She's since transitioned to laptops, tablets, and e-publishing. She's also started dictating her writing. Each of these requires the writer to learn new technology and software, and sometimes, that learning curve is a real struggle and a time suck. She’s learned that you have to pick your software carefully.

These days, as a writer, it's more about marketing and promotion. Rhea has been told to promote things she hasn’t written yet, which seems backwards to her, but that seems to be the way of writing these days. She loves going back to writing poetry. For her, it's very grounding - “Poetry is where I started writing, and poetry is what I go back to when I feel overwhelmed by all the writing options and tools that are available these days.

Aryo Falakrou

Aryo Falakrou is an experienced professional in home design (architectural drawings) and construction, dedicated to helping families optimize their living spaces. Over the years, he has guided numerous clients in creating home layouts that genuinely enhance their daily lives and well-being. Recognizing a growing need among his clientele, Aryo has developed a specific focus on aging-in-place, addressing the lifestyle changes that come with growing older. He authored a book to empower homeowners to think creatively about their living options, offering practical strategies to adapt their homes for safety, comfort, and longevity.

Find out more about Aryo from his website at https://myhomedesigner.com/ , on Facebook at /afalakrou, and about his book at https://www.beyond-ages.com/

Beyond Ages: A Smooth Transition to Independent Living

Home is where we create our memories, celebrate our achievements, or cope with our sadness. Home is where we raise our family or grow with our family. Home is where we feel excited, encouraged, and where we create our goals. Where we feed our body and soul. Does your home excite you; do you want to change your living environment to be motivated? When folks get to the age of sixty or above, they want to live their lives as safe as possible. Beyond Ages shares stories of Aryo’s clients who improved their lives to live in a safe, healthy, and mentally sharp environment. The guidelines, along with stories help readers get a better understanding of how to turn their home into a sanctuary for their older age.

Borrow Beyond Ages: A Smooth Transition to Independent Living from the Library.

What inspired Aryo to write Beyond Ages?

Aryo was inspired to write Beyond Ages as a way to assist homeowners to be more creative in their lifestyle and relationship with themselves and to create a better and safer environment in their home.

What have Aryo’s biggest challenges been while writing?

For Aryo, the challenges of writing the book were finding the people to assist with writing, as it was his first experience. More than that, the biggest challenge was finding a publisher and an editor!

About the White Pines Local Author Collection

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