Stephanie Makes a Scene

Her masterpiece can be achieved in Act III

At sixty-seven, playwright Stephanie Whittaker isn't looking to find herself; she's looking for the world to finally see her.

When the Wigmaq Community Theatre in coastal Nova Scotia agrees to premiere her brilliant reimagining of a Canadian classic, Anne's Odyssey, Stephanie thinks her forty-year wait for success is over. But theatre administrator Arlee Antle is hiding a dark secret - and she's perfectly willing to cancel the show and sell a plagiarized, Americanized version of Stephanie's script to keep her own grift alive.

Stranded in Landers Cove but refusing to surrender, Stephanie calls a makeshift family: a handsome, grounded local chef, a fiercely loyal Trinidadian-Canadian volunteer, and a respected Metis elder. Together, they set out to mount the play in a deconsecrated church. But with a devastating car crash, an exposed money-laundering ring, and a looming intellectual property battle, Stephanie must orchestrate the performance of a lifetime to save her legacy - and realize that her own happily-ever-after is just beginning.

Praise for the precursor novel, Grow up, Rory Rafferty

"I looked forward to each reading time, to join the characters on their journey, to bear witness to their successes and their disappointments, the gains and the losses, and just often enough, some dreams coming true. … I highly recommend this novel.

- The Seaboard Review of Books

"Grow up, Rory Rafferty is a funny story told at a furious pace."

- Jon Tattrie, author of Peace by Chocolate

"A coming-of-age story with hilarity, maturity, and heart."

- Sarah Butland, author of Losing it at 40