A writer of emotional comedy
Tanya Fraser — True stories
& invented worlds.
Fiction is just the truth in costume.
Humour and heartbreak in the same breath — the kind of story that has you laughing one minute and gutted the next. Women who get knocked down, and get weird about how they get back up.
- ✦ Solas Awards · Bronze, Women's Travel 2026
- ✦ SATW Foundation Travel-Writing Scholar 2025
Who I am
Irish-Canadian storyteller, across screen, fiction & essay.
What I write is emotional comedy — humour and heartbreak in the same breath. My subject is women: the overlooked, the underestimated, and the ones nobody's written yet. The woman handed a truckload of manure who, against all sensible advice, decides to grow flowers in it.
Read moreNew essays land on The P.L.A.Y. Papers on Substack.
SubscribeThree ways to work with me
Pick your genre
The fiction
Character-driven emotional comedy centred on women. Script, novel, stage, screen — whatever the story wants to be.
See the work → 02 · True storiesThe non-fiction
Travel writing, personal essays, narrative features. Immersive, funny, unsentimental — and the true story that wants to cross over.
See the work → 03 · The voiceThe stage
Guest, expert, speaker on reinvention and second acts. Built on the P.L.A.Y. framework, plus branded storytelling.
See the work →
As featured in
Woman's World
"Writing her way into a second act."
A profile on turning a midlife life-quake into a career on the page — the true story behind the invented worlds. Also featured in CEO Monthly.
Read the press ↗Selected work & press
The credits so far
In their words
You turned heartbreak into something extraordinary — a gift to all of us to read, experience, and share.
— A longtime reader
A comfort to anyone going through a crisis. I'm beyond impressed. They keep getting better and better.
— A reader
Powerful and insightful — it's encouraged me to be more self-aware and reflective. Grateful to be on this journey with you.
— A reader
Let's work together
Let's make something — true, invented, or both.
For producers, agents, editors, brands, and hosts. Start with the media kit, or just say hello.