From the stage to the pages: Nova Scotia's George Canyon releases new memoir

A Juno Award-winning country musician from Nova Scotia is proving to not only be a natural storyteller on the stage, but also on the pages.

Pictou County's George Canyon never imagined he'd write a book, but now, he's getting personal in his new memoir.

"It's a little bit freaky. I walked into a bookstore in Edmonton two days ago during the Edmonton shows we were doing and I saw my book on display and I just stood there. I didn't know what to do. I just stood there in complete shock," said Canyon, during an interview with CTV Atlantic's Katie Kelly.

Canyon's new book, "My Country," is in bookstores now.

In the book, Canyon recalls his humble beginnings in rural Nova Scotia, as well as the hard-earned success he found in Nashville and Tennessee.

He also speaks of the life lessons learned on and off the road along the way.

"Chapter 1 is Pictou County, so it starts when I was a kid and it goes all the way through my experience of being on the road in the 1990s, and Jenn and the kids, there's an entire chapter dedicated to Jenn," said Canyon, referring to his wife and family.

"But then it gets into Nashville Star, and gets into where my career has gone, it gets into the military stuff, my dreams of being an air force pilot, my Type 1 diabetes, my faith, a little bit of politics. It's all in there."

He says the hardest part about the writing process was reliving the more difficult times.

"You don't realize in your life how you bury things and then when you have to talk about them, they all come back to the surface," said Canyon.

"I smile a lot, I laugh a lot, so you're going to pick up a lot of that. The sad stories are the sad stories. You know, you can't candy coat them."

"My Country" was released along with an audiobook, narrated by Canyon himself.

"It was cool because I got to come off script a little. So, there's a few more stories in the audiobook that you won't get in the actual book itself," he said.

"And I actually played a few songs as well, like little pieces of songs. I did that too."

Canyon says his goal for the book is to give readers the nudge they might be looking for.

"In general, I would say it's hopefully more of an inspiration for young musicians that might be thinking they should quit following their dreams, or anybody in general that has a dream in their heart, to follow it. That's kind of what I hope people get from it."

Canyon has a new album coming out in February 2023, along with a cross-country tour that is scheduled to make stops in Halifax, New Glasgow, N.S., Summerside, P.E.I., Moncton, N.B., Fredericton and Saint John, N.B.

More info on his book, album and tour can be found online.