Available now

Roughly three years after I began writing it, my most important novel so far, I am proud to announce that Love Sick Love, published by Rogue Phoenix Press, is now available to purchase.

Angus has battled an obsession with sex throughout his adult life. Although outwardly a model husband and father with a respectable life and a well-paying job, he has a shameful secret life which he has become highly skilled at hiding.

Cassy is married to Angus and has no idea about his secret life. In fact, with her own worries she has been pulling away from him, emotionally and physically which is making his behaviour worse. Although she does not know it, Cassy is fanning the flames of an inferno which threatens to destroy their marriage.

Lovesickness: the eternal bane of humanity, the inescapable affliction which we simultaneously crave and fear. For Angus and Cassy, already in the thirteenth year of their marriage, the painful journey to true happiness has only just began.

Love Sick Love is a brutally honest and confronting story of love, sexual obsession and hope.

Get your copy here Love Sick Love

Obsession #atozchallenge

"I have never been so fascinated by a wall, and yet it is not the wall as such which seduces my interest. It is blank and on it I project images of Chao-xing. I’m completely useless now, caught as I am in possibly the greatest obsession of my life. I have been sitting at my desk for twenty minutes and I haven’t done a thing other than switch on my computer and stare at the wall. A benevolent paralysis grips me, retarding my enthusiasm for everything that is not her. I can’t shake it and worse than that, I have no desire to escape the clutches of this mad fervent desire. Although it is lusty and desperate, I now know that I have fallen in love with her.

Unwise. Foolish. Idiotic. Insane. I am all of these and yet I don’t care. In fact, in this twisted state of mind, I would proudly wear such labels regardless of the disapprobation of others. Do I now care so much for Chao-xing that I care nothing at all for anything else? Falling in love was a choice, an inevitable consequence of my pursuit of this exotic and enigmatic woman, but it has rendered me numb for the duration of every moment without her."

-Lovesick chapter 26

In his mid teens, my son James was obsessed with Metallica. My daughter is currently obsessed with Zayn. My stepson has recently recovered from a Transformers obsession. My fiance is deep in a Facebook obsession/addiction. I,on the other hand, am not currently infatuated with anyone or anything. (heavy emphasis on currently)

Tending to be fads which wax and wane in popularity as they float on the fickle tide of human interest, most obsessions are generally harmless, even amusing. These short term infatuations are quite natural and should be seen as a normal part of human behaviour. However, there is a definite point at which these ordinary, albeit excessive interests, become dark and dangerous.

In Lovesick, Angus develops a very unhealthy obsession with Chao-xing. Observe the signs and be wary of obsession rearing its ugly head in your life. When you see it, make a better choice than Angus did, and kill it; before it kills you.

What have you been obsessed with over the years? What are you obsessed with now?

Obsession

Last night I finally watched Baz Luhrman's The Great Gatsby. I say finally, because I tend to resist much hyped films, and also because in this case I had to overcome anti Baz Luhrmansim. While Australia was okay, Moulin Rouge and Romeo and Juliet are two of the worst films I have ever had to endure. In the case of Romeo and Juliet, I elected not to endure. However I digress. I liked The Great Gatsby even though I felt it was marred by excessive theatricality. The film is a tragic tale of obsession, and it got me thinking about how a person's thoughts can be dominated by a persistent idea, image or desire. And I wondered whether obsession could be a good thing, when typically it is perceived as a negative characteristic.

J. Gatsby was obsessed with a woman. Nothing new there. Men have been losing their heads over women, and vice-verca, since the Fall of Man. He built an empire via nefarious means all for the benefit of crowning the incarnation of his vision with the woman of his dreams. This one compulsion drove him through five years of struggle and intense loneliness. His ambition made him wealthy and famous, but did it deliver him the object of his obsession?

Is obsession the only way to success? In order to achieve your dreams, do you have to forego attention to everything else in order to completely focus on doing whatever it takes to get whatever it is that you want. Persistence, dedication and commitment are good qualities which the obsessed may have, but there is a tipping point. When ambition or even just excessive interest in a particular thing runs off the rails of rationality."Clinical psychologists think of obsessions as unhealthy fixations with objects, people, or activities. They are abnormal because they impair our capacity to love and work." Obsessions throw our lives out of whack. Obsession causes us to lose perspective, and to make decisions which provide instant gratification but may not be in the long term best interests of others or ourselves.

The word obsession is inextricably burdened by negative connotations, yet who could argue that the achievement of success, the realization of one's dreams, requires at least some degree of those qualities which are embodied by that very word.

What do you think? Is obsession a good or bad thing? When have you been obsessed? Personally, I am moderately obsessed with the acquisition of a vast number of devotees of my work. Thanks for reading and please leave a comment.

Further reading:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mr-personality/201107/what-makes-your-obsession-healthy-or-unhealthy-is-your-personality
http://thoughtcatalog.com/madison-moore/2013/07/obsession-the-key-to-success/
Photo source.
http://www.retailprophet.com/blog/obsession-and-conflict-the-essence-of-extraordinary-brands/