W.A.S.

Work is under way on the cover and layout for my novel Devolution which Dream House will deliver into the heart of the huge Indian market. Novel number four, A Muddy Red River will be published by Rogue Phoenix Press, and my W.I.P, Lovesick is now 32 chapters strong (albeit first draft).

At the 28 chapter mark, I reached a crossroads with Lovesick, and felt that the story was running out of steam. I had to pause and wait for some inspiration. The first spark came while I was out on my early morning road run. The second, in the bathroom several days later. I am surprised that I did not think of these major plot developments and structural deviations earlier, but that is the craft of writing: sometimes you know where you are going, and sometimes you get lost and have to wait until the rescue party appears.

A novel is a living thing, infused with life by the imagination and skill of the author who finds strength in the support and encouragement of other writers, and friends and family. A writing friend gave me some good advice recently which I initially rejected out of pride. I have since contemplated her words and allowed them to permeate my thinking.

The advice was to think less about sales and more about writing. Thanks Rebecca.Rebecca's website 

What the Orb Spider Told Me

Unfortunately, I had to disturb an Orb spider today because he had spun his beautiful web across my path. Born with PhDs in engineering these much maligned creatures do not intend to scare or annoy us...yet they do.

Anyway, after I broke the part of his web which was connected to the ground, at an angle of 45 degrees over a distance of two metres, I watched his reaction. The impact of my action was immediate, as was the response of this marvellous arachnid.

He quickly gathered the remnants of his web, first going down to the other ground anchor point, then back up, bundling as he travelled all the way back to a crack in the brick work on the wall. 

I began to wonder if he grumbled as he worked. Was he furious or just irritated? Was he complaining bitterly about the carelessness of humans before running off to have a whine to a friend with a sympathetic ear? Do spiders even have ears?

None of the above, I'm sure. Quickly and without fuss, he did what had to be done. Collected his web, and retreated to safety. He'll probably set up shop again tonight once the sun goes down.

The spider did not speak to me, because he couldn't, (he was too busy) but I was reminded of the uselessness of complaining. If there is a job to be done, just do it! Interesting timing given my last post. God bless the Orb spider.

A Complaint about Complaining

I was going to talk about trust but I don't trust myself to stay within the safe boundaries of generalisations, so I'm going to have a whinge about complaints instead. Here too, sadly, I run the risk of identifying culprits of unreasonable grumbling. To be sure there are fault finders galore in this world, but I do not wish to name and shame those I know, nor even make obvious insinuations. Also, I have been known to bleat as well, so far be it from me to throw stones.

However, the question on which I wish to focus is what is reasonable complaining and what is not. Is it fair, for example, for my neighbours to complain about the sounds I make in the kitchen as I rise early to prepare for the day? A few plates banging, the kettle boiling, the toaster popping. It may be only five thirty in the morning, but this is the time I choose to get up and who could reasonably complain about the normal noises I make?


If I add the sounds of As I Lay Dying to the audio mix then perhaps I am going too far. If I sing loudly, or stomp or take no thought for the clashing of cups and cutlery in the sink, then maybe there are reasonable grounds.

There are things which we simply have to endure. No matter how annoying or disturbing they are. I find the sound of motorcycles irritating, for example, but I can hardly expect all the riders, lovers as they are of those two wheeled machines, to stop assaulting my senses simply to please me. I don't understand rudeness or laziness but I have neither the power nor the authority to do anything about it.

What I can do is fill the ears of like minded people with my cavilling. On this common ground, we cement an affinity which makes us feel good. Justified even. Dare I say righteous without inferring self righteousness? (because that is another thing I don't like) - I didn't know how to properly punctuate that sentence. Some readers will complain about that which is fair enough too because I do purport to be a writer.

This is so much fun, I have no desire to stop and yet, I must.

My first attempt at a book was called What's Your Problem? It was a book about complaining which one editor said they "did not get", and I gave up. That was many years ago, and I have learned much since in terms of doggedness, and understanding that many people do not 'get' me or 'get' what I write, but I don't care.

I invite you to a have a whinge. Moan away right here in the comments. Go on. You know you want to get something off your chest.

Photograph sources:
http://thewaytoactuality.com/complaining-is-a-spiritual-issue/
http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profiles/blogs/stop-complaining-hire

We all fall short

"Men can act brutally under certain circumstances, but their conscience pursues them.Certainly there are men to whom love, sympathy and conscience are alien, but they are mentally ill." (The Biology of Peace and War)

Mental ill or evil? I believe that given the right set of circumstances, anyone of us is capable of behaving in a way which we would not have thought possible. We can't say for sure how we would act if such and such an event happened, or if we were caught in a particular situation. We can suppose and hope for action commensurate with our character, but who knows? People both overestimate and underestimate themselves frequently.

Some people who do bad things are clearly mentally unwell, while others are evidently bad people. We all have the potential for good and evil. How many evil deeds are required for a person to be deemed evil? Do acts of charity and selflessness wipe out the stain of what Christians call 'sin'? Who decides who is a good person and who is a bad person? Who has enough knowledge to make such a judgement?

We have all fallen short of the Glory of God.

Stuck Again

Lovesick is like an old lawnmower: sometimes it fires up quickly and runs efficiently, other times it starts then coughs and splutters into silence, and on occasions it doesn't fire up at all. I'm stuck again at the moment, that is, nearly two weeks now with no time and nothing new to contribute, no spark of desire or imagination. When I eventually finish it, it will be my greatest triumph.

In other news, I had two short stories accepted for publication this week. One of my goals is to hit 50 short story publishing credits in 2015, and perhaps celebrating the milestone by publishing an anthology. What do you think?

A Trip to Somewhere

I started back at work on Monday after a three week break for Christmas/New Year which wasn't quite long enough. That always seems to be the case. I had  numerous family gatherings -my nana and daughter both have birthdays in early January- watched lots of cricket, including going to two games, went swimming often (beach and pool), and I took a trip to somewhere.

I'd like to tell you about the trip which involved flying to a destination, buying a car and driving back, but I am currently plagued with all manner of apprehension vis a vis sharing my personal life online. My online presence has always been about two things: fun and book sales.

Book sales? Still waiting for those. Fun? Some of what I call fun is now being deemed insensitive and offensive which leaves me wondering what to say and what not to say. I have always considered myself to be a very circumspect person; cautious in word and deed, but it seems I have either been deluding myself or I have undergone a radical change. In any case, I find myself bridled, and I fear this is no good thing.

On the book front, my first novel, Devolution, will be re published with a new cover this year, and of course A Muddy Red River is also due for publication in 2015.

W.A.S.

Happy to report a very productive back end to 2014 and marching on nicely into 2015. Lovesick is now 27 chapters strong. I am still, however, wrestling with the story, wondering sometimes what I'm doing, where I'm going. It is much different than anything I have previously written, to the point where I wonder if it will be recognisable as me. Of course it will, and I have high hopes for this one but that's nothing new?