Friday, April 14, 2017

Book Review: Hunters in the Dark by Lawrence Osborne

Hunters in the Dark by Lawrence Osborne

     Hunters in the Dark is the first of Osborne's works I have had the pleasure of reading. Osborne's storytelling and use of language plunges the reader into a world as eerie as it is hauntingly beautiful. An English school teacher from rural Sussex escapes his seemly dead end life, chasing thrill and empty temptation deep into east Asia. A foreign man of cultural innocence, finds himself submerged in the irrational, spiritually attuned world of Cambodia. Western ideas collide with this world of omens and dreams as Robert's European upbringing attempts to understand this trauma ridden, ancient land of mystery and dangerous allure.

     Osborne's writing is beautiful. It took me a while to get into the story, but that is no fault of the author. I regret that I read this work during a time where I could not give it the full attention it deserves. The story however, still sticks with me like a heavy shadow that beckons another look. It is one I will read again. The feeling it evokes is reminiscent of one of favorite books, Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. Both have burrowed into a section of my mind, clothed in shadows and mystery that through the years I will be able to unravel a little bit more of the meaning tucked deep between the pages.

Pick up Hunters in the Dark by Lawrence Osborne on Amazon.


Shame on Me

     Sometimes life takes a turn or it throws up a couple of speed bumps the size of Mount Fuji and every thing stops until you can climb over or build a road around it. Some of these mounds of misfortune are terrible, difficult, lousy and blatantly suck. Others may seem like an inconvenience until you realize you are on your way up Candy Mountain with a unicorn farting rainbows. It is a side effect of living. During my little handful of mountains, some sharp and steep and others with a gooey caramel center, some things went by the wayside for a bit.
     My writing took a sabbatical. My blog took a vacation and my housework...well that moved to Costa Rica for a few months. Well now the gang is all back, still a bit jet lagged but brushing off the dust and sand and getting back down to business. The characters in my head are more than thrilled to get back into the swing of things. I have even had a couple new ones pop up so you may get to meet them in the future once they swim their way onto a page.
     I am in a new city, in a new house with a new desk that is NOT a tiny end table with the keyboard balancing in my lap. The doctor's visits have dwindled. The recovery is finished. My crazy word vomit dry erase boards and timeline ramblings are up on the wall. A job search is underway (I need money to feed my writing addiction) and life is rolling along again. Let's have some fun, shall we?
     Ages from Eternity has been out in the world for almost 2 years now. The time, she does fly. If you haven't read it, pop on over to Amazon.com. I might be a tad biased or the worst critic, depending on the day, but I say it is a good read. I have readers from the teenage era to the golden years. And my characters span the same frame. There is violence and strong language. There are rough situations. There is death and sorrow. There is hope and victory. You might get offended at times and while that is not my intention, it might happen because there are things in there that are offensive. Bad things happen. Bad people exist and as much as the world should be draped in rainbows and sunlight, there is just shit that occurs.
     Book two is finished and awaiting the eyes of an editor. Those of you that have been asking for a sequel, thank you for your support and I promise it is coming. A second edit round of book one is also in the works. Just a little clean up of pesky grammar mistakes that squeezed through the cracks.
     I am not sure what is in store for this blog. I have some book reviews coming, but other than that I think I will just wing it for a while. If there is a topic that interests you, or a burning question you would like answered, give me a shout either here or on facebook.
Lora Douglas. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100006794985619
     Thank you all for spending a bit of your time with me. Thank you for the support, encouragement and critique. I am off to give my mother a birthday hug. You all have a good day. If you are stuck on one of those life mountains, keep moving, reach out, and remember there are always others that have been somewhere similar. There are always those who will understand.

Peace, coffee and rainy days!
Lora

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

What is the Inspiration?

What was the inspiration behind Ages from Eternity?
How did the novel come to be? 


First things first, let it be known that I think in pictures. When I was a kid I thought it was weird, well I still do, but now I know people that think the same way.  That being said, all of my story ideas start with some kind of flash. It's either an image or a short movie style clip that will play in my brain. If I find it interesting, attach to the characters, intrigued by something or if I am just plain bored, I'll follow it. These flashes may come while listening to song, driving, sitting in class or in a meeting or while I am asleep. I have always been a very vivid dreamer. Most of my dreams consist of me being a different person and caught in a moment or situation. I will jump from first person to third person as the dream continues, seeing all sides to the moment.  It can be as simple as a few word conversation or it can be an entire nights worth of material. It is always people I don't know, stories I have not heard and characters I have never met. They pop up and some just never seem to leave.
Ever since I was a child this is how I daydreamed. I would think of these random people and just let situations play out. It would be like I was on the stage and I was playing every character and sometimes I would physically talk out the dialogue, act out parts and just have a good time with it. I've had insomnia the majority of my life so most of these acting out moments occurred while laying in bed and trying to fall asleep. I will whisper dialogues out loud and close my eyes and just disappear into the imaginary world.
As I got older the stories, for the most part, changed. I still have some characters floating around in my mind that I've known since I was eight years old. They've grown up with me. Then I have new characters, new stories that seem to just pop up out of nowhere. Ages was like that. Around 2006, I had a dream. It was simple, just a first person, intimate conversation. But there was so much emotion and depth to that fragment of a moment that when I woke up their story consumed me for the better part of a month. I would just let it play through like a movie clip in my head when I was driving to school or sitting in class or laying in bed trying to fall sleep. I would throw out questions and throw in ideas and see where the story led me. The more I played it out, the bigger and bigger the story became.
Another thing about me, I never talked much about my stories. I didn't see it as writing because I never put anything on paper. For my own reasons, dumb as some of them were, I decided to keep this little nugget of oddity to myself. I also never thought I would be a writer. It was an artistic dream that people seem to talk about but never chase or embrace or support. So for whatever reason, be it insecurities or fear or whatever I just decided that was a road I was never going to go down. I would keep my stories to myself and not face the difficulty, hardship, the what I saw as torment of putting my thoughts out paper.
I can go into this more later, but it ties in to why I shied away from writing. Since I had a head injury in high school I've had a lot of issues with some form of dyslexia. I can get my words on paper but it will be riddled with errors no matter how hard I try or how vigilant I am, there's always things that I don't see. Which is fine. You know it's something that a lot of people deal with and struggle with,  I was just at a point in my life that I hadn't fully realize what was happening. All I really understood was that I was a great student and now suddenly I'm having so many issues with writing and mistakes and like most of my professors I chalked it up to laziness or not paying attention. It wasn't until I got older that I realized what was actually going on.
That being said, I made my decision, for better or for worse, to be a closet story maker.
Back to Ages. That little interaction I dreamed of in 2006 rested on my back burner. It was common for me to rotate stories depending on what was going on in my life. I found it was a good way to work things out and to think about how other people experience things. Plus it was an escape. As I grew old I began to slowly let other people in on my creative secret. My husband, college roommate and a friend or two. I even put some things on paper. But in all fairness, I chicken out. I did get some writing on paper but it was I was holding back. Honestly, I wrote stories that I didn't care about and characters that I don't even care to explore. But it was good practice. I embraced the fear of conquering the blank page.
Later on, in 2012, a new friend and I were walking and she began talking about a story she had in her head. I listened and was almost jealous at the way she talked about her own creative world. I decided in that moment to be real, fully truthful if the conversation turned to me. Though, part of me hoped it won't. Stupid insecurities. Of course, the conversation turned.  While many of my stories filed through my mind, Ages was the one that surfaced.  
During that walk we talked and I fumbled through explaining my world, my Realm. I fumbled through some of the characters and fought the internal desire to say what I thought she wanted to hear and actually stick to the truth of my creation. The more I divulged, the more the story seem to take a life of its own.
February 2012,  my friend looked  me in the eye and told me that if I did not write that story on paper that she would tie me up and tickled me with feathers until I cried. Then she proceeded to threatened me, claiming she would follow me and bug me every second of every day until I got that story in a form where she could hold it and read it. She was persistent that it needed to be shared that it needed to be given a life outside of my head.
I could've done a lot of things after that walk but I decided to give it a shot. Starting that summer I had a lot of health factors pop up. The next few years would consist of numerous surgeries and a lot of downtime. I couldn't work. I volunteered but that basically took a week of lying in bed to give one evening. So I made a choice and I got that story down on paper in a way that my friend could hold and she now reads it to her daughter.

That one scene in that dream that sparked the entire story was supposed to make it into book one, Ages from Eternity, but as I flushed out the story and allowed the characters to run around and cause mischief, the more it grew. So now, that one moment that started everything is actually in book 2. After the release of the second book later this year, I will be glad to talk about exactly which moment it was but until then, no spoilers. All I can say is it's between Calla and Bennett.

Sunday, June 12, 2016

One Year Anniversary!!!

One Year Bookaversary!!!!!


     One year ago today my first novel went out to meet the world. Damn, time flies. I still have a hard time truly believing it is out there...I can hold it...strangers can read it....
   
It was years in the making to say the least. The characters emerged around 2006-2007. I opened up to a friend and talked about the story for the first time in 2012 walking along a mountain trail. Over the next few years I got the first book on paper. I wrote and rewrote and researched and started over more than once. I talked with authors and agents and publishers. I wrote and rewrote. I submitted for publication. I was rejected....and rejected. I got some interest. I had a choice. I thought and I decided to publish myself....

     I was excited and terrified and hopeful. I cried and felt like was going to vomit. I laughed and raised my glass. I took a risk...well more than one. I listened to those around me...for better and for worse. I took the chance and now...a year later....

     I am still excited and terrified and hopeful. I still cry and feel sick sometimes. I still get self conscious and nervous and proud and pleased. I still laugh and raise my glass. It is work and frustration and fear and uncertainty. It is hard and wonderful and art. It is planning and time and effort and crazy and insane and priceless.

     I may never be the 'best' or famous or see those rolling zeros in the bank account and that is just fine with me. I may never be 'known' but I took the chance and lived a dream. My art is out there and I am proud.

     Thank you to everyone that supported me, encouraged me and helped make this all happen. Your words, lessons, donations, time, effort, praise, critique, pushes and supports mean so much. This journey isn't over...there is still so much more ahead and I look forward to every hill and valley, bump and turn and most all the views.

     This week I will make posts about Ages from Eternity. How it started, Info about Characters and more. If you have questions you would like answered, either about me, my writing journey or my novel, feel free to email them to loradouglasauthor@gmail.com or message to me via facebook or tweet them to @LoraDouglas112 on twitter. Check back here on Wed and Fri. I will try and answer what I can. Thank you all.

Have a beautiful Sunday. "May we do more good than harm."


Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Earth Day #4 OH Canada

Canada 


I recently got the opportunity to visit Canada for the first time. It did not disappoint! I look forward to my next venture. 

You may be wondering, is Canada constructed of all things maple? Dotted by Tim Horton's? Consumed with Hockey? For a while, my only look at Canada was through a TV screen and thanks to numerous sit coms and comedy specials I had a skewed idea of Canadians. Not negative mind you but not fully true (as televised stereotypes tend to be). But what I knew was only a fraction of the true character of this country and its people. 

According to Wikipedia (I don't solely rely on Wiki but they do have some good factual info) 

"The land now called Canada has been inhabited for millennia by various Aboriginal peoples. Beginning in the 15th century, British and French colonies were established on the Atlantic coast, with the first establishment of a region called "Canada" occurring in 1537. As a consequence of various conflicts, the United Kingdom gained and lost territories within British North America until left, in the late 18th century, with what mostly geographically comprises Canada today." 
"Canada is a federal parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is officially bilingual at the federal level. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. Its advanced economy is the eleventh largest in the world, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources and well-developed international trade networks. Canada's long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its economy and culture."



Canada for me was a surprise in the best ways. Yes, most everyone was very polite but there was a man flipping off a car from his bike while crossing the road. :) People are people everywhere...good, bad, ugly and everything in between. And I love it, the diversity and the similarity. I am not saying that flipping off people as you are crossing the street is a thing of beauty but in an odd way I guess I am....reminded me of home and that well, all people are people. Whether it is across the street, across the pond or couple plane rides away, I enjoy watching life go by. Now, like every other country I have been too, I have only seen a part. A tiny section of what makes the given country its own. 

Canada's provinces and territories all together make Canada the second largest country in the world by area. Over time, boundaries have changed, leaving Canada currently with ten provinces and three territories. 
The ten provinces are AlbertaBritish Columbia,ManitobaNew BrunswickNewfoundland and LabradorNova ScotiaOntarioPrince Edward IslandQuebec, and Saskatchewan. The three territories are Northwest Territories,Nunavut, and Yukon.

Canada is a country rich in history and diversity among its people and environment. I hope I get many more chances to explore our neighbor to the north. 

PS. The Caesar ( or Bloody Caesar) the National Cocktail of Canada is freaking amazing. 
"It was invented in CalgaryAlberta in 1969 by restaurateur Walter Chell to celebrate the opening of a new Italian restaurant in the city. It quickly became a popular mixed drink within Canada where over 350 million Caesars are consumed annually and it has inspired numerous variants. However, the drink remains virtually unknown elsewhere." 
It is NOT a Bloody Mary...nope nope nope...different. and wonderful. I may be slightly addicted.
My Canada trip also sparked an addiction to LUSH products. More on that later. 

Thanks Canada. 


Photos
Flag http://www.freelargeimages.com/canada-flag-545/
Caesar at Earl's (MINE)
Landscapes http://demortalz.com/2012/09/26/45-beautiful-nature-landscape-canada-photography/   (check out this amazing photography on demortalz.com)
Delta Bessborough Hotal (MINE) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta_Bessborough
Tim Horton's (MINE)

Information
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada

Caesar recipe!!!! My favorite
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWZ2Jv1wR5E

Monday, May 9, 2016

Earth Day #3 Lebanon

Celebrating Lebanon!!



Lebanon is a country I am not all that familiar with. I know a few people that have been but most of my knowledge comes from personal research.
According to Wikipedia, Lebanon, officially the Lebanese Republic, is a sovereign state in Asia. It is bordered by Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south. Lebanon's location at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian hinterland facilitated its rich history and shaped a cultural identity of religious and ethnic diversity. The earliest evidence of civilization in Lebanon dates back more than seven thousand years, predating recorded history.
The name "Lebanon" originates from the Semitic root lbn (لبن), meaning "white," which is likely a reference to the snow-capped peaks of Mount Lebanon.
Occurrences of the name have been found in different texts from the library of Ebla, which date to the third millennium BC, nearly 70 times in the Hebrew Bible, and three of the twelve tablets of the Epic of Gilgamesh (perhaps as early as 2100 BC).
The name is recorded in Ancient Egyptian as Rmnn, where R stood for Canaanite L. 


 The main population groups of Lebanon consists of Shia Muslims, Sunni Muslims, Christians and Druza. For centuries, Lebanon has been place of refuge for the region's minorities.  


I have said it before and I will no doubt say it again, but I find history fascinating and love seeing how places and people intertwine. How when can meet one person 'by chance' and that person connects us to another and soon we are connected to faraway lands filled with different beliefs, thoughts, customs, cultures, music, religion, foods and yet we all have things in common. The human tapestry of this world is a beautiful as it is diverse.


Based on dishes I have tried (prepared by friends) Lebanese cuisine carries big flavors such as garlic, olive oil and lemon juice mixed with herbs like cumin and sumac. Here is link to great video featuring different Lebanese recipes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoVQJd9SK5I 

Resource
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanon

Photos
https://johnnamcclellan.wordpress.com/developing-world-lebanon-2/
http://www.hdwallpapera.com/lebanon-city-view-high-definition-wallpaper-2/lebanon-city-view-high-definition-wallpaper-3/
http://eurotaxi.mobi/blog/sidebar-lebanon/lebanon-country-full-surprises/


Disclaimer
This should have been with the first post as well. I am well aware that many countries, all on some level, are marred by war, invasion, forms of terrorism and treason. People have been through uprisings and revolutions. While all of these can be changing moments and driving forces of a culture I am choosing to not mention them. I am striving to present a country, a people, without any agenda other than to celebrate their existence. I am choosing to highlight what I can (through my own time and knowledge) I am not a historian or expert of any kind. I only have my own experiences, eyes, ears and internet connection and a belief that all people should be seen with compassion and intrigue because every cultural has a richness to be honored. 

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Earth Day Challenge #2 TUNISIA and May the 4th Be With You


 Today we celebrate TUNISIA 




Tunisia is a small country located in northwest Africa between Algeria and Libya. Tunisia gained its independence in 1956 from French colonization. This small country has been under Arab rule, part of the Carthage Empire and under the Roman empire. It is a beautiful, warm place bordered by beaches.
The capital city of Tunis, built on the old city of Carthage, is home to nearly three-quarters of a million people with more than 2 mill living in the surrounding metropolis. Tunisia is over 99% Sunni-Muslim with Arab being the dominate people group.  In Tunisia, the culture dates back centuries and I would love to get the chances to see the Roman mosaics, Carthage ruins and Islamic art that highlight the rich culture. One day I would love to walk through the market place and hear stories of families that traced through roots deep into the calms and storms of Tunisia's past.

If you see photos of this gem of antiquity, you may recognize a few things. You may even feel like you have been there before in your fantasy, geeked-out dreams. That's right.

Welcome to Tatooine!

Varies locations across Tunisia were used to film scenes including R2D2 being abducted by Jawas, Luke attacked by Tusken Raiders (these scenes include shots from Death Valley, USA), the wrecked Sandcrawler, the sand dunes west of Nefta showcases the landing of C-P3O and R2D2's escape pod, the Mos Espa salve quarters and the location of the duel between Darth Maul and (my second fav Jedi, Mace Windu in my number one) Qui-Gonn Jinn.  


Today's post is twofold. Happy Earthday Challenge #2: The Celebration of Tunisia
And Happy May the 4th Be With You!













Disclaimer

This should have been with the first post as well. I am well aware that many countries, all on some level, are marred by war, invasion, forms of terrorism and treason. People have been through uprisings and revolutions. While all of these can be changing moments and driving forces of a culture I am choosing to not mention them. I am striving to present a country, a people, without any agenda other than to celebrate their existence. I am choosing to highlight what I can (through my own time and knowledge) I am not a historian or expert of any kind. I only have my own experiences, eyes, ears and internet connection and a belief that all people should be seen with compassion and intrigue because every cultural has a richness to be honored. 


Photos are not mine and belong to these awesome people.
http://1dad1kid.com/tunisia/
https://nomadlist.com/country/tunisia
By Certo Xornal from Ribeira, Galicia, España - Decorado Star Wars en Túnez, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10722560
By Ian Sewell - Own work, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2795262
Information resources
http://www.mapsofworld.com/tunisia/tunisia-location-map.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Wars_filming_locations
http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/africa/tn.htm
http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/30/world/tunisia-fast-facts/