Month: March 2021

Quote of the Day: Douglas Preston

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Something to remember when writing believable characters, every hero isn’t all good and every villain isn’t all bad. There are degrees of good and evil in everyone.

One of the writing books I have read included a parable. A young man sitting with his grandfather talking about good vs evil. Grandfather tells the grandson, within every person there are two wolves. A white wolf and a black wolf who are endlessly locked in battle. The grandson asks which wolf wins. Grandfather says it depends on which wolf you feed by your actions. Sometimes the white wolf wins, sometimes the black wolf wins.

Far be it for me to argue with Grandfather, however, I would suggest the existence of a third wolf. A grey wolf. A wolf for the times when life isn’t as clear cut as we would like. A way to explain why a person would chose one action over another.

Let me know what you think. Cheers, james

Book Review: Singapore Sapphire by A. M. Stuart

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I picked this book up off of the Libby App, an ebook loan service run through the library. I started it about 12 pm that afternoon and I finished it at 1:30 am that night. I could not put this book down.

Ms. Stuart writes a well told, emersive story set in the 1910s of Singapore. It is one part travel log, one part historical, and two parts mystery. It is a wonderful first book with a heroine that isn’t the norm. The best part of this story is the characters, well rounded people with flaws, quirks, and personality. Her descriptions of Singapore make you feel as if you are really there. The oppressive humidity, the bugs, the smells of a city, are used to create a living backdrop for the story to play out.

It is a murder mystery but it so much more than that. It is a look at people and the lengths they will go to for love, greed, and everything else that motivates mankind.

What are you reading? Drop me a comment. I am trying to expand my reading horizons. Cheers, james

Happy Anniversary: 7 years

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Seven years ago I started this blog. Today I have readers the world over and almost 300 hundred folks have chosen to come along on this journey. The past seven years have been a wild and wonderful ride. So much has changed since I published my first post.

Thank you to my wonderful readers and friends the world over. The journey is far from over. Here is to another seven years and many more besides. Cheers, james

Three Word Stories

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These writing prompts circulate through the internet. One of my favorites is the three or five word stories. I have included a few examples below. So I am challenging you to write several of your own.

Cheers, james

Examples:

She is love.

The baby giggled. (Mostly benign, unless you don’t have a baby in the house.)

The needles drummed on flesh. (I hope this was a tattoo.)

Fur flew through the air.