Author: admin (Page 36 of 51)

Normally I’d have an Author interview in this slot but they are a lot of work and not always for much reward so I’m giving these a break for now. Instead I’ll have reviews for a while as I’ve been reading and watching so much there’s alot to share on that front.

 

Trafficked is a novella by the author Sibel Hodge. It’s short, to the point and is a fictional diary of a trafficked woman.

The book goes through her journey from before being trafficked to being rescued. It’s a great attempt in a very different genre to the author’s usual fare at moving people to do something about trafficking.

The topic has evidently been well researched. The author has many details around how the young woman is trafficked. Despite this, however, I didn’t emotionally interact with the book. Everything was a little too perfect. I didn’t feel the diary’s emotion anyway near as much as I was expecting too and as much as I believed the story I didn’t connect with how it must make the slaves feel.

Unfortunately I think it may have been a problem of an author needing to write about things they know to really impact people. I just wasn’t convinced the author knew what it really felt like.

I would still say to people to buy the ebook, however. I think it’s worth reading, just not 5 stars and definitely too short.

Everything ran smoothly in Sherdan’s world for the next couple of days. Anya didn’t try to escape and all the plans for his organisation progressed. He put several measures in place just in case the mayor didn’t react favourably to their discussion in a few days. Sherdan also did a few more news interviews, mostly local, but each time they gained even more applicants to their program.

On the third of the new year Hitchin came to find Sherdan late in the evening. This was very unusual for Hitchin, especially without warning. Sherdan’s first thought was something must have gone horribly wrong.

“I’ve just had a new vision,” Hitchin said as Sherdan poured them both drinks. “Anya was in it.” Sherdan smiled. Just what he wanted to hear.

“Go on friend, tell me all about it.” He fetched a paper and pen to make notes.

“Well, you were standing at the top of a great flight of stone steps outside a very grand building. Anya stood beside you, though ever so slightly behind. She wore a white dress and was with child.” Sherdan raised his eyebrows but didn’t interrupt Hitchin.

“Then the vision moved on. You sat on a throne and were placing a small silver crown, that was a small delicate version of your own, on the head of someone blonde. I assume it was Anya, but she was bowed at your feet so I couldn’t see for sure.”

“Anything else?”

“Yes. The child grew up. It was a boy. He was being taught by his mother, about all the child’s abilities. She had one and the child had several. He was the first child between two parents with abilities.”

“And you’re sure of this?”

“Positive. It was just like the previous visions. Anya is to be the mother of our great nation. You will crown her to be your queen and she will submit to you. It even explains why you stopped the guards when you did. She is to remain pure for you and you alone.”

“Very well, thank you Hitchin. I appreciate you telling me this. It makes things much clearer.”

“What do you plan to do with Anya now?”

“I will need to think about that very carefully.”

“Of course. Rash decisions are not wise. Let me know if you have any questions at any point regarding the vision. I will do everything to help it come to pass, assuming it’s what you wish?”

“Of course. I wouldn’t try to defy one of your visions. Anya will give me a child and heir.”

Hitchin left and Sherdan sat for some time, thinking this over. He had hoped Hitchin would see something concerning Anya. Now he had to get her to see that he was following the same force that had brought her here. The same force that had helped her escape only to send her back to him, to be his wife, and queen.

She did belong to him, he had been right all along. He smiled as he thought of all the implications of Hitchin’s vision. Saying he was pleased would have been an understatement. He couldn’t deny that he found her attractive.

He had a few nagging doubts. It did seem a little too convenient but he knew Hitchin had never lied to him and he truly must have had this vision. It would just be a matter of time before it came to pass.

Getting up, he hurried to the security camera’s to check on Anya but she was already asleep. He frowned. He had hoped she would be awake and he could talk to her. Nothing else was in his thoughts except his desire for her. At that moment very little would have stopped him showing her their future in a very practical way.

After a few minutes of gazing at her on the camera his brain kicked back in and he went to take a shower of much cooler temperature than normal. Sherdan didn’t want to frighten her. He wanted her to develop feelings for him as strong as the ones now blossoming in him. He could court her with the assurance of knowing his success was guaranteed.

He vowed to let her know of his intentions as soon as there was a sensible opportunity. She would be his wife and wouldn’t resist him or anything he wanted.

Sherdan’s sleep that night was filled with images of Anya. The smile as she looked up to him at the altar and they kissed. The ability she might gain from the drug and, of course, the enjoyment of making their son. His focus was kept by this last part for so long that he awoke finding he would need fresh bed sheets. It only made him grin as he realised that hadn’t happened since he was a teenager.

When he noticed what the date was he groaned. He was snapped from his indulgent thoughts back into cruel reality. He hardly had time to say hello to Anya when he took her breakfast. He needed to help Hitchin with the new residents until the mayor arrived for their afternoon meeting.

Greeting the residents, however, kept him busy enough that he didn’t notice the time passing. There were many new eager faces ready to take the drug and start their new lives. All of them had signed the non-disclosure agreement before coming. It was just the first step in making sure the enzyme stayed a secret.

Sherdan stood at the front of a packed lecture hall and told all the new residents about the treatment. He had members who had previously taken the drug show off their new abilities.

There were gasps similar to Anya’s when James took the slide-show buttons from Sherdan’s hand from across the lecture hall. Nathan then popped in to say hello and introduced himself while not even opening his mouth. This talent achieved a round of applause.

By the time Sherdan had finished his warm up speech everyone was enthusiastic about having the drug. They’d been chosen by Sherdan because they would get excited. He left them all in the care of Hitchin and went back to his home. The mayor was on his way over.

Sherdan had barely finished lunch when the mayor was shown into his study. He offered his visitor a drink and seat before sitting down himself.

“Jeremy reassured me that you’re a very reasonable man Dr Harper.”

“I try to be.”

“Then you’ll understand that I wasn’t happy to find a large area of my city closed off to the public without me being informed.”

“I’m sorry to hear that you were uninformed. I hope someone has since corrected their mistakes and shown you all the relevant paperwork I filled to reclaim the roads between the buildings on the land, collectively owned by me and all the residents here.”

“They did, yes.”

“Then what can I discuss with you Mayor?” Sherdan asked, gaining the upper hand in the conversation. He wanted to be the one steering the meeting, not the mayor. For the moment there was an awkward pause.

“You do realise that although the roads are now privately owned, something I’d never have approved had I been aware, you cannot change them without attaining planning permission?”

“I am aware. The residents here and I simply wish to control who passes through the estates we own.”

“That is something I am meant to control.”

“As you controlled that incident with your secretary?”

“Is that a threat?”

“I just want to have my say on how the land I own is protected from the outside world. The people here want privacy. I’m merely giving it to them.”

“I do not think it’s healthy and will be doing everything I can to have your rights to do so revoked. You will be opening these roads again shortly Dr Harper.”

“I don’t think so. I have plans for this land, plans the residents approve of. I will only warn you this once. Don’t get in my way.”

“You do not have the power you think you do Dr Harper. Good bye.” With that the mayor got up and Sherdan had him shown out by the security guard.

He sat in thought for some time before he radioed the same security guard.

“Have the next layer of our defences put into place around the entire perimeter, as it’s detailed in section three of the defence report I put together.”

“Yes sir.”

“Also, schedule in a full program wide announcement for tomorrow evening.”

Sherdan spent the rest of the evening in the command bunker, ensuring that the plans for the next line of defence were put into place properly and swiftly. He was using technology that hadn’t been tested in any real situations yet and wanted to make sure it was deployed correctly.

He also wasn’t sure how quickly the mayor would have his claim to the roads overturned. Legally he knew that he was on dodgy ground but there was no going back on their journey now, the residents wanted this as much as he did.

Over the last three years several abilities had been combined to make an emitter that blocked anyone without the drug in their brain from being able to pass through. To anyone else the emitters would act as a barrier, sending the person dizzy as well as making it impossible to walk forwards.

Each little device only worked on a very short range because they weren’t electrically powered. The last thing Sherdan wanted was an electromagnetic pulse killing their best line of defence.

A large number of these devices would be needed, however, and they would need to be deployed so that there were no gaps in the perimeter and they would all need to be out of sight.

He had drawn up a map with suggested locations but it would need to be tested before confidence in it was necessary.

Anya was fast asleep by the time Sherdan finished in his duties for the day. He watched her sleeping on the camera feed for the second night in a row before heading to sleep himself. He would have to tell Anya of their future the following day. One day’s delay wouldn’t hurt.

When the following day dawned he rushed to Anya’s room with breakfast. He’d had a small table placed in one corner so they could eat together. She joined him at it and smiled at his chirpy greeting, but they only talked of inconsequential things while they ate.

He waited until she had finished her scrambled eggs on toast and put her knife and fork down. He stared into her eyes as she sat opposite him making her fidget uncomfortably.

He would normally be tidying up their breakfast things and hurrying to go now but he sat still. Now that it came to telling her he hesitated. Even with the assurance of success he felt a little nervous.

“I’ve had Hitchin approach me recently about you,” Sherdan began. Anya raised her eyebrows. “He’s had another vision of the future. One involving you.”

“He’s the person who came up with your prophecy as well, isn’t he?”

“Yes, and I know you don’t believe it but I do.” Anya sighed but Sherdan pretended he hadn’t heard her and continued, “He saw us marrying and you carrying our child. Not only that but you had an ability and as a result our child had more than one ability himself. I knew you were part of the future here but I didn’t know how.”

Sherdan beamed at her while she sat with her mouth open.

“You’re not happy?” he asked her.

“I don’t know what to say. I didn’t expect you to say all of that when you said there was a vision of me.”

“Say yes.”

“Uhhh… I’m not sure I can.” Anya couldn’t look at him.

“I’m not giving you a choice.”

“You’re used to getting your own way aren’t you?”

“Yes I am.”

“Well you can’t force someone to love you.”

“I’m not asking you to love me.”

“I’m not sure I can do what you ask without loving you.”

“Well I guess you should start thinking about that because we will get married and we will have a child.” Sherdan finally got up to leave. His excitement had quickly turned into anger.

“Wait, please.” She got up and went over to him, “Please don’t plan anything yet. I will want to think about what you’ve told me and process it. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t rush this.”

“You’ll consider doing this willingly then?” His anger dissipated in an instant.

“I will consider anything at this point, I’ve not been given any other reason by God for being here but I really don’t want to feel pressured. It won’t help me decide.”

“I will let you think then.” Sherdan bent down and kissed her on the cheek before going.

I was fortunate enough to see this film at the cinema and very excited as Aardman are one of my favourite film makers. They get a lot of respect from me too with the length of time it can take them to make each film.

The film started fairly well with a few titters from the audience at various points and mumerings as we tried to figure out who were the voices we vaguely recognised. Martin Freeman was our first one right, the voice for the Pirate Captain’s first mate known amusingly as Second.

Unfortunately that was where most of the entertainment seemed to end. It was a fairly standard story with a fairly standard plot and fairly standard jokes and gags. I laughed a little but not often enough for an aardman film and I felt my mind wandering a few times during the film to other things.

I was actually a little dissapointed when I walked out. I can’t decide if the film was really that good or not. I don’t think it was bad, I guess it just didn’t match up to my usual expectations of an aardman film. The humour wasn’t very…’british’ like it normally is and I can’t help wonder if aardman have been a little scared to do their usual thing after the fiasco of dreamworks dropping them because the US didn’t ‘get’ flushd away (which is in my opinion the best film they’ve ever made)

I don’t think I’ll be getting this one unless it’s gifted to me at some point, unfortunately.

Novels are much longer when writing them than they are reading and as such it can make them very difficult to finish.

I know a very large number of people who have started writing a book and still not finished. Some have even started several. For this very reason publishers don’t usually accept submissions until the whole book is finished. It’s a hard task, much harder than people realise.

Often the excitement of a new idea carries the writer through the first 10k words without a problem and determination can carry through the next 10k or so. That leaves at least another 30k to go and often a lot more. (50k is the very minimum for a book to be classed a novel but 75k is more like average)

So here’s how I motivate myself to get to the end of the book.

1, I plan out the plot and characters first. With a good idea of who the characters are and where the plot is going it makes the beginning quicker so you can get further than just 20k in before the shiny of the idea starts to wear off. It also means when you’re stuck you’ve got something to read through which jogs your memory and helps rekindle that excitement now and then.

2, I try to write a little each day. Getting into a gentle routine helps through the rougher patches. It’s very satisfying to get to the end of a month and realise you’ve chipped off another 15k words from that target just by doing a little bit each day. It’s always harder to come back and write when you’ve not touched a manuscript for a month or more. You’ve often forgotten what your train of thought is and can’t quite remember who the characters are and it’s always slow going to get back into the flow, not to mention detrimental to the flow of the story.

3, I never stop working at the end of a chapter. For a similar reason as above, it’s always harder to get started again right at the beginning of a chapter. You have to think over who’s point of view it’s meant to be from and where it’s got to get to. The plot can help with this a little but it depends how detailed your plot is. Mine only tends to be a couple of A4 pages so not enough for a chapter by chapter breakdown.

When I come back to my work and see the first three paragraphs of a chapter I know who’s point of view, usually what they are actually doing and often how they feel at that moment. It gives me a boost into the characters head to carry on writing as them.

4, I get the ending straight in my head and remind myself of it regularly. This is especially useful in the middle stages when a book can deviate from the plot outline quite easily. It helps give it a point to aim to and keep it on course so you waffle less in the mire of uncertainty.

5, I don’t let myself start anything longer than a days writing at the same time as writing a novel. Often this is the big failure point for novels. If you start another novel, or novella even, while writing one novel the first just doesn’t get finished. New ideas are always more exciting than the one you’ve been writing for 3 months now and can’t quite work out how you’re going to get the character out of the predicament you just put them in. It’s very hard to come back to an old novel once you’ve started meeting new characters and got excited about a different set of lives.

6, I try to write during my best awake time each day, for me that’s the afternoon and early evening. So in the mornings I do the other stuff I need to do like blogging, emailing and marketing (also typing up in my case as I write by hand). It just helps get that few hundred extra words each day and stops them feeling quite so laboured.

7, I recognise when I’m just having a bad day. Sometimes writing just doesn’t work very well and it doesn’t mean the story is sucking and the book is going nowhere so it should be abandoned. It just means that you either need to take a break or persevere through that difficult bit because the book will be all the more glorious for the effort. There are scenes I’ve struggled and had to really spend ages on to get them out and then had people tell me it’s their favourite part. Just because you struggle writing it doesn’t mean it’s the weakest part. Sometimes the extra effort makes it a gem within the rest.

There are also times when I’ve taken a break, gone off walking for the day or whatever I felt like and come back to the book the following day feeling so much fresher that I know exactly what to write. Occasionally I even get an idea while doing the other activity and come rushing back to my pad of paper and pen like a mother to her lost children.

8, I don’t usually edit while writing. I think about the sentences before I write them but I don’t go back and critique my work until the whole thing is finished. (I say usually because I’m blogging Sherdan’s prophecy and hadn’t finished it when I started blogging so for the first 10 or so chapters had to edit while I was writing) Writing something requires being excited about the lives and story being told. It’s very hard to remain excited if you’re pulling it apart and criticising yourself as you go. Editing often make authors feel sad about their work and while necessary it’s often easier to keep them as two distinctly separate phases.

9, If I’m really struggling and need to get more motivated again I go find someone I know who is enthusiastic about my work. Often this is one of my friends. I have a few in particular who love reading and never criticise me, ever. They know other people will do so and that sometimes I just need to be happy with what I’m writing. If I really can’t get past a point I start telling them about the idea. Just the act of telling them means I get more excited again and often by going through the plot to tell them I remember things I’ve forgotten.

10, I minimise distractions as much as possible. I often write on the sofa by hand because it’s away from the computer with it’s emails, twitter and facebook and all manner of other interesting things. If I have something on in the background like the tv or music I make sure it’s something I’ve seen or heard enough I know what’s going on and only kind of watch or listen to. For me the best thing is a period drama series or trilogy of films I can stick on one after the other and just play in the background, but if it starts to distract me it goes off.

That’s pretty much how I do it. Those ten things combined get me to the end of each novel and especially through the toughest bit which is often two-thirds of the way through a book until I reach that ending part I’ve held in my head. Everyone is different so try a few and see what works for you, over time you’ll develop your own way of motivating yourself and getting your writing done.

Mostly though you do need to love writing. Writing is something a lot of people think they can do. We all write emails and tell people things when we see them. It’s a part of our communication but writing 75,000 words about the same people and have it flow well, be interesting and be an enjoyable ride (for the most part) is a completely different ball game.

Tell us about your lastest project.

My last novel is called “The Dark Lake.” It is the story of a woman who is trying to overcome addiction and alcoholism. She is trying to get her life together. After all, who wants to still be living with their parents when they are in their forties? She is going to therapy. She is looking for a job. She seems to be getting better but she keeps having these nightmares. The nightmares disturb her so much that her therapist wants her to deal with them, and to try and remember what happened the night of the party, the night that was so traumatic that it might hold the key to her mental illness and addictions.

However she can’t remember that night. She doesn’t want to think about it. She avoids thinking about it at all costs. But then they drag her car up from the bottom of the lake. “Why are they dragging her car up from the bottom of the lake after all this time?” she wonders. And how did it get there in the first place, because she can’t remember–she won’t remember.

Your first book sounds traumatic. How did you feel writing those parts?

Actually my first published book was “How to Play Chess Like an Animal,” which of course was not traumatic but quite fun. My second book which was also published by a small publisher (same publisher) was called “Ainsworth,” and was a young adult fiction that took place in the sandhills of Nebraska, an environmentally sensitive area that has recently become the subject of debate since there was an oil pipeline set to go through there. How heartbreaking it would have been to so many people who loved that area and grew up there, as I did–growing up visiting my cousins farm there.

It was my third book that was traumatic, “The Dark Lake.” The second and third books in that trilogy was even more traumatic to write, and it’s already written. I remember literally curling up in a ball and lying down on the bed writing that one. It felt like I had a big steel ball of pain right in my stomach. I have never gotten pneumonia in my life, but I got a severe case of pneumonia that took me out of commission for a month while writing books 2 and 3 of that trilogy, and I’m convinced it was from the emotional trauma. I had buried a memory that I didn’t even know I had! I thought, during the second book in particular, that I was making something up, but it turned out it was a real memory, just buried, and it came up through the writing. And it certainly wasn’t the memory I had expected, either. The first book in the series, the Dark Lake was actually quite easy to write, for me. As I wrote it, I realized that I had been in the process of writing it for twenty years. There was something so…traumatic about my high-school days, even though they were fun. A friend of mine who was also part of that time said we were all basically like combat buddies, and that was what made us so close. We had just done so much, so fast.

Do you have any quirks to how you write?

I have to be inspired to write well. If I am not inspired my writing is flat. So to get inspired sometimes I need the right music, the right environment, maybe take my laptop to an outdoor cafe and sit under an umbrella. I love the rain, so sometimes if it isn’t raining I have an app on my phone and I will put on the sound of rain. In order to write I have to be able to imagine very vividly. Sometimes I go back in my mind to places I’ve been or people I’ve known and they become so real in my imagination it’s as if I were really back there in certain places or with certain people. It’s as if I could literally look around and see things that I couldn’t possibly have remembered, that’s how accurate my perceptions become. Some of the books I’ve written are from places I’ve been as a child. When I was a child I used to stand there and just stare at the things around me and feel the sensory perceptions of being there as if I were storing it up for future reference. I remember doing that.

You mentioned writing stories when you were younger, do you ever consider writing them now?

I didn’t have the discipline to finish a novel, and most of the writing was very adolescent, a lot of poetry and short stories. I suppose there were aspects of my writing back then that are still visible in my writing today. I used to paint, and I remember an english teacher telling me that I write like a painter paints. The main thing I did though, as a kid, was read all the time, and the reading is the thing that has done the most for my writing.

What book do I wish I had written?

That’s easy. T.S. Eliot’s Book of Practical Cats.

What started you writing, if you remember and why do you write now?

I knew that I would be a writer when I was very young, and I think taking in the world around me, and being so mesmerized and in awe of it was part of that, although for a while I expressed that feeling through drawing and painting. The reason I write now is because I think I finally may have gotten past the thousand pages of crap that everyone must write before they finally get good. So it would be a shame to stop when I finally got good.

What are you planning on doing next/What else are you up to?

After I add the two other parts of the trilogy online or in published format to The Dark Lake, (which are already written) I will finish what I am currently working on which is a novel set in the chess world. I’m a tournament chess player, and am in the top 100 female chess players in the US. That world of chess players is funny, full of drama and tension and interesting. I’m going to set a love story in that world.

How do you balance other things in your life, chess playing and writing?

And parenting! My kids are 14 and 11. That’s probably the hardest thing to balance. The chess is easy, because I love chess playing, I guess I’m a chess addict. And my son plays, and is actually higher rated than I am, so taking him with me is easy. But my daughter has always wanted all my attention, and sometimes it doesn’t seem there are enough hours in the day. I find myself getting up at 3:00 in the morning to write. Chess tournaments are usually on the weekends, although there are weeknight tournaments as well. A typical chess game during a weekend tournament can last as long as six hours, and there are three games in one day, so there is no room for anything else, and my husband has to watch my daughter. My son will usually be playing too, and taking just as long as I do. During the week, the game has shorter time controls, so no more than three hours. I guess I have to squeeze the writing in when I can. Maybe just during the day when the kids are at school, or the middle of the night.

If you want to find out more about Anthea Carson and her books you can check out her facebook page, website, kindle boards or buy the dark lake.

Fury raged through Sherdan as he stomped down the stairs. He returned his book to its place and paced his study for the next hour. Anya was so ridiculously stubborn. Couldn’t she see that he was significantly more powerful than her God?

When Sherdan had finally calmed himself down he went to bed. He wanted to be rested for the morning just in case he was needed. He suspected there would be a request for interviews from news teams as well. After all, it was not normal to reclaim public roads and completely seclude an entire set of buildings from the surrounding city.

Anya was calm at breakfast and didn’t make any demands. He didn’t stay long. Things had soured between them and for now she wasn’t his main focus.

Sherdan headed over to his command bunker as soon as he could. It was so early that he was one of the first people there. Rush hour was still a few minutes away and so far so good.

Over the next half hour his entire team assembled and waited in case they were needed. Sherdan sat down to await the events of he next few hours.

He listened to the radio chatter as the occasional person got aggressive or confused by the road signs. For the most part the guards handled all the people wanting to drive through without needing any assistance. There was only one occasion when the commander, Graham, had to remind the security guard to remain calm.

Sherdan was about to leave the command room when a phone call came through for him from the chief of police. He was quickly handed the phone.

“Jeremy, how are you?”

“Dr Harper, I’m very well thank you. I just thought I ought to phone to let you know that the mayor has decided he’s not very happy.”

“I thought all complaints were going to be handled?”

“I’m sorry. The mayor isn’t someone I can easily deal with.”

“Arrange a meeting with him for me. Invite him to come visit so we can discuss any issues he has.”

“Do you think that’s wise?” Jeremy asked.

“Just arrange it. Preferably for next year. As soon as you can.”

“Of course.” Sherdan slammed the phone down and swore. No one said anything.

“I want a background check on the mayor of Bristol. Find out everything you can about him and have it all forwarded to me.” Several of the people in the room leapt into action while Sherdan sat down again thoughtfully. After a few minutes he got up again and went to see Hitchin. As usual Hitchin was in his laboratory.

“To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?”

“I need to know when all our new residents are joining us?”

“First thing in the new year. The fourth of January for most of them.”

“We may need to get them here sooner. I’ve got problems with the mayor.”

“Hmm… I’ll see what I can do. How’s everything going with Miss Price?” Sherdan hesitated.

“She’s as stubborn as usual. I let her read the prophecy. I wanted her to eat and she’s not going anywhere.” Hitchin raised an eyebrow.

“What did she make of it?”

“She told me it had to be wrong.”

“Well I’m sure she’ll realise she’s wrong when more of it comes true and if she doesn’t then it doesn’t matter. She’s inconsequential.”

“Oh of course. I… I am sure that she’ll see the truth in time. How could she not?” Sherdan replied trying to convince himself as much as Hitchin. Hitchin could tell his friend wasn’t completely confident.

“Everything has gone exactly as it should so far. Miss Price is evidently part of this whole thing somehow, but I’m sure all will become clear with her. I’ve been having some snaps of something lately. There might be some more involving her.”

“Really?”

“Yes, It’s only coming in snapshots but something is coming through. I’ll let you know what it is as soon as I do.”

“Thank you.”

They then talked over the new batches powers. So far all of them were alive and showing good signs. Hitchin was already preparing for the next, larger batch. Sherdan left him to his work. There was lots for both of them to do.

The next two days passed in a blur of organisation and work. Sherdan had all the information on the Mayor fed to him. There wasn’t much to work with but he’d make the most of it. The meeting had been scheduled for the fourth, the same day all the residents were set to arrive. The Mayor had wanted to come straight away but Sherdan refused, he wanted more time.

Anya was still being awkward. He had caught her twice, trying to pick the lock to get out. He warned her not to keep on trying but he did not know what he would do if she continued to ignore him. Hitchin still hadn’t told him where she fit into things.

He still visited her every meal but they barely talked. This time on entering he noticed she was puffy eyed and stood at the window. All her bandages were gone and her face only had a few small fading cuts. Everything else she kept covered up with her clothes.

Realising she was upset Sherdan lingered. He just stared at her while she looked outside.

“All the snow has melted,” she said.

“You like the snow?”

“Love it, it makes winter and cold worthwhile.” Sherdan didn’t know what to say, “Are you going to keep me here forever?”

“I will keep you here as long as I want.”

“And how long will that be?”

“As long as I want it to be.”

Anya sighed. “I just want to go home.”

“You know too much.”

“I’m…”

“This is not a debate.” Sherdan interrupted and stepped towards her. He was angry again. Tears welled up in her eyes. “I guess your God hasn’t rescued you. Do you still think he will?”

Anya turned away from him. She shook and wouldn’t look at him. There was a long and awkward silence until he left, she continued to cry.

Sherdan ran his hand through his hair on the other side of the doorway. The girl was a complete pain but he didn’t want her to cry. He’d been doing everything he could to keep her happy. He’d given her her own clothes, a Bible, even the prophecy. He tried to talk to her and make her feel welcome but she always focused on leaving.

The schedule for the rest of the day was so tight Sherdan didn’t even get to see Anya at dinner. He had arranged a large new year’s eve party in the University’s main function room. He was technically the guest of honour. He instructed Anne to take an evening meal up to their guest and gave her the key just before leaving.

Sherdan didn’t really want to be part of such a social event but he did wish to create a buzz of excitement in the residents before his meeting with the mayor, just in case. Hitchin had promised to come to give him some light relief at points along the night.

The social side of the event passed slowly. Sherdan was preoccupied and although able to make small talk, he took no satisfaction in it. Anya had upset him.

Hitchin soon noticed that his friend wasn’t quite up to his normal standard of working a crowd and asked if there was anything he could do to help. Sherdan shook his head.

“No I will work everything out with Anya… Miss Price. Just keep up all the good work you are doing.”

“As you wish. Do try not to worry over her. She is here for a reason and I’m sure she will begin to see this project our way over time.” Sherdan just nodded as their conversation was cut short by another guest joining them. Very few of the residents knew Anya existed.

For the rest of the evening Sherdan moved around the room, making polite conversation and surprising many residents when he remembered their names. He was greeted with smiles and enthusiasm wherever he went. At least something was going right.

When it struck midnight everyone clapped and cheered. Sherdan swiftly moved to the front of the room to address everyone.

“Thank you all for coming… A new year has begun.” He had to pause for the clapping to subside, “This new year isn’t the same as any year before. We are on the verge of greatness. A greatness only made possible by everyone here.”

There were more cheers. Sherdan smiled and waited.

“Every person will play a crucial role going forward and I’m positive we will all do our part and make 2018 a year to remember. Happy new year everyone!”

Everyone cheered again. Sherdan had kept it short and sweet as well as being complimentary of the people in general. It had worked. He kept a happy smile fixed on his face as he went back to his drink and people began talking amongst themselves again. He wasn’t allowed to enjoy the excitement for long, however, as he soon got a call over the radio from Nathan.

“Sorry to disturb you Sir. I think Anya has escaped.”

“What! When?”

“Only just now Sir. I saw it on the security footage. She’s sneaked out somehow.”

Sherdan swore and walked out of the function room and through the rest of the building.

“Graham, The female prisoner who recently attempted a break in on our compound has escaped her cell and is loose in the vicinity of my house. She must be stopped from leaving the grounds. Mobilise all security right now.”

“Yes sir.”

“Let me know the second she’s sighted.”

Sherdan ran out into the streets and towards his home. He swore every few steps when he realised how much she could affect his future plans. She could also get him in a lot of trouble if she told the authorities about everything that had happened to her.

When Sherdan reached his home Nathan was outside talking on the radio. Nathan shook his head when Sherdan ran in his direction.

“We’ve not found her yet. There’s no sign of her.”

“Has she got past the perimeter?”

“Not that we know of, but she’s not been sighted. She only needs to jump the right fence.”

“Crap. We have to find her. Have a security team drive over to Bath and her house to check if she manages to get all the way back there.”

“Yes…” Nathan stopped mid sentence and looked past Sherdan. Walking towards them, completely calm, was Anya.

“There’s no need,” she said. Sherdan ran over to her livid. She stopped in the middle of the road, apprehensive at the look on his face. He grabbed her wrist, making her wince, then dragged her back into his house.

Although she did not resist, he still bundled her as fast as he could, acting like he had to force her. She hissed in pain as he accidentally banged her against the doorway through to his study and she tripped on the first step in his over eagerness to get her upstairs. Finally, he shoved her onto her bed. She pulled away, fear in her eyes.

“Nathan, find Anne and get her to bring me the key to the guest room,” he yelled into the radio. Anya curled herself up on the bed while he stood at the foot of it glaring at her.

“It’s not Anne’s fault I escaped,” she told him.

“Then how did you escape?”

“God didn’t like you mocking him. He gave me what I needed to get out.”

“No He didn’t. You’re still here.”

“I’m only here because God wants me to be.”

“No!” Sherdan flicked her dinner tray off the sideboard in his anger. “You are here because I want you here.”

“I came back. I had made it all the way off your land. God told me to come back.”

“Well forgive me for not believing you… Ah, Anne, there you are. Are you sure you locked Miss Price in after you were last here?”

“Positive sir, I double checked.”

“She escaped afterwards at some point.”

“The door was locked, I already told you, Anne locked me in just as she was meant to.” Anya got up off the bed and stood boldly between him and Anne. Of the two of them in that moment it was Anne that looked the most frightened.

“I’m really sure I locked her in sir. I knew it was important.”

“Very well Anne, the key if you please, and then you can go.”

Anna handed him the key which he instantly pocketed before she scurried off. Sherdan then turned to Anya who gulped and took a step back. He walked towards her and she put her hands up.

“Look, I came back and you have me here again, there is no harm done.”

“There is harm done. Do you want me to turn you back over to my interrogation team?”

“No and neither do you.”

“I’ve half a mind to continue what they were doing,” Sherdan growled. He took another step towards her and she backed up into the wall.

“Sir, you need to come see this,” Nathan’s voice said over the radio.

“I’m very busy right now Nathan.”

“It relates sir.”

“We’ll continue this later,” Sherdan hissed at Anya before leaving and locking her in. He went straight through to the security desk.

“This had better be good.”

“Sir, you need to watch this. It’s the feed from Anya’s room.” Nathan offered Sherdan the seat as he hit play on the camera feed. Sherdan noted that it said five to midnight. Anya was pacing the room praying. Each time she walked past the door she tried the handle, getting more forceful each time. Then, on the fifth try, the door just clicked open. Sherdan gasped.

There was no possibility that the door hadn’t been locked the first four times but the fifth it was somehow not. Sherdan made Nathan replay the feed several times.

“That’s not all, look at this feed.” Nathan switched to an outside camera that showed Anya walking right past the security guards at one of the road blocks as if they couldn’t see her. When she had regained her freedom she just turned her face upwards.

He watched her mouth move in a thank you that could only have been to her God. A single snow flake then drifted down and landed on her upturned face. She smiled and paused before going back the same way she had come, still invisible to the guards less than ten metres from her.

Sherdan sat back in his seat completely speechless. Nathan waited while he thought.

“Don’t let anyone see these or know about them until I’ve decided what to do with her, is that clear?”

“Perfectly sir.”

“Thank you Nathan.”

With that he walked back to his study. He would need to go see Anya shortly but he wanted to get his thoughts straight first. One thing was for sure, someone or something wanted him to know that Anya was there for a reason, not just because Sherdan wanted her here. He hoped it was something Hitchin could explain to him.

The man had told him he’d been getting snapshots of something new. Hitchin wouldn’t hear of this, however. Sherdan wanted the security of knowing Hitchin saw Anya as important without being told so.

Much calmer than when he left, Sherdan went back to Anya’s room. She sat on the bed with her chin on her knees. She had her arms wrapped around herself and she pulled her legs up even closer as he came towards the bed. She looked so frightened that it stopped him in his tracks.

“You’re safe… I’m calm now. I’ve seen the footage from the camera outside the room. I don’t think the door was locked properly,” he lied. Anya’s eyes went wide but she kept her thoughts to herself.

“For now things will continue on as if this incident didn’t happen, but, if I ever catch you trying to escape again I will not be as nice as I have been, do you understand?” she nodded but still didn’t speak. When he did not move but continued to stand in her room she fidgeted. He sighed. This whole event had set things back dramatically.

“I’m here for now, anyway,” she broke the silence.

“Because your God wants you to be?” Sherdan mocked. She looked away, her pain evident. It only made him angrier.

“I don’t want to argue. Can we talk about something else?” she asked. Sherdan looked shocked. He sat down on the edge of the bed as she wiped her eyes.

“I don’t want to argue with you either. You do need to stop trying to escape though.”

“Okay. For the next little while I won’t try to leave.”

“Promise?”

“You have my word.”

“Good, now we can move onto other things.”

Anya smiled though she still looked like she might cry at any moment. He didn’t think wishing her a happy new year was wise, especially as it had begun snowing again. They talked of trivial things for half an hour before she yawned. Sherdan left her to sleep. It was almost two in the morning.

A fairly newish blog I’ve been checking out posed a brilliant set of questions last week that really got me thinking. The title of the blog was Hate something, Change something to match the Honda advert, you can read their blog here.

The instinctive reaction for a lot of people is that hate is bad. It leads to bad things and makes a lot of wars happen etc. But does it always? I don’t think it does.

I think when we hate evil things it can lead to good things. Hating slavery can lead us to do something about it, like giving money to charities or raising awareness of a particular slavery related issue.

As the blog I’ve linked to says ‘to love good is to hate evil’. With that in mind it helps people find out what they are passionate about so the blog posed three questions. I’m going to answer the same three questions.

What do I hate?

I hate seeing creative people not creating because the world has stopped them doing so, either by encouraging them into a non-creative job because it’s ‘safer’ financially or because they’ve been put down so many times they don’t believe they are good enough any more. Whatever the reason, it really really makes me angry. I don’t want the world projecting it’s idea of a person on to them so they can no longer be themselves the way they were meant to be, and unfortunately this is often parents who say they want what’s best for their child.

What do I love?

My favourite moments are when I’m in a group of creative people and the ideas are literally flying. When everyone is so secure in who they are as a creative and the ideas all bounce off each other. For me there’s nothing more exciting and fun than sharing a small tiny idea I’ve got with some other people and hearing what it sparks in them, until that idea grows and becomes something it never could if I had kept it to myself. They are some of the most satisfying creative moments in my life.

What do I obsess over?

Probably learning. I love to experience and learn as many new things as possible. New cultures, new ways of thinking. I’m so curious I think I’ve heard the line ‘curiosity killed the cat’ more times than my own name. Of course with me being me I’d come up with several replies to that by the time I was ten, ‘satisfaction brought it back’ is one of my favourites but ‘that’s why the cat has nine lives’ also used to work quite well. I have a desire to understand things on such a deep level it’s like an unquenchable thirst.

Now I already know how these three things lead to what I’m most passionate about and considering I’m doing a lot of it I won’t say much about it here, but for those not quite so sure and for those wanting to check they’re doing the right thing. Why don’t you sit down and think about the answers too. You can even add them to the comments section on the original blog if you’re feeling brave enough to share.

The Legacy Inheritance is a novella by Patrick Donnell.

It’s modern and set in the US in a standard city. The character is a pretty average joe who finds himself being made redundant and is doing his best to get himself back on track and in another job before the monotony of living alone at home sets in and he gives up on his life.

The book takes a little while to get going but it picks up the pace and interest as soon as the main character gets his call to inform him someone he knows has died and left him an inheritance. He then goes on the quest set to him by the guardian of the will. This is by far the most interesting part of the book and with a little bit of fun with the voices would make this book a great one to read to children.

The message and morals of the book are completely obvious and the author does nothing to try and hide them but I actually feel this adds to the book. It’s an easy to read, light hearted but good for you sort of book. I read it in one gulp while sitting on the sofa, too poorly to be working and it was the perfect lazy afternoon read.

My only one issue with the book was the formatting. I think something somewhere had gone a bit screwy between the word document uploaded by the author and being turned into a mobi file by amazon cause sometimes the book would switch from left alligned to central and occasionally paragraphs would be cut in half in odd places. This didn’t really detract from the book in my opinion as often scans of out of copyright books have equally interesting formating.

Last Month

I had a reasonably productive month finally. It’s felt a little like wading through mud this year so far but things are improving and the sun came out, which always helps.

Here’s the bullet list:

• hand wrote just over 6k for Sherdan’s prophecy
• hand wrote approx 11k for For such a time as this
• Typed approx 30k (including blogs and emails)
• Spent about 30 hours reading
• Spent about 10 hours working for Red Feather
• Spent about 15 hours working for Flight
• Spent about 20 hours marketing
• Sent 112 emails

I finished Sherdan’s Prophecy in first draft! That was a really good moment as it has been the hardest book to write so far emotionally. There’s some great stuff coming up if you’re following the blogged chapters, if not I’d seriosuly encourage you to do so. It’s my best work to date I think.

I also got started on a new short. I decided I wanted to do something a bit lighter before starting my 4th novel so I picked one of the old short ideas I’ve had on my possible list for a few years and started penning it down. The advantage to it being an older idea is that it’s had plenty of time to stew around the inner workings of my brain so it’s been a nice easy write so far and I think I’m a little over half way through that.

Both With Proud Humility and Innocent Hearts have had reviews each on amazon.com, another 5 star one for With Proud humility and a 3 star for Innocent Hearts. I am pleased with both of those as the main complaint with Innocent Hearts is that it’s too short.

Sales are also continuing to rise after the post Christmas slump that seems to be characteristic. April was one of my best months for sales last year so it will be interesting to see this new months sales now I have two ebooks and a good few more positive reviews.

This Month I’ve been told by the doctor’s to take it easy. Seems my body isn’t happy with the levels of stress so I’m not meant to do anything to stressful and I have to get more exercise. Thankfully it’s not the middle of the winter so the thought of more exercise doesn’t seem to unappealing.

Because of that I’ve delayed the start of my 4th novel a little. I’ll probably plan to prepare it but I doubt I’ll now start it until may. In the meantime I’ll pootle along with my short and see how that goes.

In terms of the secret project I mentioned last month I’m pleased to finally say that it’s my publishing company branching out into a new author. As of mid April I’ll be one of two authors published by Red Feather Writing, the other being a very gifted writer called Andrew Bellingham. He’s starting his career with a young adult fantasy short called Elsa’s Reality. I’ll post again with cover and blurb etc a little closer to the release date but needless to say we’re both rather excited.

Hopefully next month I’ll have a bit more news about my next release as well and be able to pin down a more accurate time frame for a release date than soon.

As most readers are probably aware now I have a love for MMO’s. Puzzle Pirates was my first and is one that keeps pulling me back into it. This time the draw back has been the merge of several of the oceans. The two subscription oceans (of which I played on one) have been merged together so there are more people to play together.

This has been something people have been asking for for a long time, me included. The game is a little bit of a niche game and isn’t everyone’s cup of tea but it’s very cutesy and fun. It’s about the only game I’ve ever considered coughing up the subscription for to the point where I get a discount on my yearly subscription price for being subscribed for so long. I really do love the game.

This is my pirates portrait with her recent acquisition – a monkey called Muse. Monkey’s are part of the item’s in game called familiars, there are also octopi, parrots, sea horses (called Ipollito), serpents, skeletal monkeys and ghostlings. They come in all sorts of colours with tan being the cheapest and most common. I recently acquired my first tan monkey, something I’ve been saving for in the game for quite some time. They are quite the status symbol.

Anyway back to the game. It’s puzzle based as the name suggests with puzzles for every type of thing you can do, for example on a ship, when you sail it, there are many puzzles activated that need doing by the players aboard. The captain can perform the navigation puzzle which speeds the ship up and increases the chances of getting the required ship to fight if in pillage mode, or avoiding other ships if in evading mode and moving stock.

Next is the sailing or rigging puzzles which are done by some crew members and contribute to the speed of the ship out of battles and movement tokens in battle. There is also carpentry which is a tetris piece based game where you fill in holes in wooden planking to repair the ship, bilge which is very similar to the popular game bejeweled and finally the gunnery puzzle, as loading your cannons is very important in ship battles.

There are many types of ship from the standard piratey ships to asian and the odd viking ship. Here’s me with one of my pet’s, tari, and muse on one of my newest ship’s the xebec – Creative Spot. It’s a very large ship which can support a max crew of 45 players. The largest ship in the game, the grand frigate, can have up to 150 players on it at once which as you can imagine is quite something to see.

On top of all the many different sea adventures people can go on, all shops to make the ships, clothes, swords, shot and rum needed are also made by players and run by them. There are shop duty puzzles that can be performed to decide on whether the labour being provided by each player is expert, skilled, or just basic and each item to make requires a differing amount of each type of labour hours. So the game has lots of different ways to make pieces of eight (the currency) and have fun, from trading, to socialising, to just passing away a few hours puzzling on someone elses ship. There’s even tournaments of puzzles against other players in the inns on each island, including card games and a very nifty little puzzle called treasure drop.

I think it’s because of this large number of puzzles in one game and large number of ways to make pieces of eight that keep me coming back. No two log ins have to be played the same way.

Here’s the website if you want to check out the game and if you want to see if you can find me I’m on the Cerulean subscription ocean.