This could be Heaven, or this could be Hell… - Guest post by Francis H Powell

The most leading question most people ask themselves on a daily basis must be…what happens to us after we die? Many religions lead people to think, if they lead a good life, they will go “to Heaven” or if they lead a bad life…they will end up in Hell. Hell is perhaps a good way to keep people on the right road, and a good stick to beat them with, should they go astray.
With my story “Cast from Hell” the last story in my book of short stories “Flight of Destiny” I written a tongue in cheek story about somebody who is rejected by Hell for being too good…they die a middle aged man but are sent back in the body of a woman, in her twenties, replacing the soul of a woman in a coma.
At the start of my story, I envisage what Hell is like and what the devil’s modern day preoccupations are. The Devil’s heyday was the middle ages, a time when superstition reigned and the church had a vicelike grip on the population. My vision of what Hell is like in the modern day era is far from being like Dante’s inferno…This is my description of hell…To my surprise, there was no evidence in Hell of people being grievously punished. The slothful were not being goaded with burning coals. The gluttons were not being tormented with thirst and hunger. There were no hedonists being bathed in burning pitch and stinking brimstone, or envious individuals howling with grief over that which they could never possess. The proud were not being brought down. The covetous were not being denied. In fact, the damned seemed to be living in a modicum of comfort. I never detected any weeping, wailing or gnashing of teeth. The place, called by some gehenna, the bottomless pit, was admittedly no holiday camp, but things there had grown shoddy and dysfunctional.
My description of the “devil” is one worn out over a period of time, a devil that has become “insipid” and unimaginative and I make the point that the world's leaders have usurped the devil’s job with their ineptness, lies and monetarily-advantageous wars. Watch the news and we can see Hell is clearly on earth, for many wretched souls.

In my story I take a quick glance at what Heaven might be like…in comparison to Hell…I took a last look survey of Hell. It looked like a vast airport terminal: vacuous, tedious, and hum-drum. By now I couldn't wait to leave. By contrast, I have often tried to imagine Heaven. To me it would be one long party in a great vivant night club, not unlike this second life to which I was now looking forward to I closed my inner eye as instructed and waited while Charon transported me to earth's dimension. Apart from the cliché images of Heaven, those pearly gates, streets of gold, winged angels and the Righteous, with their bodies made perfect and immortal, singing the praises of God forever, what are people’s visions of what Heaven is like? Also what kind of existence would this constant praising of God be like anyway?
One of the plus points of Heaven would be according to many the fact that witnessing the torment of the damned will be one of the joys of paradise. This seems a strange notion.

Peter Bell the Third by Percy Bysshe Shelley
"Hell is a city much like London – / A populous and a smoky city; / There are all sorts of people undone, / And there is little or no fun done; / Small justice shown, and still less pity." Shelley's Hell bears a close similarity to Regency London. "All are damned – they breathe an air, / Thick, infected, joy-dispelling".

Huis Clos/No Exit by Jean-Paul Sartre
"L'enfer, c'est les autres." A valet leads three characters to a windowless room, which is Hell. To what torment are they condemned? Each other's company. In the course of the play, the characters probe each other's sins and bring alive their guilty memories. "There's no need for red-hot pokers."

About the Author

What better way to put all my angst into short stories. Born in a commuter belt city called Reading and like many a middle or upper class child of such times I was shunted off to an all-male boarding school aged eight, away from my parents for periods of up to twelve weeks at a time, until I was 17. While at my first Art college through a friend I met a writer called Rupert Thomson, who was at the time in the process of writing his first book “Dreams of leaving”. He was a bit older than myself, me being fresh out of school, but his personality and wit resonated, despite losing contact with him. I had a stint living in Austria, where I began writing. It wasn’t until I moved to Paris, that my writing began to truly evolve. I discovered a magazine called Rat Mort (dead rat) I sent off a short story, in the hope it would match the seemingly dark world the magazine seemed to embroiled in. I got no answer. Not put off I sent two more stories. Finally I got an answer. It seemed the magazine editor was a busy man, a man prone to travelling. It seemed my first story really hit the right note with him. His name was Alan Clark. I began writing more and more short stories, some published on the internet. A bit later my anthology Flight of Destiny slowly evolved, published April 2015, by Savant publishing.

Book Review: Writing Magic by Gail Carson Levine

I spotted this book, small as it is, on a bookshelf in a secondhand bookstore and took about three seconds before deciding to buy it. It was only once I started reading it, that I realised it is intended for children older than eight who want to learn how and what to write. I kept on reading. Why? Because the book is straight forward. No fancy words, no trying to explain abstract concepts and leaving the reader, or writer, hanging.

Short chapters to explain the essence of dialogue, characterisation, using your senses when writing, showing not telling, etc. Each chapter has at least one example that illustrates the content and at the end there is a section with recommended exercises to practice.

The author touches on aspects such rejection letters, but mostly the book is focused on writing. My favourite lines from the book comes from the chapter about writing for oneself, journal writing if you like.

"It also makes me more of a writer. It makes writing penetrate all the way into the marrow of my bones. It makes writing as natural for me as thinking and talking."

Thank you, Gail for reminding me what my writing means to me.

Linzé's Rating: 





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Reblogged: Seven Ways Blogging Improves Your Writing

Today, it seems that everyone is a blogger. Setting up a blog is simple. If your mother can set up a Facebookprofile, chances are she will be able to set up a blog.  

So, if it is that simple, why are you not blogging? Not everyone wants to write about his or her life. An online diary is seriously not everyone’s cup of tea, but if you spend time online, you will notice not all blogs are personal diaries.  Those, which are personal blogs, are well written and have compelling stories, and they are entertaining.

As a writer, you should be building an author platform, so if you don’t want to tell us about your session in the gym you can tell us about your books, your writing and what you are reading. Start building relationships with your future readers now.

If that is not enough motivation to get you blogging, consider these seven points:

1. It gives you a deadline. Writers always perform better with deadlines. It forces you into a routine and helps you remain focussed.
2. It gives you something else to write. Sometimes we need a break from our novels and blogging will help with that.
3. It is a daily, weekly or monthly commitment that forces you to write. 
4. The comments are great. They give you immediate feedback. However, some comments are not always great, but consider it a good way to start developing a thick skin.
5. You can write about anything. It is a wonderful creative outlet. Consider it a place to explore and take risks with your writing that you wouldn’t usually take in a full-length novel.  
6. Consistent blogging will help you create a body of work over time that comes in bite-sized chunks.
7. Allows you to create a platform to promote your books.

Blogging is a big commitment and it takes time, but it is worth the investment. Spend time online and find blogs that you enjoy. Then take the plunge and start your own blog.

Note from Linzé: This post was reblogged from www.writerswrite.co.za

#ROSACon2015 Program 25-26 September 201

Thank you to the Reviewers!

I have a confession to make: once I have a book published, I sort of forget about it. Not completely or irrevocably, but I move on to the next project. Often the next book is already a completed first draft, or close to getting there. My head is filled with ideas and since I started writing at a fairly mature age (read thirty or so) I have a lot of time to make up to get all my ideas written, edited, or published.
Today I browsed around on Goodreads to see which of my books I still have to add, and the status of the ones on my bookshelf where I need to write a review or ten.
Somewhere in this browsing, I came across reviews for STORM Vol I and Vol II which were a group project published last year. I was flabbergasted at the nice things people wrote about the stories in both volumes.
If you recall STORM is an anthology around a common theme, but any genre suitable for adults (excluding erotica) were allowed for the contributing authors.
Personally I have published two more books since STORM, but it was truly a wonderful experience to be reminded that there are other people who enjoy reading as much as I do. Discovering authors unknown to them and being surprised at the stories they wrote.

It also reminded me that books I read and review for other authors, will hopefully inspire them to write more books for me to enjoy.

A big thank you for each and every reader that takes the time to write a review, you make an author's day every time!

💜  💜   💜   💜   💜

Guest Post: In Praise of the Freak by Francis H Powell

Request from Linzé: Please consider reviewing Flight of Destiny, it would help the author greatly. Thank you!

There are no real alluring protagonists in my short stories,  if truth be told, there are a few female beauties, however I more glamorize  and  lionize the freaks of this world, those not accepted by this world…the ultimate  outsiders.  We live in a world in which everybody is ideally “body perfect”.  People have this crazy fetish of “selfies”.  Does this mean a generation of narcissists has been born? 

With my stories I mock this kind of culture.  Perhaps one of my favorite characters is called Bugeyes.  The character name is a bit of a giveaway, he has disproportionate bulging  eyes. Where I got this idea I can’t remember.  The character always receives a volley of insults such as “moth eyes”.  I don’t know what kind of school you went to, but I recall anyone who was remotely physically out of the ordinary, would be liable to cruel mockery.  A lot of the dialogue I write is cruel insults or verbal jousting. 

Bugeyes is born into an aristocratic family (genetically inbred). Immediately after his birth his mother rejects him, on account of his oversized eyes.  He is dispatched to live with another family. Later his mother gives birth baby girl, who has the same characteristics as her brother…once again she is dispatched out sight, out of mind. However she develops into a beauty, and large eyes become all the rage.  I was inspired by Sophie Dahl (the model) who I think has rather large eyes, as well as being an over-sized model. 

In another of stories, “Flawless” the story revolves around a man called Sirius Piecroft, who is at the point of proposing to  the woman of his dreams, when an insect flies into his mouth. A few days later he develops a terrible skin disease. After a period of time his “fiancé” Julia, begins to neglect him, then finally she announces she is going to marry Jonas, Sirius’ younger brother. This terrible betrayal, spirals Sirius into a fast descent to madness.  I suppose the point I am trying to make is akin to the old adage “beauty is only skin deep”.  The story emphasizes how fickle people are, when a person’s appearance deteriorates, so does the woman’s love for him.  

In Victorian times you could pay money to see freaks,  there were the bearded ladies, included amongst these was Julia Pastrana resembled more of an ape than a woman.  The sad fact of the matter was Pastrana, a Mexican-born woman suffered from hypertrichosis, a disease that causes the person to be covered from head to toe in long, thick hair.  Added to which she had a large nose and thick lips.  She later had the indignity of being mummified, along with the still born child she gave birth to, who had the same features as her.  Freak shows are a terrible indictment of the Victorian times, a time when Britain was  at the height of imperialism. 

John Merrick,  more commonly known as “The Elephant man” had the most unimaginable skin disease, allegedly suffering from elephantiasis.  Like some of the characters in my book,  poor John Merrick,  was an object of curiosity and ridicule throughout his life. His body was characterized by his malformed head, curved spine, "lumpy" skin and overgrown right arm and hand.  His life was brought further to the public’s attention, with David Lynch’s  file “The Elephant man”.  The real reason for Merrick’s  severe condition is even to this day open to conjecture. 

What we can say is you are unfortunate to be born with   a condition like John Merrick’s  you will have much suffering  to endure and will need the kind of  indomitable  spirit that John Merrick possessed. From the moment we are born, we are dealt different cards of fate, some .

With my short stories, the oppressed often rise up and win the end.  I have always admired the underdog…and have often felt a bit of an outsider myself.  With short stories, you face limits, you have  create characters, that the reader will immediately identify with, so an outsider is a good source of reference.  You have to create strong dialogue.  You have to create an opening sentence like no other, that grabs the reader’s attention… Bugeyes begins with… Bug-eyes was due a life of toil.  Another story “Seed” begins with Captain Spender’s wife was ovulating.  The last story in my book “Cast from Hell” begins with “There it was: I was to be banished from hell.” The ends have to have a dramatic twist, with events leading up to this. 

If your skin is far from perfect…or your ears jut out further than most, perhaps your teeth are all at odd angles, your eyes are bulbous, your nose so terribly pronounced, it looks like you could spear somebody in the eye,  just  indulge yourself with individuality of your features, don’t concern yourself with the judgmental natures of others, in a world that expects nothing short of body perfect…  

About the Author

What better way to put all my angst into short stories. Born in a commuter belt city called Reading, like many a middle or upper class child of such times I was shunted off to an all-male boarding school aged eight, away from my parents for up to twelve weeks at a time, until I was 17.  While at my first Art college, I met a writer called Rupert Thomson, who was in the process of writing his first book “Dreams of leaving”. His personality and wit resonated, long losing contact with him.  Later I lived in Austria, in 1999 I moved to Paris.  During my time in Paris I met Alan Clark, who had a literary magazine called Rat Mort (dead rat). I began contributing and got hooked on writing short stories.  My book Flight of Destiny is a result of this obsession.  I also write poetry.

Connect with Francis online

https://www.facebook.com/flightofdestinyshortstories
http://theflightofdestiny.yolasite.com/http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00WSWYVNK 
https://twitter.com/Dreamheadz

Flight of Destiny is a collection of short stories about misfortune. They are characterized by unexpected final twists, that come at the end of each tale. They are dark and surreal tales, set around the world, at different time periods. They show a world in which anything can happen. It is hard to determine reality and what is going on a disturbed mind. People's conceptions about morality are turned upside down. A good person can be transformed by an unexpected event into a bad person and then back again to their former state. The high and mighty often deliver flawed arguments, those considered wicked make good representations of themselves. Revenge is often a subject explored.  

http://theflightofdestiny.yolasite.com/

Book Feature: HURRICANE COLTRANE by Taya Okerlund

Merrill Hinton is a lightning rod in a town named for bad weather. He's an ace in math, but not smart enough to put together the pieces of his puzzling life, especially where finding his unknown father is concerned.

Musical genius Robbie Stubbs was born in nearby polygamist compound Colorado City. He has the chops to become another John Coltrane, but that will take running away from home, and into a firestorm of controversy--the kind his friend Merrill knows best.

Merrill sets Robbie onto a course that could rocket them both onto center stage, but being the focus of wide public attention will create serious issues. Robbie's mother is not well, and the shock of her son breaking the family rules like this may put her over the edge.

And Merrill Hinton? His precarious future will be compromised in ways he doesn't yet realize.

Buy Links

Amazon    Barnes&Noble     Publisher

About the Author

As a child I lived in every time zone of the lower fourty-eight states and Alaska, and I studied in East Asia, but my roots reach deep into the southern Utah desert where most of my family still live. Right now, I've set up house keeping on the San Francisco Peninsula where I live with my story-adoring husband and daughter who keep me creatively inspired.

Author web site: http://www.tayaokerlund.com

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/HurricaneColtrane

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TOkerlund