War at Our Doorstep: Teaser Video

Lately I developed a YouTube video which displays one of the excerpts of my War at Our Doorstep story (Copyright © 2011 - Adventure Writer’s Blog).  Simply made by using Mac’s iMovie.

Soon I’ll be posting more book / movie reviews, etc.

It has certainly been a busy week! It’s difficult to comprehend how fast the month has passed, being December already. Time flies when you… have a busy schedule?

400 Years of Silence

For the first time I’m releasing part of the 400 Years of Silence 600-word story, all rights reserved.

On one cold September night, a man sat pouring over the Holy Scriptures of God. The
room was dark, but for the light of a few feeble candles, arranged around the man’s place of
reading, casting a yellow tinge against the dark stone walls. As he finished reading the final verse
of Job, his brother Mannaseh entered the study.

“Naaman, my brother!” Mannaseh exclaimed. “What are you doing reading that old
thing? It’s been four hundred years since that god of yours proclaimed anything to His people –
resign this insanity of yours!”

“Insane I may be,” began Naaman, motioning to the scriptures before him. “But these
prophecies Isaiah speaks of…”

“Forget the prophecies!” Mannaseh interjected, with an ever reddening visage. “Those
were simply lies devised by the old Kings of Israel.”

“Yet why would the kings seek their own destruction?” Naaman reasoned, his tone
measured and calm, yet with a hint of desperation. “It is by God alone that…”

“I relent brother, I relent…” cried Manasseh, storming out of the room. “I leave you to
this self-ordained madness!”

Naaman sat half-bewildered, still gazing at the last verse before him. Job didn’t have
faith either… then God revealed himself in a most glorious way. “My brother may not believe,”
Naaman said to himself. “But I feel the spirit of the Lord is strongly manifested on this night.
God will not be quiet forever, He will come after his lost sheep.

Copyright © 2011 - Adventure Writer’s Blog

All rights reserved.

Christmas is Right Around the Corner…

Christmas is almost here, and with it will come a plethora of fresh posts from The Adventure Writer’s Blog – ranging from winter photography, to reviews (such as Sherlock Holmes II) and more!

In preparation for Christmas time, I’ve published a play (as well as a 600-word story version) called 400 Years of Silence.

If you’re a fan of Christmas music, the K-LOVE Christian Radio station is giving away three free songs of the season, gotta love freebies.

War at Our Doorstep

A colleague of mine recently informed me of a contest for participants of NaNoWriMo, and I got to work straightaway! My entry is now an eBook publication, which I’ve annotated as necessary. For any interested readers, the link is provided below (hyperlinked image).

Annotated Version with Alias

Now onto Inheritance… and Shakespeare!

Now that I have finished reading The House of Silk, I will be moving onto more fantastical, dreamlike pastures, those of Inheritance by Christopher Paolini. In addition to this, I will also be concluding an analysis of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, for scholastic purposes, as well as self-publishing a few short stories for a NaNoWriMo-based contest, all the while juggling various other activities. This month promises to be a busy one!

Inheritance Has Arrived

This month feels like it should be “book month” for me, having all these fantastic novels showing up at my doorstep. Speaking of doorstep… Inheritance has finally arrived and it is a staggering 860 pages long! The House of Silk review will be out shortly, though I can’t say the same for Inheritance…

The hazy background emphasizes how far I have to read.

Steady Progress on The House of Silk

I am making steady progress in my reading of the House of Silk, and I must say, I am thoroughly impressed! Horowitz has effectively utilized a vast majority of Doyle’s signature tools (characters, resources of language, plot/case outline, etc.) and thus produced a very nostalgic and thoroughly suspenseful novel. As I read, I am making notes of various plot points to include on Wikipedia and my review of the story here, below is what I have contrived thus far (my Wikipedia version is slightly altered):

The House of Silk begins with a brief, personal recounting of events by Watson, much like the Study in Scarlet by the original author, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The reader is informed of the particulars regarding the first meeting of Watson and Holmes, including the circumstances of the Afghan War which were inexplicably tied therein. In this we have the prologue, and once the first chapter begins, we are hot on the case. At the start of the first chapter, it is discovered that due to certain unknown circumstances other than the departure of Watson’s wife, Mary (Morston, in The Sign of Four), Watson has returned to board with Holmes, the latter being quite pleased with the reunion, after having little correspondance due to the family life of Watson. Holmes’ proceeds to unravel these unknown circumstances forthwith, deducing that Watson’s wife has left, accompanied with their child [Richard Forrester] (who is sick with influenza) to seek care from Mrs. Cecil Forrester (another prominent figure in the Sign of Four, and the boy’s governess). Shortly thereafter, with an example of Holmes’ ‘deductive powers’ made, the client of the The Flat Cap case is introduced. He is a man by the name of Edmund Carstairs, an art dealer who has come upon unfortunate circumstances. A year after his return to America, he finds himself being stalked by a man in a flat cap, characteristic of an infamous Irish gang. He proceeds to tell Holmes of the events which first led to his acquaintance with the man – he had come to America after a train robbery and destruction therein had destroyed paintings which were to be sent on request of a wealthy client. The gang responsible were based in Botson, led by two Irish twins, Rourke (muscular and assertive) and Keelan (pale, frail, and possible mastermind) O’Donaghue wearing distinct flat caps (thus the name of the gang), and had destroyed the paintings by way of setting charges to one of the train cars containing numerous English pound notes. Mr. Carstairs, with the full financial backing of his wealthy client, proceed to hire a private detective by the name of Bill McParland. The detective soon locates the hideout of the gang and their discovery results in a fierce firefight in which all but one of the gang perishes. As the sole survivor, Keelan O’Donaghue allegedly enacts his revenge by tracking down Carstairs more than a year after the instant, watches his every movement, and supposedly robs of his household a pearl necklace and a few pound notes.

Adventure Writer's Blog: House of Silk Summary (Prologue, Ch. 1 - 2.5)

Fun Fact:  In Chapter one there is some mention of Dupin, a character 
developed by the late Edgar Allen Poe,  and his ability to make astounding
deductions based on visible emotions reflected through the physical medium. 
Holmes demonstrates this by uncovering Watson's anxiety and the source 
thereof.

Essay: Woe be to Antigone

Image via Wikipedia

Woe be to Antigone

Within the realm of Greek myth, there is much suffering – whether it be the cause of some god’s retribution, or the hasty and most murderous acts of two star-crossed lovers, woe is abundant in all.  Antigone, written by Sophocles (a writer of great tragedies), is no exception.

Sophocles places much emphasis on two characters and one household, those being Antigone, Creon, and the House of Thebes.  The story starts at the end of another, the great tragedy of Oedipus and his sons.  Oedipus was a man of hard luck, or rather, one destined to have a very poor fate.  It all began with the prophecy spoken over him as he a child, that he would murder his father and marry his mother.  Moreover, as those familiar with Greek myth would presume, it all truly came about and in a most horrid fashion.  Oedipus killed his father, mistakenly, while on a mountain road.  Unbeknownst to him, he then married his mother, the Queen of Thebes and took on the position of King (these duo offenses, the murder and the marriage, stood as repugnant in the sight of the gods and their higher law, and this likely contributed to the generational curse that would follow).  They lived in ignorant bliss for a while, until a shepherd’s testimony, and a prophet’s reminder brought them back to reality.  Oedipus’ mother/wife did what was expected of her and committed suicide, while Oedipus blinded himself and lived much of his life in the misery of his past.  He did, however, have four last joys in his life, those of his children.  Yet soon, even those would be taken away.  After some time, Oedipus was asked to resign the throne and leave the kingdom, he did so, under the guidance and care of his daughter Antigone, while his other daughter Ismene, looked after his assets in the kingdom.  Meanwhile, his sons, Polynices and Eteocles fought for rule of the kingdom. Eteocles, who had managed to ascertain the throne, refused to step down in response to his brother’s protest, therefore, Polynices mounted an attack against Thebes, enlisting the aid of foreign powers.  The war that ensued, ended quite terribly (as one would expect), concluding with the death of the two brothers and the reign of their Uncle Creon.  Creon would prove to be quite different than his predecessors, however, the inescapable curse on the House of Thebes would see to it that his life would also be filled with much melancholy.

After Oedipus died, Antigone returned home and lived in the palace with her sister Ismene, and King Creon.  If it had ended there, the story may not have seemed so bad, but the Greeks would not relent in their tragedy!  In response to the war waged against Thebes, Creon issued an edict that the bodies of their enemies, particularly that of Polynices, would not be honored by burial.  Antigone, however, would not heed the king’s command – out of a deep love for her kindred, and a respect for the higher law of the gods, she buried her brother with an act of civil disobedience.  To say the gods were on her side would be a reasonable statement, although they did little to protect her or aid in the task at hand.  According to the higher law, all dead must be buried, and only then allowed entrance into the kingdom of Hades – otherwise, unburied, they would wander for the rest of eternity, never finding peace.  What a horrid conception was this, and all the better for Antigone’s actions, both in the sight of the gods, the view of the people (of Thebes), and that of Sophocles as well.  Antigone sums up the importance of the gods’ mandate, when standing before Creon in judgment,

Image via Wikipedia

“ANTIGONE Yes; for it was not Zeus that had published me that edict; not such are the laws set among men by the justice who dwells with the gods below; nor deemed I that thy decrees were of such force, that a mortal could override the unwritten and unfailing statutes of heaven. For their life is not of to-day or yesterday, but from all time, and no man knows when they were first put forth.Not through dread of any human pride could I answer to the gods for breaking these. Die I must,-I knew that well (how should I not?)- even without thy edicts. But if I am to die before my time, I count that a gain: for when any one lives, as I do, compassed about with evils, can such an one find aught but gain in death?” (Sophocles 12).

In Sophocles famous prose, Antigone and Creon stand out as the great sufferers, each meeting a poor, dreaded fate.  Antigone was taken into the hands of death – after burying her brother against Creon’s edict, she was imprisoned in a great cavern where she committed suicide.   This was as a result of Creon’s prideful and foolish judgment, disregarding the words of the prophets, the leaders, and most singularly, the chorus (people), as well as the inexcusable stone-set law of the gods.  Creon was, in turn, judged in quick succession.  Too late, he realized the fullness of his folly – he ensured Polynices’ dignified burial, but he was too late to save Antigone.  His son Haemon, lover of the deceased, defied his father and met death by the sword of his own hand.  Hearing of this news, Creon’s wife, Eurydice, followed in the footsteps of her son, killing herself within the palace.  Creon was stricken with grief, issues one last statement before the play’s conclusion, one of recognition to his own foolishness and the deaths he has caused, “Lead me away, I pray you; a rash, foolish man; who have slain thee, ah my son, unwittingly, and thee, too, my wife-unhappy that I am! I know not which way I should bend my gaze, or where I should seek support; for all is amiss with that which is in my hands,-and yonder, again, a crushing fate hath leapt upon my head” (34).  The play ends with the fitting words of a leader, speaking of the divine law of gods, and the vitality of wisdom to the Greeks, “Wisdom is the supreme part of happiness; and reverence towards the gods must be inviolate. Great words of prideful men are ever punished with great blows, and, in old age, teach the chastened to be wise” (34).

In a Christian perspective, this play holds some truth – it is indeed important to obey the perfect law of God before the corruptible law of man… however, it does not teach the way of Civil Disobedience, the “doctrine of Thoreau.” Suicide, as well, is never the answer – each life is conceived and given a purpose by God, and it is His right alone to take it away.

Notes from my Mythological Studies (for a Christian-based essay)

Image via Wikipedia

Information from Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes by Edith Hamilton.
6. Who were the graces and muses? For what were they famous?

Graces: Three beings, commonly treated as a “triple incarnation.” They were Aglaia (Splendor), Euphrosyne (Mirth) and Thalia (Good Cheer) – daughters of Zeus and Eurynome. They would dance to Apollo’s lyre and  join their sisters (The Muses) in song.

Muses: Nine beings, also held to be in unison in certain pieces of literature, although separate beings in later works. They were the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (Memory) – Clio (Muse of History), Urania (Astronomy), Melpomene (Tragedy), Thalia (Comedy), Terpischore (Dance), Calliope (Epic Poetry), Erato (Love Poetry), Polyhymnia (Songs to the gods), and Euterpe (Lyric Poetry).

7. Who were the Erinyes and what were their duties?

Also known as the Furies, were devised by Virgil and given the underworld as their home. “Inexorable, but just,” the Furies were fierce pursuers of justice, overtaking wrongdoers and enveloping them in guilt and misery. Later they would become the Eumenides, “The Benevolent Ones.”

8. Pan & his Traits

Pan was the chief of the lesser god’s of earth. He was Hermes’ son and is described as a noisy, merry god, being part animal with goat’s horns and goat’s hoofs. He was the goatherds’ and shepherds’ god and the companion of the woodland nymphs in their dance and an exceedingly wonderful musician.

10. What were satyrs, centaurs, and gorgons?

The satyrs were much like the god Pan – un-human, and ugly, making their home in the forests and other wild places of the earth.

The centaurs were half man, half horse, and generally quite savage. One however, was an exception. A centaur by the name of Chiron was a wise, good centaur, tasked, often times, with taking care of the younger gods and raising them up.

The gorgons were three, two being immortal, the other (Medusa) remained mortal and would later be slain by Hercules on one of his grand labors. They were the daughters of Phorcys and are described as dragon-like creates who dwelled on the earth with the infamous reputation of turning men to stone with a mere turn of the head.

11. Who were the Sirens and the Fates? What powers did they have?

Sirens: The sirens were a dreadfully murderous bunch who lived on an island in the sea. With their enchanting, irresistible voices they would lure sailors to their demise. Only one hero who heard them was known to have lived, Odysseus, who ordered his men to tie him to the mast and stuff their own ears with wool.

Fates: The fates were Clotho (the Spinner of the thread of life), Lachesis (the Disposer of Lots, assigner of destiny), and Atropos (wielder of the sheers that cut the thread of life and brought about death). They were known to give men, at birth, both evil and good to have.

12. Who was Demeter?

Demeter (Ceres) was the goddess of the corn, being the daughter of Cronus and Rhea, the older sibling of Bacchus, the god of wine. She was also the mother of the famous Persephone who was taken away by Hades to be her bride.

13. Who was Persephone? Summarize the story of her abduction and explain how this incident explained the seasons to the early Greeks.

As introduced in Question #21:

Like the flowers Zeus sometimes placed before the maidens he deceived, Hades had placed a narcissus for the object purpose of drawing Persephone’s attention. After she had strayed far from her companions, his chariot rose up from Hades and took her away.

The dark lord, however, could not keep her forever. Upon the earth, a cold winter and famine had arisen from the fretting Demeter, who convinced the gods to force Hades to give up Persephone. Hades, however, would not give her up so easily. Just before she was to leave, Hades fed Persephone the seeds of a pomegranate, for any food eaten in the underworld would entrap its target and force them to live in Hades. From this point on, Persephone spent half a year with Demeter (Summer and Spring), and half a year with Hades (Winter and Fall).

14. Who was Dionysus? What is the connection between him and the maenads?

Dionysus was the last god to enter Olympus, born in Thebes to Zeus and the Theban princess Semele. “He was the only god whose parents were not both divine.” Dionysus, also called Bacchus, had a following of women frenzied with wine called the Maenads, or the Bacchantes.

15. Describe the creation of Earth and Heaven.

“First there was Chaos, the vast immeasurable abyss,

Outrageous as a sea, dark wasteful, wild.”

Such are the fitting words of Milton. The creation, as described by the Greeks, is a most vague one… things just, happened. There was no God in the beginning, according to the Greeks, as we know there truly has forever been. The Earth simply rose up in all her great beauty and the Heavens in the same accord – from them came the Titans, from them the gods, etc.

16. Who were the first creatures on Earth before humans?

The giant, colossal figures known as the Titans – children of mother earth and father heaven, as well as Cyclopes and other hideous monsters. Those with a hundred hands and fifty heads were destroyed by “Father Heaven.”

Analyzing The Greek Perspective

Tonight I’ve been doing quite a bit of reading of Greek Mythology, both for scholastic purposes and to better understand the allusions that often appear in both classical and modern compositions.

It is both an enjoyable and tedious process – the stories, retold by Edith Hamilton, are as fantastically thrilling as they are utterly miserable. Suicides and murder abound, and happy endings often yet hold some disturbing circumstance.

Ah, well! Such is the process.