Tap tap tap. “Testing testing testing”. Ok I think this thing is working now.
This feels rather weird, to share your thoughts with the outside world without really knowing if there’s anyone out there. A sort of “Dear Diary” that you leave open for the world to see. Back in the real world my wife will tell you that I often draft letters in my head of what I want to say about articles that appear in the newspapers or TV. “Dear Editor” kind of letters. Of course after a few days the steam goes out of the idea and I go back to quietly stewing without having released my thoughts. Now they are all jostling for space in my head and I really have to release some of them. Its only fair as they’ve been here for some time. Some of them have actually escaped rather than being released, which is how I know its time.
I like movies and books. Actually I love them and so my thoughts are peppered with quotes from some of my favourites. I warn you now that very few of them are highbrow; I’m more into the “ripping yarns” type of thing. My wife understands, so that if I drop some of them into conversation she doesn’t think that I’m going gaga. One of the latest is “I’m shocked, shocked to find out that gambling is taking place here”. Some of you might recognise that, although its a bit hard to use that one in daily conversation, so it just sort of shares space in my head with many others.
What to talk about today? Lets avoid politics and religion, at least for the time being. How about books (did I say I liked books). Over the years I have read a few Wilbur Smith novels, and while they were all great to read, I never really felt the desire to try them all. Well, recently a friend suggested that if I read them in the right order it might help. He was right, and I have to say I’m hooked. Historical fiction can be wonderful if the writer makes the effort to get his history straight. I’ve learned way more about history from works of fiction than I ever did at school. If you are one of the few who have not yet discovered this author, I strongly recommend him.
As a child I read lots of Science Fiction and Westerns but as an adult my taste has moved on to political/action thrillers of the type epitomised by such authors as Tom Clancy, Vince Flynn, Lee Child and many others. OK, if I’m honest its not “many” others, but I don’t want to insult a favourite author by leaving his name out. I have to say that of the stuff that I read as a child, by far the best was those that got their underlying facts right, or who could invent new “stuff” with authority. The best Science Fiction writers were real life scientists like Asimov, Heinlein or Clarke. Similarly, no one wrote Westerns like Louis L’Amour.
You see a theme developing here. Do your homework about the facts before you write the story and to me it will be infinitely more convincing. I read a book years ago by an author I used to like (no names but you must know who you are!), and in one scene he talked about letting the safety catch off on his .357 magnum revolver. This might not seem like much to you but its factual nonsense, and that was the point where the bubble burst, and I was drawn out of the world he had created up until that point.
I have never written a fan letter to these writers even though I would have wanted them to know how much I enjoyed their work. Maybe I should still do it. I discovered a writer about a year ago called John Scalzi who wrote a great book called “Old Man’s War”. I thought he invented “stuff” with great authority, and the concept that you could only join the army when you were over 70 or so was original and intriguing. No, I’m not going to give you any spoilers so you’ll just have to buy it.
Maybe over the next few posts I can praise some of the other writers I like – at least I save the cost of a stamp that way!
You know, this has been fun. I think I’ll do it again – sometime very soon.
I’ll be back! – No prizes for guessing where that one came from.
‘Bye
