When You Have Nothing To Say

It is better to remain silent, I'm sure. I can't do that since today would be my second Silent Monday and I don't want to set a bad precedent.

I really have nothing to say. I've participated in NanoWrimo this month in a minimal way in that I've written between 150 and 200 words every day. Those of you who have written thousands of words every day, feel free to scoff. I'm dealing with my third or fourth consecutive month of poor health, and I have no more energy for writing than the occasional blog post and 200 daily words will cover.

What about you? If you check in today, please let me know how you're doing. Not (just) about how your Nano project has gone, or how your agent search is going (though I'm interested). I'm interested in how YOU are.

Grateful For So Much

I have so much to be thankful for, not the least of which are my followers. To all of you, whether you celebrate Thanksgiving or not, may you have a wonderful, family-blessed day.

Book Review: The Two Pearls of Wisdom

Two Pearls of Wisdom (a.k.a. Eon: Dragoneye Reborn, or Rise of the Dragoneye) is easily one of the best fantasies I've ever read. Character development was precise and sometimes surprising and the world building was on a level seldom seen.
     For instance, have you ever heard of magic built around the twelve animals of the zodiac and the Chinese belief in meridian points within the human body? In answer to the first: yes, once. In answer to the second question: only in traditional Chinese mythology. In 37 years of reading fantasy, I have never come across something quite this inventive. I wish I'd thought of it, but I can only admire.
     Eon is a crippled boy with the unusual ability to see all twelve mystical dragons of the zodiac. Eon is also not a boy, but Eona, a sixteen-year-old girl who will be killed for presuming upon a man's position if she's discovered. To complicate matters, the Emperor lies on his deathbed. His brother and Lord Ido, the Rat Dragoneye, seek to make the "String of Pearls," a weapon of unholy power, and with it, change the world. Eona must learn to trust her power and find the strength to face a vicious enemy who would seize her magic and her life.
     If you love political intrigue and fantasy as much as I do, then you're probably longing for a unique take on the genre. "The Two Pearls of Wisdom" is it and it's the first in a series.  Please be aware, in the U.S., the book's title is "Eon: Dragoneye Reborn." (Ms. Goodman is Australian and "Two Pearls" is the original Australian title.) I don't do spoilers, but I can tell you this was obviously planned as a series of books. "The Necklace of the Gods" won't be one of those sequels that happened because a sequel was the unplanned, but most expedient literary offering. "Two Pearls" is a stand alone novel that clearly paves the way for what must happen next.
    Based on the first book, I look forward to another magical story unfolding.

Addendum:  I neglected to address two issues in this review and I hope you'll let me do so now.

1. When I first started reading, I got frustrated with Eon/Eona because she did not perceive two particularly obvious truths. However, once I got beyond my frustration and just enjoyed the book, I (obviously) forgot about my frustration with her and even felt her character development was well done at the end. I say obviously because it took me two weeks and one book review conversation to remember!
2. I understand this book has some controversy concerning how it's perceived by minority groups. They feel like little to no research was done on China and that the world building was not accurate. I'm going to stand by what I said earlier and add one thing. This book isn't set in China. This is a fantasy world loosely based on certain cultural touchstones of this world. If some believe it could have been more tightly based on that culture, well - it's their culture and since my culture is one based on a conglomeration of all others, it's harder for me to judge. (Where their worldview is all about China, my worldview includes an acceptance of melting potism, if you will.) However, as a fantasy reader I have seen very few books with this much world building in an Asian setting and yes, I did enjoy it.

Reader Stereotyping

Picture is the property of The Telegraph

Okay, two things for today. One, a hearty three cheers for Aung San Suu Kyi's bravery and generous spirit. I pray that this wonderful woman can continue to lead the struggle for peaceful change within her country. A few days ago, author Jeannie Lin wrote a blog on Asian heroes. This woman is one of mine.


And on a lesser, but still important note: I'm the moderator for the Authors of Asian Novels group (use the link if you're interested in joining us!) and we frequently have interesting conversations.


This month's topic has touched on interracial relationships and reader expectations. All this led me to question, as a writer, how do you deal with reader stereotyping and discrimination? Not on the racial side of this topic, but on the side of depicting culture in ways that are believable and non-stereotypical, I've had the following experience.

I once requested a critique of my opening chapters (this was before the Sandy competition, but not THAT much before it) from a s.f./fantasy online group I belonged to. The response I got back really floored me. One person wailed at me that I knew nothing about the culture I was using. I hadn't used caste/rank realistically, etc. These were his expectations and based on what he knew about Asian culture. The problem is, I knew enough about Asian culture to know caste-based behavior was historically frowned on even while it was expected!

In my story, my upper class MC is asked about his welcoming behavior toward a lower caste merchant. My MC comments that the merchant could be his brother. That's when this reader railed on me, not understanding that I had done this intentionally. He thought I'd done it because I'm American and don't understand caste.

This guy clearly had some other issues and beliefs regarding Asian culture and I blew his racial and cultural comments off, but am still very much aware he won't be the only reader with these assumptions. The truth is, my hero doesn't act on caste/rank because that's who he is and his behavior was the MODEL to the Chinese of how a man should react to others. It simply isn't how the majority of men acted. I used this to set my hero apart as a hero, but it made my critiquer spazz. He expected and wanted the stereotype. 

So my questions is, how should I have responded? (I'm not the best debater, I admit.) How do you respond when faced with stereotype expectations and reader discrimination?

Genghis: Birth of an Empire by Conn Iggulden

This is the first book of a trilogy and all I can say is, bring the rest of it! (Please see last month's review of "Bones of the Hills" by Lisa Yarde for a review of a book later in the series.)

“Birth of an Empire” starts with the birth of Temujin, the first Genghis of the Mongolian people. We then rejoin the very young Temujin when his father is murdered and the tribe abandons Temujin and his family.

Expected to die on the steppes, the boy Temujin saves his family from starvation and the cold of winter and eventually, they discover a small portion of safety among the wandering herdsman of Mongolia. Had Temujin’s tribe and its new leader assumed his death, history might have had a different outcome, but the tribe’s new Khan fears vengeance for the family’s abandonment. He hunts Temujin’s family, captures Temujin and tries to kill him.

This launches Temujin into a life-long battle, first for survival and eventually for revenge against his father’s murderers and unification for his people.

Birth of a Empire has a little bit of a slow start, but the setting and time frame is epic, so the slow build is appropriate. Mr. Iggulden’s use of historical facts has been questioned by others, but personally, I'm not bothered if he changed things here and there to suit his story. It's fiction. If I wanted historical facts, I'd go researching. I will say, the characterizations and settings' realism are unrelenting. If you like your historical fiction with a bit of blood and a lot of emotional zest, don’t be intimidated. It’s only the Mongolian Horde, after all.

If you're in the Kansas City area, you might want to check this out. It looks marvelous. Tickets are $22.
November 12th, 8 p.m. Yardley Hall of Johnson County Community College (JCCC)

Experience the vibrant and colorful roar of JIGU! 
Thunder Drums of China®. This world-renowned company 
of  drummers and musicians weaves modern musical 
elements and high-tech lighting with deeply rooted folk origins to bring 
drama and delight to this spectacular and ­ awe-inspiring cultural. JCCC Ticket sale

  Tai Chi Demonstration 7 - 7:45 p.m. Carlsen Center Lobby

Cultural Exchange Fund Grant and Other Markets

In an effort to make my life more organized (or organized at all), I am going to attempt to post on a schedule. For now, I'll try to post blogs, news, etc every Monday and post book reviews on Wednesdays. Here's hoping!

For today's news, I received the following information from Hope Clark's Funds For Writers. If you haven't signed up to receive free copies of Hope's newsletters, you're missing out on an important guide to current markets, supporters, and more. A tip on this particular gem: the deadline may be soon. Don't delay if you're interested.


Arts Presenters will fund individual travel subsidies and
group travel subsidies. The maximum amount awarded per
individual organization, inclusive of travel costs and per
diem, is $2,000. Group travel subsidies will be awarded only
to groups of three or more presenters from different member
presenting organizations. The maximum award for a group is
$10,000, with no more than $2,000 awarded per organization.
In promoting cross-cultural arts programming, Arts Presenters
strongly encourages travel to the following locations,
including but not limited to: the Middle East, Asia, Latin
America and Africa.Arts Presenters will award travel subsidies
to individual presenters, presenting organizations and to
groups of presenters traveling to see the work of artists,
companies and/or to develop and advance projects with
international artists and their collaborators. All applicants
must be active members of the Association of Performing Arts
Presenters.




And yet another contest:





SCN ANNUAL NOVEL PITCH & FIRST 5 PAGES CONTEST 
Sponsored by Smoke City Narrators http://www.janicewiley-dorn.com/smokecitynarrators.html 

ENTRY FEE - $8.50 
DEADLINE - Postmarked or Emailed by November 15, 2010. 
First prize - $150. Second prize - $75. Third prize - $40. 6 HM. Feedback posted on website.

JUDGE - Agent Jeff Kleinman, Folio Literary Management, NY, NY. Email/Snail Mail: 1. First 5 pages of a novel, 1,500 words max. 
2. One-sentence synopsis of the novel, 25 words or less. 
(Novel does not have to be complete.) 

Entry pages not published. Authors keep all rights. 
Open Internationally. Checks (US bank), Money Orders or PayPal. 
Please see website for complete rules.


Good luck, all ye competitors!