I have been writing since I was a child and whilst adulthood has grown around me and expresses a part of me to the outside world, I am happy to say that the child-like nature still resides within, ready and willing to explore, to test the boundaries and occasionally to raise merry hell just to see how others react. This I try to capture when the stories get to be read by more than just family and friends.
The Awakened
I live with the most fantastic and beautiful lady on the face of the planet! Sorry, readers. Mitch, my partner, inspires me, believes in me, and often gives me clues as to where a story might travel, just by the way she looks at me and how her inner spirit shines. I am not meaning to sound cheesy, but for me, having a companion by your side who believes and encourages you, is more than words can describe, and I am very blessed to have her by my side.
I am an architect by profession and I have been working as part of a client developer looking after the first Versace branded high end residential tower in Europe. As a creative designer, it has always been a delight to me to try to describe in presentations, concepts that I can see so clearly, that need to be “seen” by the client, occupier, or funder. All have their own special way of “seeing”. It is my task, to present ideas in such a way that everyone “gets it”. I trust that this is similarly reflected in the way I write.
The subject matter that forms the trilogy, “The Ethereal Series”, of which “The Awakened” is book one, has been brewing in me for quite a few years. I have wrestled with the concept of describing a setting where “the good guy” doesn’t always win. In our lives, we all often hit obstacles that cause us to react, sometimes with frustration, rage, despair. Often, we carry this burden by ourselves, too afraid, and at times, too British, to share these with others. The series, tries to unpick the various and numerous layers of the “onion skin” that Sam, the main character, has built up around himself over the years, due to a tragedy he is unable to cope with. It is, hopefully, a story that a great many readers will associate themselves with, wither from personal experience, or through friends who have gone through deep valleys, or may still be in them. I do not intend for the book to be dark, so I purposely throw a few wobbly bridges in so that the reader is reminded that all is OK ultimately
I am a Christian. My beliefs are very important to me and perhaps, the most important life message I have learned and try to carry around with me, is that every person is precious. It does not matter what your creed, race, orientation, religious standing or place in society is. What does matter, is that when all the “stuff” is peeled away, whether self-built or applied by others, God sees us for who we really are; which is a beautiful creation, made wonderfully, and with care and attention. So I try to share this in my outlook and acceptance of others/ Not always as well as I would like, but then, I am still being moulded. I am aware that this might offend certain individuals, but that is OK. Everyone is walking, learning and growing, and I believe that “giving someone the right to be wrong” is the first step in humility and wisdom. Here endeth the lesson!
I am grateful to my parents for the time we spent growing up in South Africa. Putting all the race hatred and governmental bureaucracy to one side for the time being, as a child growing up in that beautiful country, where we as kids did not differentiate between skin colour or culture, the pure exhilaration of being able to explore the mountains, the lakes and rivers and the landscapes, often at great peril to life and limb (Mother and father were never told about what we got up to, including the home-made bombs we concocted) cemented a rich tapestry in my life that helps me to look outward and see how peaceful things are, when you are able to turn your head to one side for a moment and smell the flowers. I self-published a book about some of the exploits in 2011, my first attempt at “proper writing”. (http://www.puffadder.co.uk/)
When my two children were born, both were diagnosed with an incredibly rare genetic disorder. Apparently, there are only 12 known cases of their condition in the world, and I got two of them! We lived in Germany at the time and whilst I could speak German, you will imagine, that having to converse with doctors and nurses on technical medical issues, left us struggling and battling with the system. One cannot describe what it is like to have a doctor in a foreign land come up to you and mildly state that, in their opinion, your daughter (or son) has this or that condition, and will probably die before they are 4, and the angst that comes with this, only to find out some months later, that actually, no, the doctor was wrong and she doesn’t have that condition… however, we believe she might have this condition, and life expectancy is not very good! Our church really did practice the art of “brother and sisterhood” and looked after us when tears could no longer be found. But it taught us to trust, when trust was not an easy commodity to hold on to. Our children have both been blessed in that the condition is not life-threatening, and they are leading normal lives. They are 20 and 23 now and they both delight and frustrate as children do. But I wouldn’t swap them for the world. Valuable life lesson there.
I am a closet coffee-holic! When Mitch and I travelled through New Zealand, we were so blown away by the country and how the landscapes change so effortlessly, that we wrote a blog for others to enjoy (http://www.hobbitsandseals.wordpress.com). When I read it later, I was amazed that each day almost always, is splattered with a coffee break here, or a Cappuccino stop there! Possibly counselling is required!
I am a keen sports fan, despite my age. As a child I represented my County in badminton and participated in running, swimming and skiing. Actually, swimming I found boring as I could ever see the sense of doing lap after lap, so instead, I took up free-diving and could often be found hurtling along underwater, trying to beat the swimmers above me, until I forgot that I needed to breathe and almost killed myself! Ho hum. I still play competitive badminton and ski whenever I can and enjoy golf. Although I think that golf itself does not really enjoy me!
Mitch and I both enjoy painting. She is very good and I turn my hand now to drawing portraits instead, which keeps me happy. Again though, studying portraiture or landscapes, certainly helps me to see the nuances that make up a person’s face or a setting for a scenic composition. It is a challenge to try to capture the character. A lesson I take with me when writing.