There is a type of tea in Cairo called “Yen Soon,” which is popular with the locals. You drink it all the time; day, night, whatever the season.
I thought it was a Made in China tea brand. One day, I decided to give it try; sweet with a flagrant flavor and a calming effect.
Honestly, I thought it was a Chinese brand. I was curious about Mr. Yen Soon. Why is his brand so popular in Egypt?
That’s when I embarrassed myself. Yen Soon is Arabic for Aniseeds, and they use it to make Anise tea.
It’s also spelled Yan Soon or Yansun. Well, you learn something new every day.
This is the new cover for the second edition of my thriller, Smokescreen.
What do you think? It was designed by Venezuelan Juan Padrón.
I like the first cover but it was time for a fresh look to create mystique and suspense: The partial face, the blood spatter, the bullet hole.
I had organized a little voting session on Facebook asking people to choose from a choice of several covers.
Inspiration for the novel
Singapore’s relationship with Israel, and the time I spent in Cairo, Egypt inspired the story idea. The protagonist, Jet West, came out during my workdays as a magazine reporter for a high society magazine.
I am washing my hands more than often these days. The Coronavirus has hit Singapore. As of today, 14, February, there are 72 infected cases as of Saturday, 15 February.
Precautionary procedures have been placed. You can’t enter a bank, for example, unless you agree to have your temperature checked at the door.
On the several visits I made to a hospital, I noticed thermal-imaging monitors in place to scan visitors.
Each time, I got the clear to pass. Let’s hope it stays that way. I still want to write more books.
Obviously, I’m avoiding crowds and certain places. I wasn’t one of those people who rush to the supermarket in a panic frenzy. But this virus does feel like a game of Russian Roulette.
I know people who are working from home these days. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. Don’t expect me to shake your hand these days.
On the train the other day, I was too scared to cough or sneeze. The way they look at you, it’s like are you one of us or have you turned?
In fact, on rare occasions I took the train, I didn’t see anyone sneeze or cough.
There have been stories of alleged discrimination against nurses amid the outbreak.
Ignorance is everywhere. In times like these, you can expect all kinds of people coming out of the woodworks making insensitive comments.
Would you believe it? On Saturday, I chose a random movie on Netflix entitled Quarantine. Nice timing.
I hope someone finds a cure soon. Meanwhile, life goes on as usual…
What do you think? Hope you like it. The color of the book title obviously represents the official color of the Vatican. The mystery man is none other than the protagonist Ayden Tanner, a man who officially does not exist.
The translation is still in the works and is expected to be ready in a month or so.
The novel is already available in Spanish with a different cover.
The English edition was published in 2017 by World Castle Publishing, and it is available as an ebook, paperback, and hardcover. The story centers around three mysterious individuals assigned by a secret order to find the Pope who is missing. Here’s a review of the English edition by Readers Favorite.
I’d like to encourage you to post an image of the book’s cover on your reading device or, if you don’t have one, simply share the cover I’ve posted to one or more of your social media accounts and tag me in the post. It can be Insta, Twitter or FB or anywhere else.
I will choose the names of 3 persons to fit in as side characters to include in the sequel of my fiction world after you.
For example, your name could appear as a witness in a newspaper article, a police officer, a florist or even one of the group of characters I am developing.
Of course, you will get a copy of the book, signed and acknowledged by me, when it gets published. I’m still working on it, so it’s going to take a while. The sequel takes place against the backdrop of Southern California with the same characters.
So, what’s in store for me in 2020? Well, for the things that I can see in the near future, is the release of my new crime thriller, Spiral, which is set against the South Australian backdrop.
Meanwhile, I’m working on the sequel to Gun Kiss. Same characters: Blake Deco, Hollywood movie star Goldie Saint Helen, and Jack, a character that many readers tell me they love.
I don’t know how long it will take me to finish the manuscript, but I hope to make the story longer than my previous one. After that, I might try my hand at a historical thriller set in Singapore during the Japanese occupation. The idea of a historical thriller came about after I posted a photograph on Facebook, and fellow Carmen Amato was quick to suggest it. Let’s see how it goes.
I do have characters and the setting in mind, but what I don’t have is a plot. I’ll need to get out of my mind for a while to find it, and I expect a lot of research effort. Now, where can I get some powerful vitamins to get me going?
Random Thoughts
Speaking of movie stars, Singapore, and its history, here’s a photo of Hollywood movie star Ava Gardner at The Raffles Hotel in Singapore. The photo was taken in the 1950s. She visited for the Asian premiere of her film The Barefoot Contessa and stayed at the Raffles Hotel. But where else?
Ava Gardner at The Raffles Hotel.
Other famous names who visited the island included Elizabeth Taylor (1957), Roger Moore (1969), Jack Lord (1979), and Charlie Chaplin (1932). I was 14 in 1979 when Jack Lord came to shoot an episode of Hawaii Five-O. Everybody wanted to meet Jack Lord.
Singapore is no longer exotic
But the Singapore of yesterdays is different from Singapore today. Truth? It’s less exotic and charming and somewhat of a tight-ass environment compared to the previous nonchalant, breezy atmosphere. Excuse my candor, but that’s how I feel. Anyway, I want to make this piece an enjoyable read — shoo away the bad energy, embrace the positive.
Well, let me think this through and see what kind of plot I can come out with for a new book.
Hahndorf. A quaint German town in South Australia. I escorted a group of journalists from Singapore and Malaysia during a Familiarization trip. It was arranged by the South Australian Tourism Commission.
Hahndorf is a pretty place to go for a holiday, especially if you like peace and quiet. From here, you can branch out to other tourist destinations.
I didn’t include this place in Spiral (instead I focused more on wine region Clare Valley, capital Adelaide, Kangaroo Island, and the Fleurieu Peninsula). But it was here in Hahndorf I saw a gang of bikers rumbling down the road before stopping at a restaurant, and it gave me some ideas for the story.
To escape religious persecution back home, Germans started arriving in South Australia in 1836. Politics and religion aside, this is a wonderful place to retreat if you want to write a book or spend some time painting. No traffic… only chimes.
The book cover of my new Australian thriller, Spiral. To be released by World Castle Publishing. No dates yet. This is a story about a Sydneysider who moves to South Australia to begin a new life. But like his past, new trouble starts to follow him.
The novel was inspired by my past work as an external public relations consultant to the South Australian Tourism Commission to the Singapore office. An account I managed for slightly more than a decade. Part of my role included escorting journalists to various parts of the State on a familiarization trip. So, I thought since I know the place well, why not write a story set here?
Some of the scenes in the novel are real, particularly my encounter with a platoon of penguins on Kangaroo Island around midnight marching outside my hotel room. This island is outrageously beautiful. Would you believe it? The island is like 7 or 8 times larger than Singapore with differing landscapes. You could find yourself in the desert, in the bush land, by the ocean and in the woods with winding rivers.
There are five-star resorts overlooking amazing views, and there are rough-it-out campsites, so the choice is yours. Either way, you’ll be close to nature. I remember during one trip we drove past a Koala who sat by the side of the road. There is always something extraordinary about seeing animals in their natural habitat instead of a zoo.
Spiral takes begins in one of the State’s key wine regions, Clare Valley, before the novel stretches to other parts, including Adelaide, Kangaroo Island with some smaller scenes taking place in Sydney. One of the things I’ve done in this book is to avoid cliches; I am not talking just dialogue but things often associated with Australia. Mind you, it’s there, but not as much. There is a misconception in the form of a stereotype that Australia is Crocodile Dundee. It’s not. The one thing you’ll discover about the city of Adelaide is that it has a European feel to it. I must confess it’s not as exciting as Sydney but some parts can be fun, like Glenelg, the beach-side suburb. I’d visit it again if I had the chance.
By the way, if you are not familiar with South Australia, the capital is Adelaide. Too many people make the mistake of thinking I am referring to Tasmania because of the reference made to the south.
Goldie St. Helen – the co-protagonist in Gun Kiss – is being generous…one reader will walk away with this exotic green handwoven Oriental rug when I reached the target of 5,000 copies in digital sales for my thriller novel, Gun Kiss.
For those of you who are are already subscribers and followers, you are automatically included in the raffle. Good luck!
Product: Handmade Oriental rug, exotic green, and brand new. A fine item for any room in the house or office.
Goldie St. Helen is a fictional character in Gun Kiss; a Hollywood movie star who lives in Los Feliz, Los Angeles. Meanwhile, I am working on a sequel, Far Out, and I can only hope readers will find it as riveting as the first one.
Truth be told, all my books are sequel-friendly but I decided on Gun Kiss because I received more requests for it from both the young and old. It’s going to take a while before the next one is done. But it’s always fun reuniting with your characters. It would be interesting to see them in a virtual game where the player gets to join them in some action-packed environment.
I stopped writing the sequel to my thriller,Gun Kiss, for a couple of days after hitting the wall. My plot had gone off the rail. The scene appeared like a broken railroad track. I didn’t anticipate the twist in the plot. Thoughts raced my mind like a road junction with no traffic regulators. I reached a point when I had to ask myself a serious question: Should I start all over again? I hate the idea, especially after putting so much time and effort, even if it’s just the first draft.
The anxiety, the self-doubt, the racing heart started dogpiling on me. Water, water everywhere not a drop to drink. I guess this is how a chess player feels after being stuck in a game when all the pieces are developed. But unlike a chess player where the little clock by the side is ticking, I have all the time in the world. So, I decided to stay away from the manuscript. Back off.
I’m a pantser. Not one of those authors who plot, schematize and outline their work. I prefer to lose myself in the dark before digging my way out of the hole. I like to live my own adventure as I write one. I do have my story mapped out, including a story arc, but the details are obscure; it’s something to worry about later, which usually puts me in situations. Here’s how it works: I see a character entering a house, but I don’t know how many times the character will go to the bathroom. I focus on the big picture rather than the little details that so easily entangles.
So, for a few days, while I was not writing, the sky appeared gloomy. I was in no mood to get on the beam. I hung out on social media, watch TV and whatever else but avoided opening my Word file. Then I heard a voice say, “You’ve already written thirty-thousand words. Are you really going to give up now?”
I found myself sitting at my desk again, staring at the screen. I still had no idea what to do. But I knew to bang my fists on the keyboard wasn’t going to help. I decided to give it another try. I started pottering around, nonchalantly reworking dialogues and descriptions, and rewriting what could be improved. Then, a literary angel came to my door at the least expected moment and bestowed on me the treasure of the highest imagination. The ideas poured in. I didn’t waste time collecting them like a happy farmer seeing rain after a long drought.
A lesson to self: There’s always a way to clear the hurdle. Take it slow…don’t panic. I repeat—don’t panic.
Ludwig Wittgenstein, the Austrian philosopher, said it best: “A man will be imprisoned in a room with a door that’s unlocked and opens inwards; as long as it does not occur to him to pull rather than push.”
