Karavansara

East of Constantinople, West of Shanghai


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Smile, breathe and go slowly

zen21Going back to zen practice is a good strategy to handle the small acts of daily brutality that seem to be part of the deal when you start writing – be it a blog, a series of ebooks or anything public.
Stick out, speak your mind, tell your story, and somebody will decide that putting you in your place is their life’s ultimate mission.

After all that’s one of the perks of writing, right?
We motivate people.
We put something in their lives.

So, considering I got myself three king-sized servings of brutality this last week, I went back to my zen books and resources, looking for some quick-and-dirty wisdom. Continue reading →


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King

c2gif00zSo there was this guy going on at length about how much his writing had been influenced by his reading and re-reding of King.
The man to him is an icon, an inspiration, a true master. King is God and King is his prophet.
Or something along those lines.
And I had to agree.
For me, too, I said, Jason King remains a true model as a writer.
I want to be him, more or less, like, totally.
Now, he did not get mad at me.
He did not know what I was talking about. Which is sad, I think.

Fact is, I was not lying – you see, I think Jason King is a pretty damn cool role model when you are trying to make ends meet as a writer. Continue reading →


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Back to Old Shanghai

Shanghai-IncidentAnd just when it looked like I was well on my way to spending the next six months solid reading and writing about India (and steampunk) for GreyWorld, the Paris of the East lures me back again.

I’m currently doing some very preliminary work on a new project that promises to bring me back to old Shanghai1.

And yes, it does feel like some kind of obscure Oriental curse.

Obviously, first I’ll have to nail shut the box of my second novel, and my work on GreyWorld will continue, writing both the game setting and some setting-based stories.
And yes, there’s the minor matter of a new Aculeo & Amunet story, and one – or possibly two – new stories in the Asteria series.
Oh, and one, maybe two small-but-sweet gaming-related projects.
And a pitch I really need to have ready by August2.
But while all this stuff is cooking, I’m taking the Shangai books and maps and notes, photo references and everything else out of the storage box.
It will be fun.
Who needs sleeping anyway?

  1. and no, dear reader, it is not a new Sabatini story. ↩
  2. yes, I’m keeping busy. ↩


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Discovering Mughal India

611bobcm9hL._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_So much to do and so little time to do it.
I remember an old article by Isaac Asimov, old Ike saying that if you want to be a writer you have to love writing above everything else – given the choice between reading and writing, for instance, writing should take first place, without any hesitation.

Well, but what when you are doing research?
Is time spent reading time that should be better spent writing?
I don’t think so.
And therefore I’m taking the afternoon off to go on with The Mughals of India, by Harbans Mukhia. Continue reading →


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Clark Ashton Smith on Fantasy

Clark Ashton Smith

Clark Ashton Smith (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I’ve been perusing the wondrous halls of The Eldritch Dark, a website devoted to the writings of Clark Ashton Smith.
Sometimes I like to go back to Smith’s fantasies, as his voice and his approach to prose – while impossible to equal – are a great source of inspiration.
The Eldritch Dark collects the stories and poetry by Smith, but also an ample selection of his letters and essays.
The following is a short recap of the author’s position regarding the narrative of the imagination.
It is well worth reading. Continue reading →


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A Sea Shanty

CSSAlabamaConsidering I’m writing a book about the sea, and ships, and privateering, it seems fitting to put up something in tune.

The CSS Alabama was a British-built Confederate privateer that for two years, during the American Civil War, harassed and raided Union ships in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans.
It was a royal pain in the neck, in other words.
It was finally sank in sight of Cherbourg, in 1864 – and it had never once touched a Confederate port.
Strange story.

They made a song about it.
And here’s the great rendition by the extraordinary British folk band, Bellowhead.