Cage Dunn's Blog, page 91

A Bit More Wrok/cros out/work – Proofreading!!

Several times in my life I have been employed (well paid, even) to proofread written works. I always found mistakes. There are always mistakes – first time, second time, third time. Errors and flip-flops and double-ups and spoonerisms – always sthere. A promise.

Now I do my own proofreading. Should be simple. Wrong!! I’m [sort of] happy with all the editing phases and stages I go through (that’s a big sort of), but when it comes to proofreading, I need the ‘book’ version, not just a print-out to be able to see the worst of the errors, and I need some distance (that’s time away from the project) and a ‘different’ place to do the reading. Are there still mistakes? Yes. Very definitive answer. So many I’m almost ashamed to think of calling myself a professional proofreader,. I was. When I did it for other writers.

If I have to do my own proofreading, I have to remember the biggest rule of all – a person can’t proofread their own work, because they will always read what they think is there. It’s the human condition – our mind puts in the things it thinks is expected, and that’s what happens. If there isn’t enough time or distance or difference in approach, the brain fills in the bits for us – to save us stress, work, disappointment. It wants us to be happy, to live long and prosper (where have I heard that before?) and to sail through [stressful seas without a paddle] life without too many cares or woes or problems.

Our own brain hides the bad stuff from us. BUT . . . it has a limited span to be able to remember these things (no matter how well we think we know the thing) and if we step back far enough, allow time and other projects to move into top spot in the brain’s list of ‘important’ stuff, then we can fairly safely return to the task. Right?

Wrong. If you [or I] do that, we will miss things, skip things, misread. Why? Because we’re inclined to be a bit lazy, that’s why. We want it to be right, to be complete, to be the best it can be. It won’t ever be that, but we don’t want to do really silly, time-wasting things like: read it aloud [to hear how it doesn’t work] or read it backwards [for crying out loud, how do you get ‘meaning’?] or give it to someone who [doesn’t like us or our style of writing] knows what they’re doing.

The biggest problem [for me] is that I don’t have a choice but to do my own proofreading. If it give it to someone else, I have to pay them. From the coffers that have dust and spiderwebs in profusion and no coins. From an income that doesn’t exist.

The dilemma: if I don’t get someone else to look at the owrds, I won’t be able to sell many [if any] and I won’t earn any money. Understand? No money to pay to get a good product that will earn me money. round and round and round.

Solution: For cyring out loud – give it to someone to read; look away for a long enough time; put two or three projects between now and the proofread; get a proofcopy a Lllllooooonnnnnngggg time before it’s due for realease.

And stop to smell to roses occasionally. Not a rose? – well, a rose by any other name . . . .

It’s a Windy Day!

It was going to be about ‘which mask do I put on today?’ but the mind couldn’t grasp the reality of revealing secrets, so we talk about wind.

Not the sort you’re thinking about! No, I’m talking about the ‘other’ sort of wind. The smelly kind – that everyone does. Yes, you do it, too. We all do, but some of us lie, or try to hide it, or try to do it quietly, or simply ignore the fact of the expression of air from the body.

Perfectly natural thing to happen. Gases that build up in the gastric spaces need to come out or they cause pain. Gases come from the ingestion of foods (absolutely necessary to life) and the way the body digests and makes use of those foods. Of course, fibre foods create the most gas, but fatty foods mixed with carbs produce the most o-b-nox-ious expulsions! And boys seem to do the most disgusting smells! Well, maybe not – but this is my story, so I’ll tell it the way I like.

Why this type of wind? Not a long story, this one. My ‘other’ half had a stay in hospital and came out with millions (just a slight exaggeration here) of drugs to take – each with a zillion (no exaggeration) side-effects. The most common side-effect: stomach/gastric! Causes farts that stink like – Oh, I wish I could imagine a word here to describe it, but I’m sure you can imagine yourself!

But (you knew there was a but, didn’t you?) it gets worse! Then they give the drugs that treat the stomach problems, and guess what happens? Diarrhoea! Multiple times a day in the little house (we call it the library, because there’s a stack of books (yes, a big stack) for the people who like to ‘spend some time’ in the little room). Even with the window open, the fan going, and vanilla sprays – the smell seems to linger. It’s a chemical smell, worse than rotten egg gas, worse than the smell at the bottom of a sludgy compost bucket that’s anaerobic, worse than hell!

It’s a good thing there will be an end to the drugs (well, some of them – hopefully, most of them), but I’d like the drug companies to come up with a sensible plan for their products. One that might include the reduction of absolute mayhem the product produces in the stomach.

How can a person get well when they spend half the day (that’s conservative, by the way) in the little house? How can a person get well when they have to get up all through the night to deal with the cramps and pain and desperation?

Wind is the precursor – somethings coming! [and I want the something to be a solution to the side-effects of these little bits of poison]

 

 

Why a Serial?

The Journey of Shadow  was originally written as a novel, stayed in draft for a long while, and then – after a few weeks with the focus group – came out as a serial.

Why?

The aim was to get boys to read books – and girls, but girls almost always love to read, and boys seem to find it hard. I don’t know why.

What happened?

Two people I know have access to the right age group, so I asked about a focus group. It was set up to read one chapter at a time, and to discuss what they liked and didn’t like and why. Fun! Really! To listen to the way people absorb story. And it is different – so, so different – between the genders.

What works for boys? (16/17) Like a male character, but will tolerate a female character who has a non-gender specific name; like to have the picture painted, not too many descriptive elements that are dreamy or stagnant; like ‘tight’ associations between things (battle descriptions should enable them to play it out for real); conversations that are shorter and clear (clarity of meaning and words), with no (or almost no) funny bits (I knew what they meant – idiomatic speech stuff).

What works for girls? (19/20) Like a fully-rounded character, not too well described so they can be the character as they read; like a good description (of setting) through the eyes and actions of the character; like a good flow and direction in the story; like to share the story with friends.

So different. Girls like to ‘put the character on’ as they read; boys like to ‘act out’ the character (in the real world first, in their head second).

The Dilemma – how to get the best reaction to the Shadow story?

the names of the characters: Shadow, Pax, Gheis – only Pax can be defined as a gendered name (and only if you know which culture the name comes from). Of the 37 members of the focus group, 35 liked the names. Character names stayed as they were.
the journey: They wanted a map (there’s one here on the Shadow page now, and there will be one in the paperback version) because all fantasy ventures have a map. It’s an expectation (this is a ‘don’t disappoint the reader’ moment). Liked the difference ‘place’ – not cold to the north, not middle-earth, not Euro-words. They liked the words they knew and could look up associated places in their own backyard (Australian words).
the story: Why can’t a story be like a TV show? Where you get one episode a week? Of the 37 members of the group, 30 wanted a serial-type story. Is this a return to the ‘I’ll read you a chapter each night’ type of bed-time ritual?

The focus group has spoken. I put it out as a serial. Then I get blasted by requests to put them up quicker. I increased the pace of upload. More, more! It’s complete now (the Shadow Journey, that is – the epic continues next year), and the feedback is coming in.

Boys like action in their stories; main characters who don’t have girl names (they want to be able to ‘act out’ the char and the gender doesn’t matter if the name is neutral); movement and direction; subtlety (not TOO much of that, please). Etc. etc. etc.

Girls like to ‘put on’ the character, be the character as they read. They want to share the story with their friends, take on different roles and reach further than the original story (if they like the story, that is). Girls like continuity. If there’s another book in the series, the same characters should be there as major players.

And there it is – I’m not sure the story is ‘the best it can be’ but the focus group has taught me a lot about why and how young adults like to get their story. I’ll be doing my best to live up to their expectations. A big thank you to the ‘Bear, Ted – one for the use of’ group.

Good reading!

 

 

Sanctuary – Or Escapism?

To be able to disappear/hide for a while, to be where there are no obligations or stresses or . . . you get the drift.

But is that what we really need? Is it necessary to ‘go’ somewhere to ‘do’ something that breaks us out of the mould of ‘normal’ that eases those stresses and obligations? I don’t think so – I think we’ve been trained to think that way; that so many more obligations are placed on the idea of ‘sanctuary’ that it has lost meaning. It has become another expectation, one more thing to stress about until we get it ‘right’ (according to the ‘rules’ of societal expectations).

A quick look gets us this:

sanctuary

noun

noun: sanctuary; plural noun: sanctuaries




1.


refuge or safety from pursuit, persecution, or other danger.
“his sons took sanctuary in the church”




synonyms:
refuge, haven, harbour, port in a storm, oasis, shelter, retreat, bolt-hole, foxhole, hideout, hiding place, hideaway, den, asylum, safe house, fastness; More


querencia

“the island was a sanctuary, untouched by the mad modern world”





safety, safe keeping, protection, shelter, security, immunity, asylum

“around a thousand abused women and children were given sanctuary”
















2.


a nature reserve.
“a bird sanctuary”

The first definition: refuge or safety from pursuit, persecution, or other danger.

Not a holiday! Refuge. A place to hide or seek protection. Sanctuary is not a carefree place for relaxation – it’s a hideaway! Somewhere to get away from danger. Are our lives so dangerous that we seek out sanctuary (our word for holiday) each year, and don’t understand what we do?

Or have we given the word a new and different meaning – because we need it to be different? We need it to be different so we can forgive ourselves for the stress it causes us (whether we go to the ‘sanctuary’ or don’t go, but know we should go).

I think it’s time we decided to be our own sanctuary – protect our selves from danger (and stresses), protect our family by being their sanctuary (every day), and help our community by becoming/being a sanctuary to those who really do need to hide or seek protection.

If we open our eyes to the potential of our surroundings, if we open our hearts to the community we share, if we live our lives as fully and be as giving and sharing as we would like someone to be if we were the one who needed sanctuary. That would be the way to truly live. To be the person we would go to for sanctuary.

Food for thought? Think critically, then act (shortened version of Dalai Lama quote: ).

 

What do you really struggle with?

It’s a question that came to me in an email – from one of those emails you get when you sign up to the e-newsletter. It’s the first time I’ve seen a question. And a big question it is, when you think about it.

What do you really struggle with? Thoughts fly across – money, work, anger – all personal. These things I can deal with on my own. But what do I really struggle with?

People!

People who ignore the issues that surround them: poverty, homelessness, kids living on the streets, severe unemployment, separation from [you name it here: anything that alienates or separates one (human or otherwise) person, group or community from any other] society (I’ll use society for the moment).

People who stride through life with blinkers on, who don’t, won’t, or can’t see what they walk past, through, over, on: Don’t look at that person; ignore until they can’t be seen; walk faster so we pass quicker; don’t look and it won’t be real; it’s nothing to do with us.

The problem with doing the ignoring is that, sooner or later, we realise that it’s real, it’s on our doorstep, and we could have done something [before it all went bad]. We could still do something. One day, will you be the one who is begging in the street, sleeping in drains, beaten and bruised and lying by the side of the freeway? You don’t know.

What can I do – what can you do – what can we do together?

In response to this question, I went looking, and this is what I found: Tom Shadyac.  Of course, you could also go to various other great minds, like the Dalai Lama. He has a beautiful quote: “If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.”

And now I ask the question: What Do You Really Struggle With – And What Are You Going to do About It? [Read at the end of this – What Can I Do Today To Show Myself As A Contributing Member of My Society?]

That’s what it’s all about. People.

People who care, people who make a difference, people who listen, people who teach, people who learn, people who share, people who ask the questions that need to be asked. People who reach out to other people with an open heart and an open mind.

The next Question: What are you going to do about it [Today, Tomorrow, Every Day]?

It’s all about connection. It’s all connected. We are all connected – each to the other; each to everything else. Reach out and touch those around you with a gentle hand and a soft word. Be the person you want other people to see you as. Be complete.

The Last Stages of the Journey

The last chapter, the last page, the last word – out there in the world! I am carefree!  Or, at least, I was for a few minutes. But what do I do now? Go straight back to work on the two, no, three, WIP’s? Or have a break and cogitate a little more? Or have a holiday? (what is that, by the way?)

No. Stop. An author works every day – it is a colossal task to complete a major project, and even if you finish one – will it earn its keep? Not likely. The average income for an author (in Australia) is $13,000. I think I should get straight back to work.

Two major projects, each at a stage requiring further edits and then another period of time to ‘brew’ before finalising/publishing. Do I put these two on the ‘pre-order’ phase? Or wait a little longer, until I am sure they are good enough? Or until I have completed the paperback version so I can put it all ‘out there’ at the same time?

So many questions, so many tasks, so many things to consider. Really, all I want to do is write stories. All this ‘business’ stuff makes my eyes water, gives me a sore back (and hands – too much mousing when uploading, checking, re-checking etc.) and makes me want to scream (at the computer, mainly – but sometimes . . .).

Or, and this sounds like a really good idea at the moment, should I commence the serious detail work for the next Journey novel (A Dragon Dream)? So exciting. Have the bare bones, a basic outline, but the detail! Love the detail! Get the hands in, get dirty, get things moving, swirl them around – play and push and shove and shovel!!!

Yes. No.

Put the basics in, let it sit. Complete the tasks that need completion. So, what does that mean? It means I go to work on The Third Moment (or maybe Unknown Sins – we’ll see in a minute). But work it is – don’t leave unfinished work behind you – nightmares ensue! Don’t take the path of most excitement – that’s for the readers, not the writer. Learn the craft bigger and better for each project. Listen to what the readers have to say, absorb the reasoning – remember, the reader owns the words/feelings/impact of the story as they read it – and keep putting one foot in front of the other (or finger/s on keys, ad infinitum,) until the – no, until THE END – of that project.

Will I see you on the other side? I hope so.

Only Two Chapters Remain

Until the Journey of Shadow  is complete – as in, THE END (at least for this part of the story). The paperback version will be available soon (probably end Aug – check!).

Next year (2017) a new epic, A Dragon Dream, commences. I hope you come on the journey with us.

The world is the same, but with dragons as allies (well, mostly – when they bother to acknowledge humans at all), the Ashans don’t get close to the coastline, can’t invade – and they’re running out of slaves. What can they do to return the world to the way it was?

Why have the dragons claimed all rights to the Islands of Tears and Narowi – the Far Side? What are they hiding?

You’ll have to come along to find out.

__________________

I do so look forward to the creation of this new story, but in the meantime, I have two other projects to complete: The Third Moment  and Unknown Sins.

___________________

Speculations of a Dark Nature, Vol’s I, II, III – the complete set, will be out in paperback very, very soon (Check on Sunday!!).

___________________

Unburdened – a new novel, commences later this year. Updates will be posted in the WIP page.

Meanwhile, I’ll be hard at work (as you see from the picture).

 

 

The Journey of Shadow (cont.)

Chapter 13 – The Gifts Given

Chapter 14 – The Will of Life

Chapter 15 – The Return

Now up and out.

Three more chapters on Friday 22 July 2016.

Smashwords  and Here.

The Truth About Your Healthy Body

And why people have skin of different hues.

Some background may be necessary here: I am not medically trained, not involved in the drug industry, not going to give you ‘the’ answer to all your problems. What will I do for you? Show you where to begin, how to think about what ‘normal’ is for you, what to look for in food and how it will be interpreted by your body. It’s taken me years and years of looking to find the simple truth, and that truth will shock you as it did me.

It’s become a secret, one that people pay a lot of money for – to be given the answer. Here, the answer is free, and the cost – you have to do the work (physically, intellectually, emotionally). You have to understand what’s going to work for you, and how it works, and why it works.

The Two Rules

The number one rule is the 8:16 rule. Your body needs at least 16 hours of no food. NO food: no milk, no fruit juice, no soda crap, no drinks with calories – NOTHING with any caloric content. Drink water, black tea, black coffee, etc. Choose the times that best suit you. Plan your no-food 16 hours to include your main sleep time, and some hours each side. If you don’t like to eat in the morning, you can have a later evening meal.

During the eight hours is when you eat, preferably two main meals: one at the beginning of your food intake period, and one (smaller) near the end. All food must be completely finished before the 16 hour phase begins – no sliding. Be the friend of your body, not the enemy.

 

The number two rule is the 80:20 rule. Protein and fat is 20% of your food, and 80% is green stuff (fruit, vegetable, etc). Avoid (as in, DO NOT EAT) any food that is low-fat, no-fat, fat-free, fat-reduced, sugar-free, reduced, etc. etc. etc. Eat real food. Real milk, real butter, real – real – real.

 

If you want to lose excess fat from your body, there is a third rule:

No food that comes from grass goes into your body at all for three months. What comes from grass? Sugar (cane is a grass), grains (wheat, barley, etc. – you find the rest of them).

Replace sugar with honey (don’t go overboard; just enjoy it in small doses).

Do without bread and stuff made with grains for a while – you won’t die and you won’t starve.

What I do: breakfast no earlier than 9am – and it’s a small, normal-type breakfast meal (see below for what foods are good foods for your body), and a larger main meal at about noon to 1pm, then a light snack at about 4pm (soup and an apple is the usual). I do this because I want to lose excess body fat.

 

How Can It Be True?

The human body has adapted to survive on ‘starvation’ foods like grains because there have always been times when starvation was imminent. It hasn’t adapted well enough to cope for starvation foods to be consumed all the time – every day, three times a day (and for some people it would be more). Why? Because what it has done is learn to hold onto body fat and create more when starvation foods are being consumed. Grains are starvation food. There is a ‘suitable’ time for the body to consume this food. You can figure out what this time is. It certainly isn’t able to deal with this food all the time – especially if it doesn’t get enough of the other foods that are necessary.

The necessary foods? Let’s start with the proteins and fats.

20%

of your food intake. Absolutely necessary to all the organs, the muscles, the brain. Absolutely necessary. Fat is not the enemy. It carries a myriad of essential nutrients that a human body requires for life (see Where Did It Go Wrong). A ‘protein’ bar is not the protein I am discussing. If you eat animal products, eat them: meat, fish, poultry, cheese, butter, eggs, etc. If you don’t eat animal products – NUTS to you, especially the oily nuts, and SEEDS (learn the difference between grains and seeds and don’t confuse the two – they are different).

There is one oil that maybe isn’t necessary, but is so good for the body that having a tablespoon (20ml) each day (not heated in any way) is good: it’s olive oil (doesn’t have to be the cold-pressed stuff). Check out all the benefits (part of your job is to understand these things).

 

The next most critically necessary foods? The green stuff.

80%

of your food intake. As fresh as possible, preferably organic, but not absolutely necessary. A healthy body can remove some toxins, but try to do the best by yourself. Fruit is not the enemy, but eat the fruit, skin and all (if you can’t eat the skin – is it the right fruit for you?), and not the juice. As fresh as possible. Eat tubers (not all the time, but just because they are carbs doesn’t mean they’re not good), potatoes are not the enemy. Imagine a nice roast, cooked in the natural fat of the meat, with potatoes and carrots and [other vegies that are nice roasted in fat], with some greens and other stuff on your plate – the healthy meal (remember the 80:20 rule). A vegan or vegetarian will have to imagine something different, but the same rules apply: 20% proteins and fats (from nuts and seeds, unprocessed and preferably raw and organic – you can cook them, but you should do it, not the conveying machine in a factory), and 80% greenery.

 

Within two months, you will get a ‘feel’ for certain foods; you will crave the foods your body needs (and it won’t be the sugar addiction, either). You will have ‘adapted’ to your body again. You will feel great. You may not be skinny, you may not be fit, but you will be healthy. Which is the most important?

If you’re a sporty person, someone who does all that stuff like run and swim and cycle and gym, you probably already know the way your body reacts to certain food groups – just remember the grains – replace them! There are other things you can use for a while so check out: chickpeas, lentils, buckwheat, etc. (learn the difference between grain and seed and legume!). A very active person will eat more of the ‘sweet’ foods, like fruits and carrots and pumpkin (yes, they are sweet if you haven’t been in the habit of eating a kilo of sugar each week (or day)).

 

What We Do Wrong

Something serious to consider: which foods take the longest to digest (yep, the green things), eat them LAST so they can leave the place clean behind them. Eat protein first, followed by the green things. If you eat carbs, eat them last. This process of what goes into your body in which order is one of those things we’ve forgotten. But it is important. Protein and fat pass through the body most quickly, and if you eat them last, they’re left in the gut to do horrible things. Eat protein and fats first – critical to gut health.

The following is another:

When I was a little kid, and I got sick (in the country, in the middle of nowhere – oh, sorry, no; not in the middle: way, way, way out on the outer edges of the black stump that was exiled from the middle of nowhere), we had to deal with it with whatever was at hand. My Nan was the local healer, the herbalist, the medic. Everyone went to her, and only if she said she couldn’t fix it would they arrange a trip to town.

We’ve forgotten to do that. To look to ourselves first, to eat right in the first place, to consider the consequences of every bit of food we’ve grown to eat. Food and movement and community are our medics. Foods and herbals need to be re-learned so we can be the best health for our body. Movement and Community are who we are, and how we communicate. We need to remember that there is no commitment to community without our ACTIVE involvement. Get out there – say hello!

 

And where did it go wrong – in the beginning?

This is the real secret. The difference came when people began to leave the place of the origins of all man:

Some of the travellers had to eat starvation food: grains. The human being had to physically adapt: skin colour had to change, because without the proper nutritious food, not enough Vitamin D was going into the body. And skin became paler, and in some cases, white.

 

Remember: grains are starvation food, so unless you’re starving, you don’t need them. If you don’t need to lose body fat, then you’re probably not eating too many grains – but I don’t have to tell you that, do I?

 

The final note: it’s your body; you are the one who has to make the choices. So make informed choices. Look into it. Find facts that aren’t sponsored by drug companies or food manufacturers or . . . you get the picture. Trust the way the human body has adapted, work with it, not against it. Find your true, healthy self. And eat REAL food.

 

 

Some of the sources:

http://www.sbs.com.au/shop/product/category/DVDs/11569/-b-PRE-ORDER-b-br-DNA-Nation-DVD-Download

http://www.sbs.com.au/shop/product/category/DVDs/11275/Trust-Me-I-m-A-Doctor

 

There are others, you find them.

The Truth About Your Healthy Body (the pdf version for you to take away).

 

The Other Side

The continuing journey of Shadow:

Chapter 10 – Moolanda, the Other Side

Chapter 11 – A Strange Land

Chapter 12 – The War Wizard

On Shadow’s Page.

Beware the sounds that follow in a strange land.