Kwei Quartey's Blog, page 18

Views from Stockholm

A collection of random photos from the city of Stockholm, Sweden, where I'm spending a few days of vacation. (Click on images to magnify.)

Stockholm skyline:

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Millesgarden, founded by Swedish sculptor Carl Milles and wife Olga, a collection of statue-dotted outdoor gardens and interior collections of antiquities.

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My irrepressible nephew, Lukas, quite possibly the happiest, most effervescent kid in the world:

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THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE TERMITE'S HILL

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Having lived in Ghana where these insect-constructed architectural marvels are common, THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE TERMITE'S HILL struck me as a good title for my next book. The sequel could be "The Termite That Bit the Girl."

No? Too much like the titles of the novels of a certain deceased Swedish novelist? Oh, but I thought that was the whole idea. I was hoping that since my novels are, like Larsson's, set in an exotic locale (Ghana – that's exotic, right?), if I titled my next few works along ...

THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE TERMITE HILL

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Having lived in Ghana where these insect-constructed architectural marvels are common, THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE TERMITE HILL struck me as a good title for my next book. The sequel could be "The Termite That Bit the Girl."

No? Too much like the titles of the novels of a certain deceased Swedish novelist? Oh, but I thought that was the whole idea. I was hoping that since my novels are, like Larsson's, set in an exotic locale (Ghana – that's exotic, right?), if I titled my next few works along...

Kwei Interviews Quartey – Part 2 of 2

Q: So, the question was how much of Detective Inspector Darko Dawson is me, or how much of me is in Darko. To clear something up from the very start, I don't smoke marijuana, nor do I drink alcohol. In the interest of full disclosure, I'll tell you that I did try marijuana twice when I was in med school, and yes, I did inhale, and on both occasions I found it unpleasant. So that was the end of my involvement with weed, or "wee," as it's called in Ghana.
K: Why does Darko smoke wee?
Q: Apart...

Kwei Interviews Quartey – Part 1

A few days ago on a mild summer afternoon, I paid a visit to Dr. Quartey (full name Jones-Quartey) to converse about books and writing. We sat on the front porch of his modest two-bedroom Pasadena bungalow overlooking the front yard, which has an avocado tree and drought-resistant plants.

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KWEI: Thank you for seeing me at such short notice, by the way.
QUARTEY: No worries. My pleasure.
K: So do you find this neighborhood conducive for writing?
Q: Very much. It's a quiet street and the house...

Perils in publishing

In July, Andrew Wylie, a top literary agent, caused quite some consternation in publishing circles when he announced that his new electronic book publishing venture, Odyssey Editions, via an exclusive arrangement with Amazon, was going to put out e-books of older works from authors he represents. Trouble is, the p-book ("paper-book," old school) rights of those same works are owned by other ["conventional":] publishing houses. A for-instance scenario: Wylie represents author Ralph Ellison...

Becoming regular

Not a reference to metamucil or anything like that. What I want to say is that I will make every effort, in my "spare time", to regularly post a blog. It's likely that I'll do it on weekends. It might be on any subject, but will be mostly about writing. I don't plan to send an email notification every time I publish a posting – God knows we all get way too many emails – but I will when I think the posting is significant, e.g. pub dates, book signings etc.

Coming Soon

THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE TERMITE HILL

Happy Release Day

Trade Paperback WIFE OF THE GODS goes on sale today, August 3, 2010

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_7?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=wife+of+the+gods+by+kwei+quartey&sprefix=wife+of&ih=4_0_3_1_0_0_0_0_0_1.136_162&fsc=-1

Darko Dawson Drinks Malta Guinness

Several readers, including those I've met at various book club discussions, have been curious about a beverage that Darko Dawson can't get enough of in WOTG and the upcoming CHILDREN OF THE STREET (COTS). It's a carbonated malt soft drink called Malta Guinness. Much like beer, it's brewed from barley and hops. Its rich dark brown color is similar to stout, but Malta is very sweet with molasses overtones. If you generally don't drink soda, you might find Malta too syrupy for your taste. It...