Clancy Tucker's Blog, page 259

14 May 2015 - WORLD'S LARGEST INDOOR RAIN FOREST

WORLD'S LARGESTINDOOR RAIN FOREST
G'day folks,
Check out this extraordinary place.

Tropical Islands Resort is an artificial tropical resort located about 60 kilometers south of Berlin and is housed within the largest free-standing dome in the world. This massive airplane-hanger-like structure is 360 meters long, 210 meters wide, 107 meters high, and is supported by 14,000 tons of steel. It is large enough to host 8 entire soccer fields. Even the New York Statue of Liberty (93 meters) could stand upright in it, and the Paris Eiffel Tower (322 meters) could lie in it.

The Dome offers enough space for the skyline of Berlin's Potsdamer Platz including the Sony Centre, the gatehouse and the Daimler Chrysler skyscraper.

At 5.5 million m³, it is one of the largest buildings on Earth by volume, and is the world's largest single hall without supporting pillars inside. The structure was commissioned as an airship hangar in November 2000, but the airship it was intended to house – the CL160 – was never built. The company went bankrupt in mid-2002. Two years later, Tropical Islands Resort was opened. 

Inside the dome is the world’s largest indoor rainforest with 30,000 trees, bushes and groundcover. There are carnivorous plants, banana trees, coffee bushes, jungle creepers and other exotic plants. A kilometre-long path winds through the forest and a bridge over the mangrove swamp gives great views. The windows on one side of the dome are transparent, allowing real sunshine to come in and nourish over 500 species of plants. 

Guests can lie on the 200 meter-long man-made beach, swim in the an artificial sea and enjoy warm 26 degrees Celsius weather all year round. The tropical sea is lined with sandy beaches and dotted with small tropical islands decorated with grass huts. Against the grey hangar wall is a backdrop of a blue sky with a few clouds. 

Surrounding the pools are re-creations of famous architectural wonders from Asia like Angkor Wat, the Balinese Temple Gate, a longhouse from Borneo, and a traditional Thai house. Ponds and canals wind their way around various activity sites, and large Buddha statues are everywhere. 

The complex is open year round, 24 hours a day, with a multitude of attractions to keep you busy. There is a swimming pool, large enough to accommodate up to 8,000 visitors a day, a 25 meter water slide, mini-golf course, restaurants serving gourmet meals, shopping pavilion, bars, daycares, and even overnight camping on Paradise beach. 

Tropical paradise even has some environmentally-conscious features, such as recycled water from the swimming pools is used to waters the plant life found inside, which itself grows from custom-made soil made of sand, organic waste, clay, and tree bark. Natural UV light is also able to permeate through the dome and give plants access to sunlight and warmth. 

And because of the humidity found within, water condensation periodically gathers inside the dome, which then falls back down producing spontaneous rain showers, further adding to the resorts tropical climate.

The resort is located in the municipality of Krausnick, in Brandenburg, Germany, about 60 km south-southeast of Berlin and an hour’s drive away.


Okay, now let’s have a look.












































Clancy's comment: Wow! Maybe a thing of the future, eh?
I'm ...

12 May 2015 - WISDOM TO PONDER

WISDOM TO PONDER
G'day folks,
Time to sit back and ponder as you read some wise sayings.





















































Clancy's comment: Mm ... Anything resonate with you?

I'm ...

11 May 2015 - ADRIAN WORSLEY - Sculptures

ADRIAN WORSLEY
- Sculptures -G'day folks,
Today, I introduce an amazing artist from New Zealand who creates awesome pieces from scrap. Adrian designs and constructs unique one-off sculptures from recycling scrap metal, tools and farm implements sourced locally around New Zealand.
Originally a fitter welder who moved into stainless steel and then taught himself woodworking, Adrian discovered a passion for creating with recycled materials. Starting with furniture and cabinetry in houses, restaurants, cafes and vineyards Adrian now spends nearly all of his time sculpting works of art. 

 The process of creation of Adrian’s sculptures is a story in itself. The inspiration of a work may come from anywhere including a client or an interest of his own. The design will occur firstly in Adrian’s head as he researches the item via photos, books, real life examples and Google and thinks carefully about how to construct the piece and what item of scrap will best represent what he is trying to achieve.

There are periods when Adrian thinks about it for months, designing and redesigning many times over in his head before ever picking up a tool to create. Often, when its time, the construction of the artwork is fast Adrian works as long as the creative flow is there which can mean sleepless nights. Time has little meaning as inspiration dictates to Adrian his work hours.

Such is the choice of materials to work with Adrian will wait for exactly the right piece of scrap to turn up before continuing with the sculpture. It is in this way that Adrian’s sculptures are amazing replicas or have a life-like appearance to the genuine article that can be uncanny. This is where you get drawn in to his unique talent – examining the pieces and realising that you are looking at a pair of hedge clippers, down piping, roofing iron, spanners, shovels, recycled hay makers, pliers and horse shoes – all of which have created a praying mantis of such amazing detail it looks to be ready to leap off the side of the house.
Here are samples of his work.











Clancy's comment: Damn amazing, eh? Some people obviously have talent. Come to think of it, I think the top sculpture looks very similar to a mate of mine who now lives in New Zealand. 


I'm ...

10 May 2015 - MOMENTS IN HISTORY

MOMENTS IN HISTORY
G'day folks,
Ever wonder what happens when you forget history or are nationally arrogant?

 
JFK'S Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, was in France in the early 60's when DeGaulle decided to pull out of NATO. DeGaulle said he wanted all US military out of France as soon as possible.
Rusk responded "Does that include those who are buried here?"

You could have heard a pin drop
 
There was a conference in France where a number of international engineers were taking part, including French and American. During a break, one of the French engineers came back into the room saying 'Have you heard the latest dumb stunt Bush has done? He has sent an aircraft carrier to Indonesia to help the tsunami victims. What does he intend to do, bomb them?'

A Boeing engineer stood up and replied quietly:
'Our carriers have three hospitals on board that can treat several hundred people; they are nuclear powered and can supply emergency electrical power to shore facilities; they have three cafeterias with the capacity to feed 3,000 people three meals a day. They can produce several thousand gallons of fresh water from sea water each day, and they carry half a dozen helicopters for use in transporting victims and injured to and from their flight deck. We have eleven such ships; how many does France have?'

 You could have heard a pin drop.



A Royal Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference that included Admirals from the U.S. , British, Canadian, Australian and French Navies. At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a large group of Officers that included personnel from most of those countries. Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks but a French Admiral suddenly complained that, whereas Europeans learn many languages, the English learn only English. He then asked, 'Why is it that we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French?'

Without hesitating, the British Admiral replied, 'Maybe it's because the Brit's, Canadians, Aussie's, South Africans, and Americans arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German.'

 You could have heard a pin drop.  

 AND THIS STORY FITS RIGHT IN WITH THE ABOVE...

Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman of 83, arrived in Paris by plane.. At French Customs, he took a few minutes to locate his passport in his carry on.
"You have been to France before, monsieur?" the customs officer asked sarcastically.
Mr. Whiting admitted that he had been to France previously.
"Then you should know enough to have your passport ready."
The Englishman said, 'The last time I was here, I didn't have to show it."
"Impossible. You English always have to show your passports on arrival in France!"
The English senior gave the Frenchman a long hard look. Then he quietly explained,
''Well, when I came ashore at Gold Beach on D-Day in 1944 to help liberate this country, I couldn't find a single Frenchmen to show a passport to."



You could have heard a pin drop.

 

Clancy's comment: Mm ... I guess it pays to think before you speak. 

Happy Mother's Day to all you mums.
I'm ...
















 

9 May 2015 - EDWARD SNOWDEN

EDWARD SNOWDEN
G'day folks,

Edward Snowden is a former National Security Agency subcontractor who made headlines in 2013 when he leaked top secret information about NSA surveillance activities.


 “I don't want to live in a society that does these sort of things ... I do not want to live in a world where everything I do and say is recorded. That is not something I am willing to support or live under.”
Edward Snowden
Synopsis

Born in North Carolina in 1983, Edward Snowden worked for the National Security Agency through subcontractor Booz Allen in the NSA's Oahu office. After only three months, Snowden began collecting top-secret documents regarding NSA domestic surveillance practices, which he found disturbing. After Snowden fled to Hong Kong, China, newspapers began printing the documents that he had leaked to them, many of them detailing invasive spying practices against American citizens. With the U.S. charging Snowden under the Espionage Act but many groups calling him a hero, Snowden remains in Russia, with the U.S. government working on extradition.


Edward Snowden was born in North Carolina on June 21, 1983, and grew up in Elizabeth City. His mother works for the federal court in Baltimore (the family moved to Ellicott City, Maryland, when Snowden was young) as chief deputy clerk for administration and information technology. Snowden's father, a former Coast Guard officer, lives in Pennsylvania.
Snowden dropped out of high school and studied computers at Anne Arundel Community College in Arnold, Maryland (from 1999 to 2001, and again from 2004 to 2005), later earning a GED. Between his stints at community college, Snowden spent four months (May to September 2004) in the Army Reserves in special-forces training. According to Army sources, he did not complete any training, and Snowden has said that he was discharged after he broke his legs in an accident.
Two years after leaving Anne Arundel for the second time, Snowden landed a job with the National Security Agency as a security guard, which he somehow parlayed into an information-technology job at the Central Intelligence Agency. Snowden has said that in 2007, the CIA stationed him in Geneva, but in 2009 he left to work for private contractors, among them Dell and Booz Allen Hamilton, a tech consulting firm. With Dell, he was shipped off to Japan to work as a subcontractor in an NSA office before being transferred to an office in Hawaii. After a short while, he moved from Dell to Booz Allen, another NSA subcontractor, and after only three months with Booz Allen, Snowden would make a decision that would change his life forever.


While working at the NSA's Oahu office, Snowden began noticing government programs involving the NSA spying on American citizens via phone calls and internet use. Before long, leaving his "very comfortable life" and $200,000 salary behind, in May 2013, Snowden began copying top-secret NSA documents while at work, building a dossier on practices that he found invasive and disturbing. The documents contained vast and damning information on the NSA's domestic surveillance practices, including spying on millions of American citizens under the umbrella of programs such as PRISM.
After he had compiled a large store of documents, Snowden told his NSA supervisor that he needed a leave of absence to undergo medical treatment. He had been recently diagnosed with epilepsy. On May 20, 2013, Snowden took a flight to Hong Kong, China, where he remained during the early stages of the fallout. This fallout began the following month, on June 5, when the United Kingdom's Guardiannewspaper released secret documents obtained from Snowden about an American intelligence body (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court) demanding that Verizon release information "on a daily basis" culled from its American customers' activities.
The following day, the Guardian and the Washington Times released Snowden's leaked information on PRISM, an NSA program that allows real-time information collection, in this case, solely information on American citizens. A flood of information followed, and the American people, the international community and the U.S. government have since been scrambling to either hear more about it or have Snowden arrested.    Aftermath"I'm willing to sacrifice [my former life] because I can't in good conscience allow the U.S. government to destroy privacy, internet freedom and basic liberties for people around the world with this massive surveillance machine they're secretly building," Snowden said after the fact, in a series of interviews given in his Hong Kong hotel room. One of the people he left behind was his girlfriend Lindsay Mills. The pair had been living together in Hawaii, and she reportedly had no idea that he was about to disclose classified information to the public. 
The U.S. government soon responded to Snowden's disclosures legally. On June 14, 2013, federal prosecutors charged Snowden with theft of government property, unauthorized communication of national defense information, and willful communication of classified intelligence with an unauthorized person. The last two charges fall under the Espionage Act. (Before President Barack Obama took office, the act had only been used for prosecutorial purposes three times since 1917; Since President Obama took office, it had been invoked seven times as of June 2013.)
Snowden remained in hiding for nearly one month, first asking Ecuador for asylum and then fleeing Hong Kong for Russia, whose government has denied the U.S. request to extradite him. While some decried him as a traitor, he did seem to be building some support for his cause, however. More than 100,000 people had signed an online petition asking Obama to pardon Snowden by late June.
The following month, Snowden made headlines again when it was announced that he had been offered asylum in Venezuela, Nicaragua and Bolivia. Around the same time, it was reported that Snowden was "stuck in transit" in Moscow after the U.S. annulled his passport, and that he had not yet made a decision on where, of the countries offering him asylum, he would be relocating. Snowden soon made up his mind, expressing an interest in staying in Russia. One of his lawyers, Anatoly Kucherena, gave an interview with CBS News. Kucherena said that Snowden would seek temporary asylum in Russia and possibly apply for Russian citizenship later. Snowden thanked Russia for giving him asylum and said that "in the end the law is winning."
That October, Snowden revealed that he no longer possessed any of the NSA files that he leaked to press. He gave those materials to the journalists he met with in Hong Kong, but he didn't keep any copies for himself. Snowden explained that "it wouldn't serve the public interest" for him to have brought the files to Russia, according to The New York Times. Around this time, Snowden's father, Lon Snowden, got a chance to visit with him in Moscow. Lon told the press that he supported his son, saying that "I know my son. I know he loves his country," according to a CNN report. He explained that his son was a "whistle-blower," not a "leaker." 


Living in Exile
Snowden received some bad news in November 2013. According to the Guardiannewspaper, his request to the U.S. government for clemency was rejected. The fallout from his disclosures continued to unfold over the next few months, including a legal battle over the collection of phone data by the NSA. President Barack Obama sought to calm fears over government spying in January 2014, ordering U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to review the country's surveillance programs. 
Still in exile, Snowden remained a polarizing figure. He made an appearance at the popular South by Southwest festival via teleconference in March 2014. Around this time, the U.S. military revealed that the information Snowden leaked may have caused so much damage to its security that the cost to repair it may run in the billions. 
In May 2014, Snowden gave a revealing interview with NBC News. He told Brian Williams that he was a trained spy who worked undercover as an operative for the CIA and NSA. Snowden explained that he viewed himself as a patriot, believing his actions had beneficial results. His leaking of information led to "a robust public debate" and "new protections in the United States and abroad for our rights to make that they're no longer violated." He also expressed an interest to go home to the United States. 
That same year, Snowden was featured in the critically acclaimed documentary film called Citizenfour. He had contacted filmmaker Laura Poitras before he leaked the NSA documents, and she filmed her meetings with him and Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald. The documentary has been nominated for an Academy Award. Since its release, Snowden has remained outspoken on government surveillance. He appeared with Poitras and Greenwald via video-conference in February 2015. 
That same month, Snowden spoke with students at Upper Canada College via video-conference. He told them that "the problem with mass surveillance is when you collect everything, you understand nothing," according to a CBC report. He went to say that government spying "fundamentally changes the balance of power between the citizen and the state."
   
Clancy's comment: Mm ... The citizen and the State.
I'm ...

8 May 2015 - QUOTES REGARDING POLITICS

QUOTES REGARDING POLITICS
G'day folks,
We have all heard some awful remark about a politician. I've heard heaps, and made many more of my own about them. Check out these remarks ...
Politics is the gentle art of getting votes 

   from the poor and campaign funds from the rich, 

   by promising to protect each from the other. 

   ~Oscar Am ringer, "the Mark Twain of American Socialism."

      

   I offered my opponents a deal: 

   "if they stop telling lies about me, 

   I will stop telling the truth about them". 

   ~Adlai Stevenson, campaign speech, 1952..

      A politician is a fellow who will lay down 

   your life for his country. 

   ~ Texas Guinan. 19th century American businessman

    
   I have come to the conclusion that politics is too serious 

   a matter to be left to the politicians. 

   ~Charles de G au lle, French general & politician

   
   Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, 

   it might be better to change the locks. 

   ~Doug Larson (English middle-distance runner who won gold medals at the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, 1902-1981)

      
   We hang petty thieves and appoint the bigger thieves to public office.
 ~Aesop, Greek slave & fable au thor

Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being
   governed by those who are dumber.
 ~Plato, ancient Greek Philosopher
Politicians are the same all over.

   They promise to build a bridge even where there is no river.
 ~Nikita Khrushchev, Russian Soviet politician

   
   When I was a boy I was told that anybody could become PM;

   I'm beginning to believe it.

   ~Quoted in 'Clarence Darrow for the Defense' by Irving Stone.

      
   Politicians are people who,

   when they see light at the end of the tunnel, go out and buy some more tunnel.
 ~John Quinton, American actor/writer      
 

   What happens if a politician drowns in a river?

   It's pollution.   

What happens if all of them drown?  

It's a solution....!!!

Clancy's comment:  Wow, these would bring tears to a glass eye.
I'm ...

7 May 2015 - REBECCA FORSTER - Guest Author

REBECCA FORSTER
- Guest Author -
G'day folks,
Welcome to an interview with a very successful author from the USA who has been in this business for a long time. 
Welcome, Rebecca ...

1.TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF AND YOUR WRITING JOURNEY.   Unlike most writers, I didn't dream of being a writer. I never kept journals or wrote poetry. I was a student. I earned my B.A. and MBA and embarked a business career - fashion and travel were my specialty.  I went to China for my client in 1983 and that trip turned me into a travelholic.  In November 2014 I lived in Tirana, Albania for five weeks while my husband taught at the Tirana Law School as a Fulbright Specialist. My husband is a superior court judge here in Los Angeles and I'm a mom to two grown son: one is an incredible playwright and novelist; the other is a businessman, his company is The Green Room Talent Management Agency in Hollywood. Dinner parties are my favourite form of entertainment. Pretty much I'll try everything once except bungee jumping or skydiving. Every single experience I have had, every tangent I've taken, has prepared me for this writing career. Now I am working on my thirtieth book in 30 years and each one is as exciting as the last.

2. WHEN AND HOW DID YOU BECOME A WRITER? I published my first book 30 years ago. At the time, I had a client who preferred that I bring my team to his home for meetings. His wife would often come in and out of the room to ask him questions. In my frustration one evening I asked my secretary, "Who does that woman think she is?"  To which my secretary replied, "That's Danielle Steel." I didn't know who Danielle Steel was, but I learned quickly. When I made a flip remark that "I could write a book", my secretary dared me to do it. The challenge was on. No one was more surprised than me when my very first book was published.  That was the beginning of a journey during which I found my true passion. However, I actually became a 'writer' years later. I had a lot to learn about the craft. I'm sure I still do.
3.WHAT TYPE OF PREPARATION DO YOU DO FOR A MANUSCRIPT? DO YOU PLAN EVERYTHING FIRST OR JUST SHOOT FROM THE HIP?   A little of both. I must have a title before I begin because that drives the theme and plot. The Witness Series books are especially intricate with dual story lines, sometimes moving back and forth between time periods, so I will often make notes to keep continuity on track. But I always know down to the last piece of dialogue how the book opens and closes. It's like seeing a movie in my head. I also do a lot of research especially in terms of the law and politics. I want my stories to be as spot-on-realistic as possible. I think it makes a novel more exciting if readers ask themselves 'does that really happen?'

4.WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT BEING A WRITER? I love the challenge of putting all the pieces together: characterization, pacing, plotting, story. I don't want the reader to see the building blocks, the tape and glue that hold the book together. It's like finishing a big puzzle - sky and everything. The craft is exhilarating.
5.WHAT IS THE HARDEST THING ABOUT BEING A WRITER?That people think it's easy.


6.WHAT WERE YOU IN A PAST LIFE, BEFORE YOU BECAME A WRITER?      I was an advertising executive at a time when few women were on the business end of things. Most women were in the creative departments but I found marketing fascinating.  I have also been a counter girl at Kentucky Fried Chicken, a bar maid in a Chicago dive, a secretary, a seamstress, worked in a pet shop and a wig store, and have been a writing instructor at the UCLA Writers Program. I've been working since I was 15 and every job I've ever held influenced my writing.                                                                          
7.WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST WRITING ACHIEVEMENT?  The creation of The Witness Series. I wasn't sure I could write three books when Penguin Putnam suggested that Josie Bates was a worthy series character. Now there are 7 books. I think following the characters' lives instead of continually creating courtroom dramas has made this unique in the genre and that is satisfying.
8.WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON AT THE MOMENT.Two new series. The first will be a police procedural and the lead novel is Severed Relations. The second is a step out of my comfort zone - humor. I can't wait to see how those books are received. I laughed while I was writing them, but I'm not sure that counts.
9.WHAT INSPIRES YOU? My husband. He worked his way through law school as a moving man - he can still pack a mean truck. As an attorney, he was a federal prosecutor specializing in organized crime and terrorism. He was one of the youngest judges appointed to the California bench and handled some very high profile criminal and civil cases. He was presiding judge of the largest court in the world (L.A.). He is nice and funny and smart. He inspires me everyday to be curious about the world and to never ever make judgements until I hear both sides of a story. I think that counsel is reflected in my books. I try to have a character to voice all aspects of the theme I choose to write about.
10.WHAT GENRE DO YOU WRITE?     I write legal and political thrillers for the most part. I am fascinated by our exquisite and yet exquisitely flawed systems. They are rich backgrounds to a character's story and provide ethical and moral dilemmas I find fascinating.

11.DO YOU HAVE ANY TIPS FOR NEW WRITERS?                    Your fourth draft of a book might be ready to send to publishers. I learned the hard way that editing is where the good writing happens.

12.DO YOU SUFFER FROM WRITER’S BLOCK?            I sometimes make things harder than they need to be so I'm not sure if that's writer's block or simply building my own wall to ram my head into. I fight it by doing something physical: playing tennis, taking a hike, cleaning the house, sewing, quilting. The best cure for writer's block is travel - doesn't have to be exotic or expensive - but it works. When I'm at conferences I love to talk about Creative Travel for writers because it's worked so well for me.



13.DO YOU HAVE A PREFERRED WRITING SCHEDULE?   I work like I did when I was a corporate maven. I start work about 7:30 a.m. and work until about 2:00 p.m. Then I do my errands and chores. I'm usually back to work answering emails, attending to social media and editing until 9:00 or 10:00. I do some sort of work seven days a week. I'm one of those people who need a disciplined schedule.

14.DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE WRITING PLACE?   For 15 years I have been going to a local coffee shop, Coffee Cartel, to write. The baristas will take messages for me and there are regulars who inquire how the new book is going. It's an eclectic place so I also get lots of character inspiration. If I stay home I'll clean the house or raid the fridge. Best to get away.

15.WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST JOY IN WRITING?Getting an email or a letter from a reader. I still write to my first fan. We've been pen pals for 29 years. Her grandkids and my kids grew up on the pages of our snail mail letters and then our emails.

16.WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE AUTHOR AND WHY?         There is no one favourite author. I like Stephen King's early work. He is superb at characterization. Wilkie Collins' Woman In White, considered the first legal thriller, inspired me greatly. Recently, I read a book called I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes. After 800 pages I wanted more. His style, dialogue, characterization were fantastic.  His story was seamless. Independent authors who have become favourites are David Wisehart who wrote Devil's Lair.  David is one of the smartest writers I've read and he changed my mind about Indies. And, of course, Eric Czuleger, Immortal L.A. Eric is my son but he is an exceptionally talented novelist and playwright. Both these Indies brought me into the world of Magical Realism with intricate history laced books. Their unique use of the language is just like a four course meal with a decadent desert.

17.WHAT’S THE GREATEST COMPLIMENT YOU EVER RECEIVED FROM A READER?       "Even without the cover, I would know I was reading one of your books." That comment told me I had finally found my true writing voice.

18.WHAT WAS THE WORST COMMENT FROM A READER?         Early in my career an editor once sent a rejection letter saying that it was "a pity Ms. Forster was not as intelligent on the page as she was in person". Ouch.
19.WRITERS ARE SOMETIMES INFLUENCED BY THINGS THAT HAPPEN IN THEIR OWN LIVES. ARE YOU?              Yes. Always.





20.OTHER THAN WRITING, WHAT ELSE DO YOU LOVE?    Travel, travel, travel. Traveling with my family. Traveling to speaking engagements. Traveling just because. Adventures. I spent two days on the USS Nimitz and landed by tail hook on the deck of the carrier. Very cool. Cooking, sewing, tennis, reading, movies. Throwing dinner parties - one side of the table judges and lawyers, the other side creative types. It is always lively around our table.
21.DID YOU HAVE YOUR BOOK / BOOKS PROFESSIONALLY EDITED BEFORE PUBLICATION?      Yes. I've worked with Jenny Jensen for years. I credit her with pushing me to ever more sophisticated story levels. Line editing is important, but content editing is critical. She worked on Keeping Counsel and that book became a USA Today Bestseller. She guided me through the Witness Series and those books were on the Amazon U.S. and U.K. top ten lists for two years. She's awesome.

22.DESCRIBE YOUR PERFECT DAY.    Tennis early in the morning (I play on a competitive team), fitting into my favourite jeans, getting my favourite table at Coffee Cartel, writing 4,000 words without flinching, having my husband email and ask me on a dinner date where we'll have Chinese food and I'll get a great fortune in my cookie. Oh, and then my sons would surprise me with a visit. Eric would bring a new book idea to discuss and Alex would bring my grand dog Tucker. Perfect day.

23.IF YOU WERE STUCK ON A DESERT ISLAND WITH ONE PERSON, WHO WOULD IT BE? WHY?           My husband. We've been married 38 years. I know I could count on him to get coconuts, make a fire, be funny and I would never be afraid even when it got really dark.
24.WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IF YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO SPEAK TO WORLD LEADERS?     When you speak, please actually say something.
25.WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE?     Always more writing. I have a movie script - a romantic comedy - with wonderful attachments. I would love to see that produced so if you know anyone with a million dollars send him (or her) my way. I will spend time with my mom who is 90 and still carries her own suitcase at the airport when she travels. Write some more. Travel some more. Be curious.
26.WHAT FIVE BOOKS WOULD YOU TAKE TO HEAVEN?     I love these questions! The Jambalaya Cookbook, Eyewitness (can I take one of my own?), a letter my grandfather wrote (not a book but a great story), Goodnight Moon, Immortal L.A.
27.DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN ANY OF YOUR CHARACTERS?  I hear myself in each of my characters, including villains.


28.DOES THE PUBLISHING INDUSTRY FRUSTRATE YOU?  I get that publishing is a business and, truthfully, that part of the indusry is interesting to me. Many writers see only the creative side but I can't be too frustrated when I understand there are bottom lines to be met, distribution channels to maintain, incredible overhead, etc. What I find frustrating is my inability to make calculated professional decisions because of market whims and fashions. There is that magical, fairy dust thing going on that an author can never predict. Think of 50 Shades of Grey- who saw that coming?  I do have a pet peeve that I suppose you could call a frustration and that is the celebrity advance. I have seen so many multi-million dollar deals for celebrity books that, once published, don't sell through. I'd like to see more reasonable advances to celebrities and then have publishers fund 10 new authors with potential. By that I mean publishers should identify potential in every genre, not just literary fiction. That would be a win/win for authors, readers, publishers and even the celebrities.
29.DID YOU EVER THINK OF QUITTING?Yes, but not for the reason you think. After I read I Am Pilgrim and Gone Girl, I thought the great commercial books have now been written. Then I thought again. Why can't I top those? I started writing on a dare so daring myself to be a better writer seems an appropriate challenge. Those two books are the ones to beat in my mind.
30.WHAT WAS YOUR FAVOURITE MANUSCRIPT TO WRITE? WHY? I've grown as an author, so I am proud of improving with each book. I do have a few that are close to my heart. Before Her Eyesis very personal. Both my father and father-in-law passed within three months of one another after long illnesses. In the last weeks I was privy to their perception of the world they were leaving. It was both fascinating and unsettling and strangely comforting. This book is a traditional police procedural in third person and a fantasy in first person. I am very proud that each section dovetails into the next by utilizing the senses - sight, scent, and sound - and that the very last page has been such a surprise to readers. It truly is the book of my heart. The next one was Eyewitness. That book was inspired by my first trip to Albania to visit my son in the Peace Corps. Combining history and modern day and finding common ground between ancient law and modern justice was an incredible - and incredibly satisfying - challenge.

31.HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE ‘SUCCESS’ AS A WRITER. Each year of my writing life has had success markers: starting a book, finishing a book, my first contract, seeing my book in a bookstore, a signing, finding my book on the USA Today bestseller list, recovering and continuing to write when another didn't do well, eventually making a living as a writer. Each day an artist or writer plies their craft - puts pen to paper or brush to canvas - they experience a success. Many will say what they want to write a book but only a few will actually do it. That is success. Moving forward is success. Learning the business and applying it is success.
32.WHAT SHOULD READERS WALK AWAY FROM YOUR BOOKS KNOWING? HOW SHOULD THEY FEEL?                       I hope my stories will stick with my readers long after they have finished reading the last page. I choose topics that I think I want to explore: father's rights, mind-control experiments our government conducted in the 50s, parental responsibility. I want readers to feel breathless after reading my books and maybe a little uneasy with the questions each story raises. That's the way I feel after I write one.
33.HOW MUCH THOUGHT GOES INTO DESIGNING A BOOK COVER?So much! I'm just relaunched The Witness Series, Before Her Eyes and Character Witness with brand new covers that I think are beautiful and definitive. It was a long process.
34.WHAT’S YOUR ULTIMATE DREAM?      I dream of being read internationally. Currently Hostile Witness has been translated into French and German, so I'm making headway. To be honest, though, I'm pretty sure I am living the dream right now. I write everyday, I write about what is important to me, and I talk to readers and other authors from all over the world thanks to the Internet. When I wrote my first book on a typewriter my dream was typing a page without a typo. Who knew dreams come true?
35.WRITING IS ONE THING. WHAT ABOUT MARKETING YOU, YOUR BOOKS AND YOUR BRAND? ANY THOUGHTS? The marketing I do is very personal. I like to connect one person at a time and as often as possible. It makes me smile when people are surprised that I write back when they send me a message. They expect an automated response. For me that connection is a huge joy. I have to honor that kind of support by writing the best books I can. I do a lot of speaking engagements both to entertain philanthropic groups or bar associations or teach at conferences. I was a keynote at the Civil Judges Conference recently and to sit in the courts formal courtroom and speak to a gathering of judges about the law and inspiration was so cool. I love going to book groups. Bottom line I think my natural gregariousness serves to build a platform.


36.ARE YOUR BOOKS SELF-PUBLISHED?         I was traditionally published for 25 years. I've been an Indie for the last five. I dohave an agent who handles foreign and film rights.
37.DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN FIVE WORDS.   Wife, mom, curious, hardworking, happy.
38.WHAT PISSES YOU OFF MOST?  Rudeness. Arrogance.
39.WHAT IS THE TITLE OF THE LAST BOOK YOU READ? GOOD ONE? Broken April by Ismail Kadare. He is an Albanian author who wrote about blood feud (Albanian blood feud inspired my book, Eyewitness) and it was interesting to see how he handled the subject.
40.WHAT WOULD BE THE VERY LAST SENTENCE YOU’D WRITE? Life is what you make it; make it interesting.
41.WHAT WOULD MAKE YOU HAPPIER THAN YOU ARE NOW? CARE TO SHARE?    Nothing could make me more content than I am now. I won't tempt the fates by asking for more. Then again, I wouldn't turn more down if it came my way.
42.ANYTHING YOU’D LIKE TO ADD?    You pretty much covered everything with these great questions, so how about thank you to every reader who gives my work a go. That is always appreciated.






Website: http:/www.rebeccaforster.com

Twitter: @Rebecca_forster
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rebeccaforster 
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccaforster



 BOOKS VIA AMAZON:


Clancy's comment: Thank you, Rebecca, for such detailed answers. Well, folks, yet again, another top-selling author has been presented. Check out Rebecca's books.

I'm ...

6 May 2015 - EPIC PHOTO SHOOT

EPIC PHOTO SHOOT
G'day folks,
Here is something different. The sheer cliff wall or snowy, wind-blasted peak of an icy mountain is a rough place to create large-scale photographic works of art, but that’s exactly what Swiss photographer Robert Bösch does. His photos can involve hundreds of mountain climbers braving difficult conditions to get the perfect shot.

To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the first ascent of the Matterhorn ridge in the Alps by Edward Whymper and his team, Mammut, a Swiss mountaineering equipment company, asked Bösch to take a special photo to mark the occasion for the brand’s 2015 ad campaign. A team of mountain climbers ascended the Matterhorn’s Hörnli ridge and lit bright red lights that, at dawn, illuminated the path that Whymper took with his team to make the first successful ascent. You can see this year’s photo, and many other incredible feats of mountain photography by Bösch, below!


















































Clancy's comment: Mm ... Some people are born crazy. Some just get crazier. Not my ideal day in the alps.

I'm ...

5 May 2015 - LIFE'S FULL OF SHARP TURNS - A Short Story

'LIFE'S FULL OF SHARP TURNS'
- A Short Story -
G'day folks,
Here's something different. It's a short story I wrote some years ago. Oddly, when I wrote it, I wasn't communicating with a prisoner on death row. I am now, and have been for sometime. 

He’d almost run out of time. Perched on the edge of his bunk, the prisoner casually glanced at a silver clock on the wall outside his cell. The big hand had not moved. He frowned, lay down and refused to look at it again. The authorities would notify him when it was time. That’s what happened on death row. Resigned to an unfortunate outcome, he recalled something his father had always said, “Life’s full of sharp turns”.      ‘Sharp turns don’t get any sharper when you sit on death row,’ he muttered, and thought of his young lawyer who’d worked tirelessly to free him. He’d even sold his home to bankroll the lengthy case and offer the best defense. However, there were no hard feelings. They’d become good friends. Given the same circumstances, he’d employ the same lawyer. Even now, he was working diligently to have his sentence commuted; lodging appeals for clemency to the Governor. 
     In the large administration building a few hundred yards away, stood an older man a year from retirement, having spent forty years in the prison system. Standing behind his desk, the warden peered at the quadrangle below; one that provided recreational space for inmates. Observing the quadrangle was something he’d done countless times before. Today he felt lonely; for himself and for a man to be executed. For four decades he’d learned to listen to his gut when it came to people; especially prisoners. His gut had never let him down. In fact, it had inspired him to read every word of the court transcripts relating to the prisoner in cell forty-three. His research had engulfed him, and convinced him of the man’s innocence. Unfortunately the prisoner’s fate was in the hands of the Governor, a man who’d never commuted a sentence on death row, rising to power on a tough law and order platform. The warden sighed. He looked at his watch for the umpteenth time, folded his arms and said a quiet prayer to anyone who’d listen.


     Miles away at a large palatial mansion, two men were behind closed doors; a promising young lawyer and the State Governor. After an emotional phone call, the powerful man had finally allowed the lawyer ten minutes of his time. Outside, two women sat in a beaten-up vehicle, the lawyer’s young wife and the convicted murderer’s spouse. They’d done all their talking and sat in silence. It was time to pray. The occupant of cell forty-three was also praying. He could hear every second tick away, knowing that the warders would soon arrive to prepare for his execution. 
     As the Governor stood up to signal the end of their futile conversation, his telephone rang loudly.       ‘Excuse me,’ he said with an irritated expression. The lawyer sat with his heart in his mouth. His visit had been fruitless. A passionate plea for leniency had fallen on deaf ears, and the stresses and strains of the past two years had hit him like a hammer. Deep-seated pangs of failure and inadequacy overwhelmed him and his temples throbbed. ‘Hello. Yes, it’s the Governor here. What? Are you sure, Commissioner?’ Anxiously, the Governor cancelled the call and pressed another button on the telephone – a red one. 
     The lawyer glanced at his watch. With twenty-three minutes to be present at the execution, he sat on the edge of his seat and buried his head in his hands as tears of despair welled in his eyes.     ‘Warden! It’s the Governor. Abort the execution! I repeat … Abort the execution,’ he hollered. ‘Yes … He’s innocent.’ The Governor gently replaced the handset and offered a wry smile when the lawyer looked up in disbelief.     ‘Governor … Did I hear you correctly?’      ‘Yes. That was the Police Commissioner. Another man has confessed to the murder.’      The lawyer raised his eyebrows and muttered. ‘Jeez.’


     A press conference was conducted that evening; attended by all the networks. The previous occupant of cell forty-three sat quietly; flanked by his lawyer and his wife, surrounded by a bank of microphones. Standing at the back of the large crowd was the lawyer’s emotionally charged wife. Standing alongside her was an older man – the warden. Neither had ever met. In the warden’s coat pocket were two letters. One, was a copy of a compassionate letter he’d mailed to the Governor, requesting a stay of execution for an innocent man on death row. The other, was a personal letter from his doctor; received that very day. It contained bad news. He had three months to live. The warden casually tapped his coat-pocket and muttered an expression he’d heard from an innocent inmate on death row ...  ‘Life’s full of sharp turns.’


Clancy's comment: There you go. Hope you enjoyed.
I'm ...

 

4 May 2015 - WISDOM AND DR. SEUSS

WISDOM AND DR. SEUSS
G'day folks,

In 1957, Theodor Seuss Geisel published The Cat in the Hat and would continue to capture our imagination with a total of 46 children's books in the span of his career. 

With whimsical characters and snappy rhymes, Dr. Seuss not only entertained but also offered timeless words of wisdom for young and old alike. 

So here are some of his snappiest …
 On Being LoyalI meant what I said
And I said what I meant...
An elephant's faithful
One hundred per cent!       
      -Horton Hatches the Egg


On Equality and Justice
I know, up on top
you are seeing great sights,
But down at the bottom
we, too, should have rights.       
      -Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories
On Respecting Your Elders
You must not
hop on Pop.       
      -Hop on Pop
On Life's Mysteries
'Cause you never can tell
What goes on down below!
This pool might be bigger
Than you or I know!       
      -McElligot's Pool


On Diversity
We see them come.
We see them go.
And some are slow.
Some are high.
And some are low.
Not one of them
is like another.
Don't ask us why.
Go ask your mother.       
      -One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish
On Facing Up to Adversity
I learned there are troubles
Of more than one kind.
Some come from ahead
And some come from behind.But I've bought a big bat.
I'm all ready, you see.
Now my troubles are going
To have troubles with me!     
      -I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew


On Being True to Yourself
You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You're on your own.
And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy
who'll decide where to go.        
      -Oh, the Places You'll Go!   Clancy's comment: I know many people who devoured his books. I wasn't one of them, but maybe these will bring back some memories for you.I'm ...