Isobel Blackthorn's Blog, page 32

All Because of You gets a 5-star badge!

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All Because of You: Eleven tales of refuge and hope received this awesome badge last month!

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“Throughout the collection, Blackthorn utilizes rich descriptions and language to portray vivid images of the women and their lives, both the ones they are living now and the ones that they had escaped…a powerful collection of stories that hits you hard, leaving you contemplating the good and bad of life and looking forward to the future.”

https://readersfavorite.com/book-review/all-because-of-you/1

You can buy from Amazon and all good bookstores.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: All Because of You, domestic violence, family violence, Reader's Favorite, short story

Charlatan by Kate Braithwaite

CHARLATAN is based on the Affair of the Poisons that scandalized Paris in 1679.

In a hovel in the centre of Paris, the fortune-teller La Voisin holds a black mass, summoning the devil to help an unnamed client keep the love of Louis XIV.

Three years later, Athenais, Madame de Montespan, the King’s glamorous mistress, is nearly forty. She has borne Louis seven children but now seethes with rage as he falls for eighteen-year old Angelique de Fontanges.

At the same time, police chief La Reynie and his young assistant Bezons have uncovered a network of fortune-tellers and prisoners operating in the city. Athenais does not know it, but she is about to be named as a favoured client of the infamous La Voisin.

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Charlatan is an enthralling work of historical fiction set in the late 1600s in France. From a black mass held in the centre of Paris to the opulence of the court of Versailles, a story – part intrigue, part drama – unfolds that has the reader turning the pages on the edge of her seat.

What motivates an author to write historical fiction? The telling of stories untold? A revisioning of the past? Retrospective justice? Charlatan is all these and more. Told in richly descriptive and highly engaging prose, the work portrays in vivid details the torture, hangings and burnings of witches and their accomplices, including numerous priests. The author clearly knows her subject, the work as much informative as it is entertaining. Told from three points of view – the King’s mistress, the investigating police officer, the priest – Charlatan provides a fascinating insight into the occult underworld of Paris, its popularity, its secrecy, and the various motivations of those involved.

The premise of the story is the limitations of justice in a system riven by poverty and privilege, and it is a theme that plays out perfectly through masterful storytelling. The dialogue is impeccable and the pace never falters, the various storylines carefully woven into a seamless whole. Charlatan makes for confronting reading at times, but its all the stronger for not shying from the realities of the times. With Charlatan, Braithwaite makes a valuable contribution to raising awareness of a controversial subject.

website
purchase at book depository
amazon
more reviews on goodreads
Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Affair of the Poisons, Charlatan, Historical fiction, Kate Braithwaite

A Perfect Square – review by Suzanne Diprose

I’m delighted to share this thoughtful review of A Perfect Square by Suzanne Diprose.

This book held me captive as I read about the primary relationships between two different mothers and their daughters through time, different countries and challenges. It was intriguing to explore their particular journeys and tensions through life’s stages and the resilience of the relationships during these challenges and responsibilities. I can see shades of so many of us in these descriptive stories within the book.

The rich vignettes provide details that allow the reader to build an understanding of the characters, their backgrounds with its impact on their daily choices and selected lifestyles. The story engages you and the descriptions held so true.

We have visions of earlier inner city Melbourne, Sassafras and Dandenong Ranges, plus locales in rural Britain. When reading from my armchair I was transported to the UK or up the main street in Sassafras and right into the art gallery, garden shop, antiques shop and tea rooms.

As a local of the Hills I appreciated how Isobel depicted the environment, the early evenings and how dusk rolls in over the mountains every evening. Also Isobel’s words describe shades of people we rub shoulders with regularly up here in the hills. There are some great names to be on the lookout for – start collecting them as you read through! I kept diving back to see who would I meet!

The interwoven stories provide an insight into the essence of a creative and quirky soul with deep thinking, rich patterns, and concerns. Isobel is not afraid to outline the uneasy and challenging questions and parts of the mother and daughter relationships that span 30 or 40 years. A great read.

a perfect square can be purchased at the book depository, amazon and through all good bookstores. For a signed copy, contact the author via this site.
Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: A Perfect Square, Isobel Blackthorn, Kandinsky, literary fiction, Metaphysical Fiction, Synaesthesia, Visionary Fiction, Western Esotericism [image error] [image error]

Your Inner Editor is Waiting in the Wings

Delighted that my piece on creative flow has been published today on the Authors Talk About It website!

Here’s an extract:

“It was my daughter who put me onto flow. I could attribute the insight to my old hippy boyfriend back in the 1980s, for he was always telling me to ‘go with the flow’, travel along with life unfolding, but what he really meant, as I soon learned, was I had to go with his flow. Whereas my daughter alerted me to another sort of flow altogether.

Elizabeth was pointing to creative flow. Although she didn’t call it flow at first. That came later when she was introduced to psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s book called Flow. Elizabeth is a pianist and composer and she knew about flow because she’s shaped her life around it. And as a teacher she sees how others struggle with flow. Students who find it hard to reach a point of being at one with the music they are playing. Or when they struggle to sustain it….”

You can read the whole piece here.  http://authorstalkaboutit.com/your-inner-editor-is-waiting-in-the-wings/

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: AuthorsTalkAboutIt, Creative flow, creative writing, Csikszentmihalyi, transpersonal psychology

Writing for Hope

I’m honoured to have been given the opportunity to perform one of my short stories in support of Knox PLEDGE for gender equality.

The high tea serves to launch a series of creative writing workshops I’ll be giving next year for survivors of family violence.

Storytelling is one of the most powerful mediums we have to convey our truths. I’ve laid to rest many inner demons that way. The short story form lends itself to autobiographical reflections. Above all, the effort of writing our truth in a form fit for other’s eyes leads to personal transformation and empowerment.

2017 is set to be an extraordinary year!

 

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: domestic violence, family violence, Gender equality, Knox PLEDGE, short story, women's refuges, women's shelters, Writing for Hope

Celebratory book sale of The Drago Tree!!

Super excited to announce a special deal on The Drago Tree for UK only, to help celebrate the completion of its sequel. Yours for just £12.50 incl P&P — that’s a discount of £5!!! Stock limited. Simply leave a comment below to arrange.

“The Drago Tree is a beautifully crafted, exquisitely written novel brimming with grief and heartiness, pain and joy. Unputdownable from the get-go. ” – writer Jasmina Brankovich. Read more reviews on https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26222587-the-drago-tree

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Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Canary Islands, Lanzarote, literary fiction, The Drago Tree

The Drago Tree review by Elizabeth Jane Corbett

I’m delighted to re-blog this lovely review of The Drago Tree.

Elizabeth Jane Corbett writes: – “Book one on my list (yes, a two book week) was, Isobel Blackthorn’s, The Drago Tree. Being published by Odyssey Books, a small brave, independent press giving opportunities to emerging writers, would have put this title high my list. But, actually, the content of the story proved the ultimate qualifier. Set on the tiny island of Lanzarote, it tells the story of Ann Salter, a middle aged geologist fleeing her failed marriage, Richard a popular crime novelist plundering the island for his stories, and, Domingo, the indigenous potter whose love for the land goes beyond the shallow financial gains of western tourism. As the three explore the island, aspirations and tensions, undermine their friendship. The result, a reflection on artistic integrity, relationships, and ultimately our responsibility towards the environment.

A brief reading of Lanzarote’s history includes the words conquest, enslavement, piracy, drought and volcanic eruption, the result being an indigenous community struggling with the consequences of a post conquest society. It was not hard for me to draw comparisons with Wales’ history (without the piracy, recent volcanic activity, or levels of enslavement). I found myself wanting to experience the island community Blackthorn so wondrously evoked. Which is a sure sign the story has worked, if you ask me.”

Read the whole post here: http://elizabethjanecorbett.com/2016/10/27/two-books-and-some-thoughts-on-small-brave-against-the-odds-entities/

Thank you Elizabeth!! The Drago Tree can be purchased @ Amazon and through all good booksellers.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Book review, Canary Islands, Elizabeth Jane Corbett, Lanzarote, literary fiction, The Drago Tree

A Perfect Square on 3AW

Super excited to share this author interview on Phil and Simon’s Nightline @ Melbourne’s 3AW radio. I’m talking about my latest novel, A Perfect Square.

You can have a listen here:

 

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: A Perfect Square, Dandenong Ranges, Rainy Day Books

An interview with Martin Rodoreda, author of SALVAGE

I’m delighted to welcome to my blog, Sydney author Martin Rodoreda, whose debut novel, Salvage, is set to take the speculative fiction scene by storm. Salvage is a work of climate fiction utterly relevant to our time, and I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy! Read on, for a fabulous interview.

Tell me a little about yourself, Martin.

I was born and raised in Liverpool, in the south-west suburbs of Sydney. I was blessed with a very stable childhood, if a somewhat sedentary one. Being one of four children in a single income family we didn’t holiday or move around much. My parents still live in the family home I grew up in, and there is something nice about having that consistency.

I had a great childhood though; I enjoyed school, was very active, and found adventure in books. Our Christmas stocking would always have at least one new book in it, and Mum would take us on frequent visits to the library to find new material to read.

After school, I did a communications degree at UTS where I met my beautiful wife, Cara. We got married in 2007 and now live in the Macarthur region with our three boys. So with family, writing and work, life is busy!

At what age did you realise your fascination with books? 

As I mentioned, from an early age I found books to be a source of adventure. Reading was encouraged in our household and all my siblings read a lot. We used to read books together as a family, sitting around the dinner table taking turns reading out loud. Roald Dahl was my favourite author whilst in primary school and I would read and re-read his books every time the annual MS Read-a-thon came about at school.

In year six at school, our teacher got the entire class to enter into a short story writing competition. I and one other student in the grade made it through to the finals group and a two-day workshop. I didn’t go on to win the final prize, but it was a good experience.

Perhaps discouraged for not taking out the ultimate prize in the competition, or perhaps just busy with other things, it would be another twelve or thirteen years before I started writing again. But I remained both active and creative through this time, with a fairly eclectic mix of hobbies, from role-playing games to playing AFL, from miniature painting and table-top gaming, to listening to grunge and alternate music. I think my nerdy pursuits were counter-balanced enough to earn the label of cool nerd.

I never properly considered writing as a career option. Sitting through my careers class at high school, trying to pick a degree to do at university, looking for jobs post study; I could never quite pin down what I wanted to do. Even five or six years into the workforce and a career I still had that feeling. I think I had this trouble because deep down, I knew what I wanted to do, but did not see writing as a legitimate career option. I think this is probably shared by many authors.

So back to the question – when did I start writing? I started writing seriously when my work and home resulted in a lengthy commute to and from the city each day. For those of you that have experienced it, Sydney traffic is something to be avoided at all costs, so the train became my friend. I wanted to use this time productively and, as much as I love reading, I didn’t want to spend it all reading. So I started writing my first book. That was about nine or ten years ago now. I have done virtually all my writing since then on the train. While a long commute can be frustrating, it has afforded me regular time to write, and so rather than eating into my day, it has enhanced my day.

Who inspires you in your writing?

I mentioned Roald Dahl as an early favourite author of mine. I then migrated into Tolkien and the fantasy genre and read a lot of that through my teens. After discovering the Greek Historians in Ancient History at school, I found myself enjoying a lot of writing from this period; Homer, Herodotus, Thucydides and Plutarch. In mid to late high school I also started reading a lot of the late, great Terry Pratchett and have read a book or two of his every year since.

As I’ve gotten older, my reading has slowed a bit (on account of using what spare time I have to write!), but also diversified. I still enjoy the Speculative Fiction genre above others, and like many, I’m still waiting on George RR Martin to release the final book (books?) in the Game of Thrones series. But I enjoy books outside of the genre as well. A couple that stand out are Burial Rights by Hannah Kent and The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion. Another book I had low expectations of but really enjoyed was Bram Stoker’s Dracula. I read it for the first time just five years ago and, having been disappointed with a number of other classics, I didn’t have high hopes for it. But I loved the way the book blended intensely dark fantasy scenes with high period drama I would expect out of a Jane Austen book. It was an interesting and utterly enthralling read.

I seem to draw inspiration from most things I read or watch. I can’t help but finish a book or a movie and think of something I could draw from it in my writing, whether it be an alternate take on the themes in the book, character traits that I’d like to explore further or a mood or environment that really resonated with me. I have at least fifty book ideas that I have written a basic outline and plot for and then filed away. I have a strange feeling of excitement and apprehension every time I consider opening the file!

Tell me a little about Salvage.

It is set in Sydney about one hundred years in the future. The world has been devastated by pollution, excessive mining and war, and a dome built over the city protects what is possibly the last bastion of human civilization from the caustic elements. Inside the dome, its citizens are ruled by the dictator Silmac, who holds a monopoly over the energy supply of the city. Outside, in what was once Greater Sydney, savage sub-human’s known as mutes scratch out a brutal existence in the unforgiving elements, posing a deadly threat to those what would venture beyond the protective barrier of the dome.

The main character, Silver, is a member of a Salvage crew; heading outside the dome in search of metals and other items of value. When she is abandoned in the Badlands one day by her crew, Silver faces a hike back to the dome on foot with very little chance of survival. On the way, she uncovers a relic from the past that holds the secret to break Silmac’s hold over the dome. The discovery ultimately leads her into direct conflict with the dictator.

In the early stages of the book, Silver’s primary motivation is personal survival; from dangers both outside and within the dome. Living in constant fear, she craves change but feels helpless to effect it. She must face these fears in order to realize that she is more powerful than she thinks, and not alone in her desire for change.

how long did it take you to write?

It took me roughly two years to write and edit Salvage, writing almost exclusively on the train on my commute to and from work. The story was constantly in my head over that time. Writing in fifty minute pockets on the train meant that I’d often have to stop part way through a scene and not be able to get back to it till that afternoon, or the next morning. While this could be frustrating, it afforded me the time to reflect on each scene as I wrote it, and helped maintain a clarity of purpose throughout the book.

Thank you Martin, for taking the time to chatting with me today!!

You can find Martin via Facebook

His website: martinrodoreda.com

And purchase a copy of Salvage via the publisher, Odyssey Books.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: climate fiction, Martin Rodoreda, Odyssey Books, Salvage

The Good Life: 19 Sep 2016

Not every day a radio show gives over a full hour and a half to an author interview! Many thanks to Ann Creber of The Good Life. I’m rapt!

You can listen to the full interview on http://www.3mdr.com

Ann Creber Collections

Hello Good Lifers,

I’ve just been indulging myself with a very beautiful version of For The Good Times on Youtube. Raul Malo is an artist of whom I had never heard until my son recently mentioned how much he enjoyed his music, I tracked him down on Youtube and I am a total convert.  Beautiful articulation and a heart-breaking interpretation! We also had the pleasure of hearing a Really beautiful version by Tracey Roberts last Saturday night. (Hope she includes it on her next CD.)

However, we didn’t have to seek out talent for yesterday’s The Good Life Program, as we enjoyed it in the studio with the visit of  author Isobel Blackthorn, musician Liz Blackthorn and musician and artist Tracey Roberts.

It was wonderful to have them with us and with his own musical background Wayne

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