This year I have been redrafting all my work, as with the skills I’ve been learning and improving over the last few years, I know I can improve them. This is one of the benefits of self publishing.
Battling Ménière’s disease and severe hearing loss is hard. Some of the strange new people in his life make him feel uneasy and he’s not sure why. Where have these people come from? What do they know about him? And is there something wrong with time itself? His in-laws have lost their cat, it’s an event which triggers unforeseen challenges and raises questions he’s just not ready to deal with. Johann loves his wife Harriet, she’d help him; but Harriet is dead and the world has ended in more than one way.
Just £2.75 for the E-book and £8.99 for the paperback, on Amazon and available in local currencies.
This Ian person lived at the far end of the road behind the bus stop and it took me a few minutes to get there. The house was an old council style one and it wasn’t in the best of condition. Recycling boxes lay broken and full of rain water in front of the downstairs window. As I got closer I noticed the paint was peeling from the door frame and the grass had been in serious need of cutting several times over, it was now a collection point for the litter that had been blown across the street and had managed to get in the narrow gap between the also overgrown hedges on either side of the path that were blocking visibility to the road. I knocked on the door, feeling a little trapped in this hidden front garden, and waited for a few moments. There was no movement or sound and after a while I decided no one was home. This was annoying as I didn’t really know what to do. I could just put the keys through the letter box but I didn’t feel right about that. I turned to go and got to the top of the path when the door opened. ‘Yes?’ A man around my age was standing the other side of the small gap that had been created by the opening of the door. I instantly didn’t like him, he was wearing a onesie.
Last week I was in Norway. Tromsø to be exact, (I do love that o with the line through it). Tromsø is at the very top of Norway, 217 miles above the Arctic Circle and the third largest settlement in the Arctic. If you’ve read Indoldrum (shameless plug for my novel) you’ll gather I have a bit of a fascination with the area and I’ve always wanted to get as far north as I can, especially at either mid-summer for the Midnight Sun (which I managed in 2005) or the Polar Night. I’ve been various places in winter to the Nordic countries but this trip was the furthest north I’ve ever been, and I loved it!
Norway is an incredible country and on the whole the people are brilliant (with the exception of one incredibly rude lady I came across in a supermarket). Yes, I did manage to see the Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis. On my first night when I got off the bus and headed to my accommodation. I was very fortunate as they didn’t occur for the rest of my visit. However that night I ended up on a frozen lake watching the celestial display, away from the city lights, it was really cool! (In many ways.)
Of course this is a blog about writing and whilst I’m happy to wax lyrical about my holiday here’s an opportunity to feature literature connected to Norway. This can mean either works by locals or by others about the country. In a future part I’ll discuss some more modern books by Norwegian authors, but for now let me tell you about Three In Norway By Two Of Them, by James A. Lees and Walter J. Clutterbuck. Published in 1882 this was a book about three Victorian gentlemen who take a trip together and the humorous events that happen along the way. If all this is starting to sound a little familiar, you’re possibly seeing links to Three Men In A Boat by Jerome K Jerome published in 1889. As mentioned elsewhere I’m a massive fan of Jerome Klapka Jerome and it is generally assumed he drew inspiration from the Lees and Walter J; as it is his novel has enough original elements that it really would have been just a starting point, Jerome was witty and clever enough not to need to take from others.
In Three In Norway we are introduced to Skipper, Esau and John; eccentrics who plan on roughing it in the countryside in southern Norway in the summer (so almost the complete opposite of my trip… how rude! I’m not eccentric… ok maybe a bit). Obviously a Victorian’s idea of roughing it is very different from ours, the amount of provisions needed for a spot of fishing and hunting, in full dress of waistcoats and all, plus more food then I’ve got at home right now I should guess, is probably what we would call Glamping today.
Whilst seemingly popular in its day Three In Norway hasn’t always been so easy to get hold off, these days it’s available on Kindle and Project Gutenberg. The book is amusing and if you like Jerome’s work it’s well worth taking a look at this one, even if for me Jerome beat them hands down at their own game. Whilst JKJ uses his tale as a frame for all sorts of bizarre and extremely funny stories, this has the trip front and centre. It was still early days for the whole travel writing and we’ll probably never know how much of this is based on a real trip to Norway taken by the authors, although there is a lot of unnecessary detail in the text which makes me think there is more truth to this novel than Three Men In A Boat.
“But presently a cloud gathered over the mountain tops, and thunder was heard rolling among the distant hills; a gentle breeze stirred the surface of the water, and every lazy fish woke up to seek his food. The Skipper longed to go and fetch his rod. He hinted at this, and at last became impatient; but, by Jove! Miss Louise would not go. There she sat and prattled on, charming, pleased with herself, and utterly unmindful of the rising fish and the fretting Skipper. Time kept passing on, till at length her father brought relief by appearing on the shore to call her in to dinner; but then the Skipper had to get his food too, and when he had bolted the humble but indigestible crust and cheese, and rushed out again to seize his rod, he found it too late, as the lake was now dark with clouds, and the fish had left off rising.
Soon after lunch it began to rain like a waterfall, and Esau arrived with a lot of fish— spoils from the Leirungen Ocean, and the result of Spartan indifference to the attractions of woman. There is a shining moral in this tale.”
― James A. Lees and Walter J. Clutterbuck, Three In Norway By Two Of Them
Of course you can’t talk about Norwegian literature without mentioning Henrik Ibsen. Well known playwright, born in 1828 he is one of their most, if not the most, celebrated writers and if you don’t know the name he has been directly, or indirectly, responsible for some things you do know very well.
One of his most acclaimed works is the play A Doll’s House. Set in 1879, in what was then the present day, this is the story of Nora a woman who feels she has practically no control over her life, yet intends to do something about it. In the society in which it was premiered this caused a great deal of fuss.
Ibsen also wrote the somewhat surreal Peer Gynt, which premiered in 1879. Roughly based on a Nordic fairy tale this is the story of Peer Gynt who after upsetting his neighbours has some weird experiences, including going to the Hall of the Mountain King – a troll, and then is pretty much exiled to travel about various places, Egypt for example.
Ibsen asked Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg to write the score for the play. The result includes some of the most familiar pieces of music that even today we come across regularly. For instance, In The Hall of the Mountain King has been used in so many places that it has transcended the play. Countless songs have been based on this, to name but one, Let’s Go To War by the Manic Street Preachers. If I were to say “the Alton Tower’s theme’ you may instantly recall the piece. The other section of music that nearly everyone knows from Peer Gynt is Morning Mood; it’s often mistaken for Spring by Vivaldi. Regardless these two pieces of music are ingrained in to many cultures and all because Ibsen decided to write a very popular, if somewhat strange, play about a man who gets into trouble over stealing a bride.
“Someone has said – or is it written somewhere – I don’t remember where, that if you conquer all the world yet lose your Self, all that you gain is a wreath around your broken skull – or words to that effect. That text is by no means poetic nonsense.”
― Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt
When I decided to write a blog about Norway and literature these two examples were the first two that came to mind (and one isn’t even by a Norwegian writer), however there are plenty of writers from this country and the modern day who are worth discovering and reading and so I will follow this up with some more recent examples.
Yesterday I had the pleasure of being interviewed by SmartCherry. You can find his YouTube channel here.
These days I’m used to video chatting with people, as most of us are; it’s strange to watch it back though. I’m pleased to say, although I move about a bit and use the word “err” a little to much I think I come across alright. He’s very professional, you can see which one of us is used to it!
I suggested the title. If you want to watch me ramble on about my books click below.
Check out some of his other interviews as there are lots of good ideas and advice from other writers.
Thank you SmartCherry for taking the time to chat to me.
My new novel Indoldrum is now out! After a long period of writing, redrafting, editing and proofing I realised I was at the point where I could unleash it on the world. It’s available on Amazonandfor the weekend of 8th and 9th August 2020 the e-book will be free of charge. Just follow the links on this page to the Amazon webpage and download it. – It is also available as a paperback.
Johann might be lost, he isn’t sure. Battling Ménière’s disease and severe hearing loss is hard. Some of the strange new people in his life make him feel uneasy and he’s not sure why. Where have these people come from? What do they know about him? And is there something wrong with time itself? His in-laws have lost their cat, it’s an event which triggers unforeseen challenges and raises questions he’s just not ready to deal with. Johann loves his wife Harriet, she’d help him; but Harriet is dead and the world has ended in more than one way.
This is the first time I have written in the first person and it was an interesting challenge that I really enjoyed. The novel follows the character of Johann and his wife Harriet. However when we meet Johann he is a widower and the loss of his wife is something that he is struggling to deal with. It’s harder because he also suffers from Ménière’s disease, an issue which affects the balance centre of the inner ear causing severe dizzy spells that can last for hours as well as hearing loss. I decided to write about this as a few years ago I was diagnosed with it.
However there is more going on than that. I don’t want to give away too much but there is something wrong with Johann’s world, the laws of physics aren’t quite making sense. There’s a few mysteries to be solved including a person who appears in Johann’s life who will… well I won’t say too much, but who exactly is he? Why is he acting so strange?
Mainly though the novel is about loss. Harriet’s illness and then death casts a large shadow over everything that happens to Johann. That’s not to say it’s all sad, he tells of the happy times of marriage and the reasons for the love of his wife and his adoptive family of in-laws.
And so the evening followed. I’d been taken pity on for having no friends at the wedding even though I actually did have friends in my normal life. We did chat and her friends were nice and then I was dragged to the dance floor and made to humiliate myself to music I never listen to and I so wanted the evening to last forever and I so wanted to go home and hide forever. We exchanged numbers and I decided that the best thing to do was to change my number the next day. Of course as an over-reaction it might give me away and I realised that as there was little danger of her actually calling me I shouldn’t worry so much. Until she called me.
I made it back to the table with two double whiskies and several packets of crisps. In all the excitement we’d not had anything to eat since a break in the music when we’d gorged ourselves on beef burgers. ‘So do you want kids?’ Andrew had finished his pint. ‘Yes.’ ‘And…’ ‘And an Aston Martin. Overall it’s cheaper than children but Harriet won’t let me have one.’
Sally and Felix were there and I felt it was nice as they weren’t family or work colleagues or whatever, instead they were people who only had ever seen Harriet and myself as one unit. We were the couple next door, not Harriet and the one she’d married or their old manager’s husband or even their colleague’s wife. Their being there represented the death of our marriage, not just the death of one person and I needed that. As always Sally was wonderful, she understood I needed people to feel what I was feeling so she openly wept, sharing the grief, and I felt better for it. After we had tea and cake at a village hall overlooking green fields and then it was over. My life, forever changed, was moving on. This my past was now my past and my future waited unknown and unwanted.
It’s deliberately written out of chronological order but it is written in an order which slowly reveals what is going on. This was something I realised I could do by writing in the first person.
I’m very happy with this, my third full novel, and I hope you will enjoy reading it. And remember it’s free on the 8th and 9th of August.
On my last post I spoke about how I prefer to know as little as possible about a book before I read it. This goes for most other things as well, TV programmes, plays and films for example. Whilst most people don’t want spoilers I’m probably at the far end of the scale, which I know is strange but I seem to get on fine.
What I can’t get my head round are the people who happily tell me that when they are looking for a new book, whilst they are in the bookshop, they will turn to the last page and read that as a way of deciding if they want to buy it or not. If you are one of those people please explain how this helps you, I’m genuinely interested to see how other people go about this.
I don’t really read the back of a book before I’m at least two thirds of the way through it, at which point I reckon it’s safe. As stated I prefer to see the plot unfold from not knowing anything. I love the moment when it dawns on me “so that is what this book is going to be about”.
On this blog, whilst I try and tell you about books I love, I also try and not give away that much in the way of plots. Hence this is never going to be a detailed analysis of the books – I’m aiming at just offering a taster and you can then find out as much or as little as you want. I’ll generally always put a link at the bottom of the post of where the book is for sale so you can read the blurb if you want to (although ironically not on this one).
Whilst this works for my reading it‘s a problem when it comes to try and promote my novels, I just fear saying anything is giving away too much. Of course that is the way to completely not promote anything. I can’t work on the basis of “just do what I would want” which is a principle I use for most things connected to my writing. I’d personally want just the title and a blank page. At most maybe a few random lines.
At first when I tried to send my manuscripts off to agents I would try to write the synopsis, but all the time I had voices in my head screaming at me not to give away the ending or the twists and plot developments, that was never going to work. I’ll only read a synopsis of a book I’ve finished or have no intention of starting.
My current WIP is a novel called Indoldrum and I’m very happy with it. It still needs a bit more work but I’m at the point where I need to start writing promotional things, the back cover, the Amazon blurb etc and it’s really difficult. At the moment I’m on:
Johan might be lost, he isn’t sure. Battling Ménière’s disease and severe hearing loss is hard. Some of the strange new people in his life make him feel uneasy and he’s not sure why. Where have these people come from? What do they know about him? And is there something wrong with time itself?
His in-laws have lost their cat, it’s an event which triggers unforeseen challenges and raises questions he’s just not ready to deal with.
Johan loves his wife Harriet, she’d help him; but Harriet is dead and the world has ended in more than one way.
It needs some more work, but for each plot point I’ve put I regret that a reader won’t learn them by just reading the book. The reveal that Johan is losing his hearing because he has Ménière’s disease, a condition that I have, isn’t stated straightaway and is only hinted at to start off with. I wanted the reader to notice something was wrong and then try and work out what it was. In most other books, because it is still relatively early in the book it is mentioned it would be a selling point so I have to fight my inner voices and go with it – but I’m not happy as it undoes all the natural building I put in place. Also the time thing… But that is how books and their promotion work.
I don’t suppose it really matters at the end of the day. I’ve tried to think of occasions where I’ve accidentally discovered more about a book than I wanted to and felt some disappointment. I know it’s happened but in trying to think of examples I can’t really come up with one that is worthy of note. Therefore I’ll just put this down to another one of my strange quirks and try and get on with it. But how do you define the correct amount of spoilers for the back of a book?
Arthur Hofn - Literature 