in the end we only regret the chances we didn't take
“What is your book about?”
This is the first question everyone asks when I tell them I’m writing a novel. Strangely enough, it has been somewhat of a difficult question to answer, at least succinctly. For simplicity’s sake, my default response has been that it is an action/suspense novel, set in the Middle East. Read More…
It’s been seven months since I sat down to write a blog post, over two months since I’ve written a word of my novel and fifteen months since I decided to start this crazy project. My original goal in June of 2015 was to write a book in one year, a seemingly attainable objective for that timeframe. But a lot has happened in the past year and in fact a lot has changed in just the last few months. We’ve bounced around traveling with our family to three continents and at the conclusion of our amazing trip, in a very short five-week span decided, planned and executed a move over six hundred miles away. That’s a lot of numbers. Enough numbers to make my head spin, maybe even abandon the notion that I can finish a novel. And yet I find myself at my keyboard tapping away, drawn back to my late night habit.
There is significant mention of Iran in our media lately – so much controversy surrounding the nuclear deal, sanctions, mullahs and the like. For nearly 40 years the U.S. has had a broken relationship with the country and certainly there is a lot to have concern about with the current regime, so many unanswered questions and a foundation of mistrust. But I don’t want to write about politics or government or nuclear weapons. I am not trying to spark a debate about what is a good deal or a bad deal. Inspired by a friend over lunch conversation, instead I would like to share what I know about the country as a destination and the uniqueness of the people and the culture.
I find myself experiencing the world anew since I’ve started writing regularly. My pace has changed; it’s not less productive, just less harried. I notice more details in my surroundings and think of how I would describe wherever I happen to be. I’m more observant not only of sights and sounds, but also smells, tastes and feelings. I study people and their behaviors to a greater extent, the social norms in different settings, and I’ve noticed how very much alike we all are. One could say I’m living every moment. Part of me wonders if I was previously walking around in a fog, so busy and in my own head. Worried about to-do lists or where I’m going next, rather than where I am at that moment. What have I missed??
The cure for everything is salt water; sweat, tears or the sea.
Isak Dinesen