Two firsts: My first Tanzanian story and my daughter’s first OT cooking lesson.

On the writing front, my first Tanzanian story has landed. “True to tails abandoned,” the emerald green lizard story, will come out in Devilfish Review. This story was conceived in Dec. 2010, drafted and polished over the past 14 months. This time frame is a new record for my slow drafting, revising, “waiting in a drawer” process.

What a cool name—Devilfish!  I’m pleased that this is my fourth magic realism story and my 13^th short story to be accepted. Did I mention that 13 is my new lucky number? There were 13 stories in Their Voices; Their Stories.

On the recovery front, my daughter’s first was not really the cooking lesson. She was an excellent cook before the accident. In OT she and her therapist made chocolate chip cookies for the nurses and the ward, but they used a mix.  I’m pretty sure she’s never made cookies from a mix because we are a family of bakers from scratch.  She was bemused at the lesson and everybody loves fresh hot chocolate chip cookies, even from a mix.  So her recovery continues to accelerate much to the delight of her nurses, therapists, doctors and of course her mother!

 

fantastic day…

Yes, it is the storm of at least two centuries but who cares?
The book contract on Chasing the Leopard is ready to sign, but more important, my daughter continues to make great progress on her recovery! (she was the victim of a rather nasty hit and run on Jan 4).
When the novel comes out this spring it will be dedicated to her. She has always been one of my trusted early and enthusiastic readers. The publisher is a well respected Tanzanian firm, Mkuki Na Nyota and the book will be marketed through Amazon and through African Book Collective. No huge advance but royalties for me. Yes, I’m thrilled. Hurrah for success on the book and health front.  Oh yes, Kudos to the Boulder Police department, the driver will face the justice system.

Never mind that I”m in Boulder, alone, wading through 1-2-3 feet of snow. At least it is not Maryland black ice.
Thanks for reading along and I hope to have more tropical photos for the blog soon as we can return to Dar. She and I both hope to lay by the pool and sign copies of the novel! USA launch parties will commence in May or June of this year.

greetings from USA or stateside

I know I’m supposed to be back in Dar after my Christmas trip but life can be complicated. Email me off-blog if you need more info but ahhh, breathing easier, everything is getting better slowly. No, it’s not me–I continue healthy as a horse. But.. while I am here, I got a splendid acceptance. “In Service,” a chapter of the second novel-in-progress, will appear in JMMW in the Spring issue. Here’s the link to the current issuehttp://jmww.150m.com/ 

Now my next task is to keep writing, while here and not overlooking the Indian Ocean. When in the middle of an evolving crisis, journaling comes naturally as does recording the minute to minute, hour to hour changes but I must not forget to write, which makes me stronger, happier and certainly more balanced. So I pulled out the “green lizard and the lady” draft and also a robbery story, both fine first drafts, full of potential and errors.

here is a lovely photo to end the blog… more soon…thanks for following along…

New year’s motivations

Flame trees in Bloom… My gardener Humphrey calls them “Christmas Trees” because they bloom in December. My tree, in the middle of a garden, is shaded by three enormous palm trees, so it is only now is full bloom…

. And my writing motivation is also now in full bloom. My quick trip to spend Christmas in Colorado with my lovely daughter was delightful. We had snow and then by mid-week, the temperatures rose into the 50s,’ reminding me how variable USA weather can be. Now I’m back by the Indian Ocean, the temperatures are in the 90’s and going to stay there. So I’m going to stay here at the laptop and work like crazy. Those stories I started in May deserve some attention, the second novel is ready to be marketed and who knows what else 2012 will bring.

water intake valves and… Happy Solstice

In a hilarious turn of events here in Dar, I just had a fountaining water intake faucet thingie, my very own Three Stooges movie. I had turned on the intake supply on a little used toilet in the pool changing room (I was cleaning up after a “guest” dog who will never be a guest again) and the faucet came off in my hand. Clean water shot 4 feet in the air!! I yell for the gardener who is nowhere to be found. I try desperately to screw the damn broken piece back on. I leave it gushing to call the fundi who is excellent. I run to get the crescent wrench and realize I have no idea how to use a crescent wrench. Get another shower in the clean still fountaining water. Pause for a moment and realize this pool room bathroom floor was going to be very clean! Find the gardener and the security guard who join me and now also get soaked. I find the outside water shutoff valve. Its handle is broken off. Run back offer moral support to the gardener and security guard. The gardener has by now rigged up a cap from a plastic bag and a lot of electrical tape.

 

The fundi arrives, calm and cool, carrying a little biff kit size of tools. He walks in, does not join the free shower. The fundi goes outside to the water shut off. Uses his own cresent wrench to shut it off. Smiles and says he will be back soon to replace the part shutoff.
Did I mention that is pouring, like a monsoon outside?

Ha! Life in Dar. Happy Solstice.

Anybody need copies of “Their Voices, Their stories”?

Here’s Cecilia reading from “The Trial”

Next week I fly to the US. I’d be delighted to bring copies and mail them out to you, if you’d rather not pay Amazon’s price. I haven’t talked to the publisher about getting it back in line with reality. So email me if you’d like me to mail them to you when I’m in Colorado. Wishing you a wonderful advent season…. or a joyous approach to the solistice.
 

The amazon and abc links for the Girls’ book are Live!

Their Voices,Their Stories… successfully launched here in Dar es Salaam. Thanks to the IST community and particularly to Ilana Turner and Rebecca Gilman for an amazing launch party. We sold over 123 books to a packed house. The Bethsaida girls sang and danced and then read from their stories. I was so thrilled to have been part of their lives. I will post photos on Facebook  so you can share our evening.

Amazon (Their Voices Their Stories on Amazon)has gone live with the link, but I’m bit shocked at the price. If you email, I will arrange to ship copies to you. If you want a set for a book club or a reading group or a fund-raising function, just let me know! The ABC (African Book Collective Their Voices Their Stories link is now “live” and more of the money goes to the Bethsaida School and to support future printings. So Buy from them if you can. Also anyone who wishes to post a “review” please do!

Spider web on the gate

How beautiful to have the sunlight pouring through something so fragile and resilient as a spider web, attached to something so rigid as iron gates. Such is life here in Dar, where it is beautiful and terrible in the same breath. We have had a very busy two weeks with the Bazaar and the launch of the girls’ book, Their Voices, their Stories. The publisher tells me it is their best selling He says we need to prepare for a reprint soon! I’m proud of the girls, of the publisher’s incredible work and of myself, for my idea and its successful completion. On the DSG front, the early counts show that the Bazaar will have surpassed last year’s huge total of 71 million tshillings, all for the Project committee to give to the most vulnerable here in Tz. We had fun, too, so I count the whole event a success.

greetings from zanzibar from Honey and me

The Bazaar is over and it was fun and a success and, I”m told, much less stressful than last year! That was my goal, right after fund-raising, that the event be fun, cheerful and not too crazy! I’ve been here on this amazingly beautiful beach at this little hotel, Kikadini Villas, for the past 3 days, recooperating, relaxing and generally catching up on my sleep.

Also I’ve been thinking about the writing life and restoring it: first in the morning, writing new material at dawn. Then answer emails and there will be a lot fewer crisis ones now that the bazaar is over. I’ll save the editing and revision of the novel mss until after these first two tasks. Here is Honey the resident cat who joined me for breakfast.

DSG Bazaar 5 days to go!

Gentle readers, near and far. Actually Near. The DSG Annual Charity Bazaar is this coming Saturday. And as you may recall, I’m the Chairman. Don’t ask how that happened but it doesn’t matter because it is going to be a great event. So everybody in Dar tell all your friends and family to join us at the IST secondary school at Noon,Nov. 26th. I’m most thrilled with the amazing raffle prizes (Helicopter rides, KLM tickets to Amsterdam, a Tanzanite Pendant and a Spa day.). Can the chairman will all the prizes? I guess not–so you better come and win them yourselves.