Serendipity

Second Sight by Cheryl B. Klein

2012-02-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

amazon.com

The NY SCBWI conference was full of information, but time only allowed for three breakout sessions. So I snagged my roomate's notes from the brilliant 'revision' session, and ended up grabbing the speaker's book too:
Second Sight by Cheryl B. Klein.

Second Sight is an obvious pun, which I love, but the book does equip a writer with the laser vision required for a tough edit. Plus, Cheryl Klein is a superhero - I mean - a Scholastic editor who worked on the Harry Potter series. Enough said, right?

Some of the included ideas:

1) Run a plot checklist to identify the dominant plot threads in your work - www.cherylklein.com/plotchecklist.html
This one is relatively easy, so try it.

2) Create a book map, scene by scene, for your entire manuscript. No skipping around.
For me, this is the holy grail. It helped me put my writing into perspective like nothing else I'd ever tried. It holds a writer accountable for the content of every scene, spots plot holes and redundancies, and you really should try it. Ms. Klein refers us to www.anitanolan.com/theend.html, where there are some really great tips, like highlighting aspects of your manuscript in different colors. I like to use the highlights for plot threads, but she uses them for other reasons too. You'll have to head over there because there really is too much to cover in a quick book review.

3) Make a minimap using one-line summaries for each chapter.
This is not as easy as you'd think, and it's best done after you've completed the bookmap.

4) There are some repeated ideas, since the book is a compilation of talks she gave at various conferences. Repetition is actually a good thing because sometimes you need to hear it more than once. I read it one talk at a time, over the course of a few weeks. I don't recommend reading it all in one sitting. Let your brain absorb the ideas, read the next section, and then take out your pretty, new highlighters.

This post will end up spilling all the beans. I need to stop. You need to get the book. I'm sure $16.99 isn't too much to pay for amazing advice that can take your writing to the next level.

Bottom line: I've read books on craft, and some on revision, but this is one of the best by far because it gives me the tools to help my writing shine. And I'm not just saying that because Ms. Klein signed my copy. ;)

Accidental Preservation - Hattuşa

2012-02-27T06:00:00.000-05:00

Hattuscha.de

Simple, sun-dried mud bricks are hard to maintain. Frost damage cracks them up. Rain drops wash them away. Wind whips layers off of them. An entire city, epic fortified walls and all, can disappear over the centuries and we would be none the wiser.

Hattuşa's few crumbling walls, "fired" by an invading army, show the size and composition of the original bricks, and the plaster that coated them. Otherwise, the remaining stone foundations provide no clues to what any of the vertical structures looked like.

But... military leaders like to play with figurines, and maps, and scale models, and Hattuşa's leaders were no different. Archaeologists unearthed a clay model of a fortification.

Between the two discoveries, a dream of reconstruction was hatched. Archaeologists used Hittite methods, as best as they could guess. They mixed clay and hay in large pits, and rotated the hand-formed bricks under the sun. Then brick by brick, the towers rose. Follow the link under the pic to see more details on the hand made Hittite structure and the methods used in the project.

As for me - I'm looking at the way the sun highlights the bricks beneath the plaster, the color of the clay, the scalloped crenelations -details I can use in my next story. You know what I do miss though - the smells. I'm thinking the interiors should have a damp clay odor, but I'm not sure. Anatolia is pretty dry. Supposedly, there's lime in the clay. What does that smell like? Different than the rusty red clay in my backyard? Bet it smells different depending on the season.

Guess I need to take a field trip! ;)

Hattuscha.de

What's In The Water

2012-02-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Turkish Cooking, Everyday

There's a loud well-drilling rig outside my window today, and I can't think. Grr.

Reminds me of my days at Denizhan 2 in Mersin. There was one of those annoying contraptions digging a well over there too. Made me want to send a nasty letter to the condo association:- Who decided to work on that project in the middle of the summer? When people were on vacation, in a vacation complex, and everyone had their windows open...

Enough of my griping.
(The headache brought it on, I swear.)

*smiles*

Thought I'd talk about water today.

We take it for granted here in the states - most places anyway. Up in Connecticut, I never worried because I had access to city water 24/7. Here in NC, city water or no, drought restrictions put me right in my place. Water is precious.

In Turkey, I spent a couple (stinky) weeks on Buyukada waiting for a water barge so I could take a real shower. Then I spent a couple days in Kadikoy waiting for someone to find the part for a pump. (Don't go on vacation with me. I seem to be cursed. Also, don't ask about the time I bought some bottled water with stuff floating in it.) That was all Istanbul, though.

Back to the well drilling rig at Denizhan - (There's a story there, I promise!) - Water pressure was much better after the well started up. It was, however, still VERY salty.

So.

My mother-in-law recruited my husband as a driver for the day. Supposedly, the errands were close, and they would be right back, and I wouldn't want to wait in the car, etc. So I stayed in the apartment watchingTurkish TV which I barely understood.

Ding dong. Or rather - cheep, cheeeeeep, cheep. - since the doorbell sounded like a birdie fainting.

The neighbor across the way decided she wanted to pay us a visit. "Us" being me, because no one else was around. All her kids were out for the day and she was more than willing to keep me company. (Turkish people love to socialize.)

As an American bride, I wasn't much accustomed to drinking hot tea on a scorching August day, but I did know how to boil water. I riffled through the tea tins, measured out the loose tea, and showed my expertise with the nifty double stacked kettle.

Biscuits? Check. Cubed sugar? Check. Special guest tea glass? Check. Pretty tray? Check.

We sit down to not talk, because I only know a handful of words. She takes a sip and smiles. I take a sip and gag.

SALTY WATER!

The moral of my story? I'm thankful what comes out of the tap here is worth drinking, no matter how much it costs.

Hattuşa Calling

2012-02-20T06:00:00.000-05:00

image credit

"At night I took the city by force; I have sown weeds in its place. Should any king after me attempt to resettle Hattush, may the Weathergod of Heaven strike him down."

So says the Hittite King Anitta of Kussara.
I say - oooh - a good storyline. ;)

What you see here is the side view of a bas relief on the King's Gate of Hattusa. (It's a replica. The real one is in Ankara's Museum of Anatolian Civilizations .) He's looking like he wants to tell us something, don't you think?

Maybe it's me...

...but remember a while back I wrote a post about some sister sphinxes? Yeah. Well, they've been roaming around in my head, collecting other idea threads. This Warrior King is from the same town an now he's harping on me too.

I think it's time to start reseaching the Hittites, specifically their enormous capital city of Hattusa, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site near modern day Boğazkale.

I'll need to spend a few hours just absorbing the map because, at one point, 40,000- 50,000 people lived there. The city is sprawled out over the Anatolian plains, and that's not to mention the fields and forests supporting all those citizens. There are fortified walls, temples, palaces, a necropolis, an amazing rupestral sanctuary (more on this later), and a whole bunch of new gods to learn about.

In my head: How is it this entire, flourishing city withered away to a pile of stones? I'm sure there are good, scholarly answers to be found, I just don't know them yet. (First clue: King Anitta)

There's also the world's oldest cuneiform peace treaty in my future:

UN website

It is concluded that Reamasesa-Mai-amana , the Great King, the king (of the land of Egypt) with Hattusili, the Great King, the king of the land of Hatti, his brother, for the land of Egypt and the land of Hatti, in order to establish a good peace and a good fraternity forever among them.

As you can see, there's a lot of material to cover, so hang on. I think I'll be posting about this stuff for a while, like, until June. I've got a character who wants me to hurry up.

Made in Turkey

2012-02-15T06:00:00.000-05:00

dick's sporting goods

As a mother of two boys, I've been lucky to escape the fashion must-haves some other women go through with their daughters. My boys just throw on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, and off they go. This means I can usually browse the clearance racks and they are none the wiser. When they hit middle school, they opened their eyes to brands, and now I have to stray a little farther to buy what they want. Still, no big deal. I usually get stuff on sale. They get their swoosh, or three stripes.

And then one of the boys started basketball.

Three words: Nike Elite socks.

Cut to the scene -

I'm looking at track pants for my dear husband when my son tugs on my sleeve. He's telling me how the Nike basketball socks he's holding are extra squishy, and super nice, and really cool. And his friends have a pair in every color. Sometimes they even wear two pairs together. Then he pulls the trigger.

"They're made in Turkey, Mom."

As in, not made in China, or Bangladesh, or Indonesia, or some other esia. He knows I would gladly pay more as long as the label says: Made in USA, or Made in Turkey. And therefore we should pay $14. (Seems he's been paying attention to my purchasing trends.)

I remember wanting stuff as a kid, so I can't blame the boy for wanting these socks. They are really cushy. They do look kind of cool. He's only requesting an orange pair to go with his uniform. (Seems even he knows you can get six pairs of regular ones for $14.)

Alas, the boy is holding a blue pair. Off we go to find the sales clerk. Surely, there are more orange socks in the back.

Sigh. Some of you might remember my facebook post plea for help about the elusive orange Nike Elite socks? They've gone extinct, that's what! I challenge you to find a pair for your kid.

We settle on the blue pair. It matches his uniform well enough.

On the way out the door, my sons says, "Maybe we can find some online? My birthday is coming up." Wink, wink.

I guess. They are made in Turkey.

PS: He can still use a black pair. ;)

Bearded Reedling

2012-02-13T06:00:00.000-05:00

hurriyetdailynews.com

Sometimes the usual is unsual.

Take the little guy on the right here, from Lake Mogan in Ankara. All over Europe, folks take him for granted. I, on the other hand, haven't seen one before.

He's a bearded reedling (panurus biarmicus), and part of the reason I've never seen one is his habitat of choice. I spent a lot of time on the Mediterranean coast. This songbird lives in lakeside wetlands, and it's not related to any other species.

I love his markings. Bearded? I don't think. Maybe moustached, or masked, but whatever you call it, it's striking.

Here he is having lunch:

Here's how to make a nest for the bearded reedling. I think this clip is really interesting. If I were a little bird, I would appreciate a cozy home like this one. Best of all, the gentleman tells us all the best things about the nest, including what might scare a little bird off. Great information if you're writing about these birds, say in a children's book, or an authentic bit in a longer story.

Sometimes You Need to Hear It More Than Once

2012-02-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

wikipedia

I loved to just sit and write, and let the ideas flow, and come up with lovely descriptions, and think up clever dialogue. Except, the other half of me being a somewhat organized person, I wanted a method to my madness. I noticed an idea kept popping up.

First, Query Tracker & Elana Johnson pointed me to Dan Wells on Story Structure. I have no idea when this happened, but I clung to the information as I learned to write my queries. I thought I was doing OK, story-wise. Hehehe.

Lets just say R stands for rejection, re-evaluation, revision, *redacted*...

April 2011: I picked up Emotional Structure: Creating the Story Beneath the Plot: A Guide for Screenwriters, by Peter Dunne. Still shy of note cards, I began to write the plot points on one side of my outlines, and each scene's emotional impact on the other. *light bulb overhead*

October 2011: A critique partner introduced me to Storyfix.com. (There's also a book: Story Engineering.) I got hooked on writing from a beat sheet. I learned to outline the right way, with specific turning points - like Scene 12 as the First Plot Point. I guess I went a little overboard with the setup on the first time around. *blushes*

November 2011: I developed an addiction to Scrivener storyboarding during NaNoWriMo.I finished the manuscript without a single tangent. *crosses heart* :)

January 2012: I signed up for the April SCBWI Master Class on Plot with Scholastic editor, Cheryl Klein. She sent me homework - Bookmap my entire manuscript, scene by scene. I'm working on it. *kisses Scrivener storyboard*

January 2012: I went to the SCBWI National Conference. Delacorte editor, Wendy Loggia, picks up the gorgeous ARC for Starters - and mentions that the original manuscript was pretty flawless, because the author is a screenwriter. My roommate went to see Cheryl Klein and got a great list of things to do on a revision. *buys Ms. Klein's book: Second Sight*

Think someone is trying to pound this idea into my head? I think I'd better listen.

February2012: My son came home with an essay assignment on Heroes in Hollywood. We find a website about the Monomyth, specifically for screenwriters. There's a youtube clip called Story, Screenplay Law. Law? Yes. Law. *doesn't want to break any laws*

Outlining is the new black, in my house anyway. Just thought I'd share.

Yenikapı 12

2012-02-06T06:00:00.000-05:00

hurriyetdailynews.com

As a writer, it's good practice to experience the things I write about, whenever possible. Research only takes a mind so far.

I never sailed in a wooden ship, but there is one scene in Burnt Amber where Sybil takes a very neo-byzantine ship up a river.

I did lots of research on the ship style, and left a lot up to the imagination of the reader. There weren't any Byzantine replicas at my disposal, but recently, I heard about Yenikapi 12.

A bit of history for you:

Istanbul is busting at the seams, population-wise. Ferries, buses, and trams crisscross the city to get pedestrians around, and two suspension bridges barely cope with the car traffic. The metro system needs an upgrade. New tunnels are being dug, left and right.

Tangent: If you travel by rail to Istanbul, you must get out, cross the strait by car or boat, and go to another train station on the other side. (Sirkeci, or HaydarPasa, depending on which way you're going.) The Marmaray tunnel project crosses underneath the Bosphoros Strait, connecting rail traffic from both sides of the city for the first time ever.

While workers were digging the metro station at Yenikapi, they ran into an unexpected archaeological boon: the world's largest shipwreck find.

Scholars are going to replicate one of the numerous wrecks found there, the Yenikapi 12. The plan is to learn about ship construction and materials of the Middle Ages. Hopefully, the ship will be seaworthy. Project leaders plan to test the Yenikapi 12 in the strait sometime in 2013, after which the ship will be put on display as a museum piece.

*Jumps up and down*
I want a ride! I want a ride!

Or at least I want to go see the ship, where ever it finds a home. I want to touch it, smell it, take it all in...get some new descriptors for my writing.

Who's coming with?

Replica of Byzantine ship to sail next year in Turkey

http://www.thepolisblog.org/2009/09/hyper-extensions-marmaray-project.html

Reflections on the SCBWI National Conference

2012-02-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

via wikipedia

I want to sing like the birds sing,
not worrying about who hears or what they think.
― Rumi

I just got back from the SCBWI National Conference in New York City.

Wow.

There was so much information to absorb. I flew home last night, exhausted. All I've been able to do today is organize my thoughts, and I'm not very far along in that task. Enter: the blog post. You, my dear bloggy friends, are my unsuspecting therapists for this session. ;)

Attending a writers conference does two things for me:

1) It gives me plenty of revision homework.

and

2) It injects me with creative energy. Good thing I'm not taking Rumi literally - my words are really all that sing well around this house.

If you recall, last week I posted about my two manuscripts, and which I would present to the editors for a critique. Old Kitty got her wish. (Yay!)

I read the first 500 of my MG work, Mist of Kavala, to Scholastic editor, Jenne Abramowitz. Her list includes lots of humorous middle grade fiction. While my MS is not humorous fiction, she really encouraged me by totally buying into the sci-fi premise of my story. Maybe it was the adrenaline, but I thought she was nodding her head and smiling at me like: "Go for it." The boost to my fragile writer's morale was priceless. Now, I do have to work on formatting a few things, and the rest of the story needs a thorough edit still, but I think maybe I'm on to something.

In the afternoon, I met with Kari Sutherland from HarperCollins. I read the first 500 of my YA Fantasy, Burnt Amber. Can I just say that I've been working my butt off on this MS? I've revised, and revised, and revised again. I totally get the word RE-VISION. Apparently, the work paid off. She said BA has an authentic teen voice. I translated that to: "the voice works". She might as well have told me I won the lottery.

So what does all this mean? Were they just being nice to me because I was sitting at the same table? Will the self-doubt never end?

Other conference highlights:

I met people I've only seen in thumbnails on the sidebar of a website. Puts things into perspective like nothing else, I tell you. I really want to query some of them now, and some others I don't think would be a good fit at all.
I attended amazing breakout sessions given by editors from important publishing houses. For example, Wendy Loggia from Delacorte gave pointers on the sensory elements she looks for in manuscripts. I love the way she thinks, especially since I dream in deckle-edge.
I met lots of authors. Cassandra Clare, Katherine Erskine, Chris Crutcher....there's a long list of awesome for this conference.
I made some new friends from the Carolinas and beyond.

Most importantly, I learned that I shouldn't give up on this dream of mine. Ever.

Forbidden Amulets

2012-01-30T11:11:00.000-05:00

muska

Maşallah!

If you've been to Turkey, chances are you've seen this word woven into a banner hanging on a taxi or bus window, or even heard someone say it.

The word translates to "God has willed it". Take it as praise if someone says it to you. It's really admiration disguised as a prayer to protect the receiver/bearer from the evil eye.

Lots of Turkish people wear or display a blue nazar boncuk glass bead to protect against the evil eye too. It's not uncommon to find the nazar boncuk with the Maşallah on it, or next to it as well. Double protection.

For triple protection, you'll want a muska with an evil eye bead, embossed with Maşallah.

Muska - pronouced moo-ska - is an amulet containing a Qu'ranic verse or prayer. Old nomadic versions were a simple piece of leather, stiched in a triangle, worn as a necklace or stitched into clothing. Upgrades are made of silver or metal like the one in the picture above. The practice was not limited to Turkey. I remember plenty of gorgeous, empty bedouin amulets in the souqs of Abu Dhabi.

Here's where stuff gets sticky:

Anyone can fold up a printed prayer and wear it in an amulet, but the muska is actually a pagan throwback.

According to the old ways, a medium (think gypsy or shaman) would write the desired verse, fold it up and pray over it - drawing djinn, or some sort of secret magnetism to the amulet for effectiveness. Some mediums were said to use spells and/or curses. I think there's something important about the triangular shape, but I've seen squares too, so I'm not sure anymore.

All of the above is forbidden according to Islam.

Too bad, because both the nazar boncuk and the muska make pretty necklaces. I suppose we can still wear them (and use them in our stories), as long as we don't believe in the hocus pocus.

Two-faced Transition

2012-01-25T06:00:00.000-05:00

wikipedia

2012 is supposed to be a year of transition. I didn't come up with this idea - the Mayan calendar says so: "End of Great Cycle". I'd like to thank them for the heads up because, personally, I think beginnings are scarier than endings. I know because I write them. -- I'm 100% sure my writer friends agree with this assessment.

You don't have to be a writer or a Mayan to understand. I'm thinking Janus is a pretty good example of what I mean.

Thankfully, Wikipedia is up today, free and unfettered:

In ancient Roman religion and mythology, Janus is the god of beginnings and transitions, thence also of gates, doors, doorways, endings and time. He is usually a two-faced god since he looks to the future and the past. The concepts of January and janitor are both based on aspects of Janus.

So here we are, January of transition year 2012. What am I doing? Transitioning.

I've got one manuscript to the point where I will not touch it again without an agent looking at it first. I've got another just coming out of the gate, with plenty of room for improvement.
The problem: I've got an SCBWI conference this week and I don't know which to submit.

One is a YA fantasy designed for girls. The other is an MG Sci-fi designed for boys. Two very different sides of me, both important. One is a huge part of my past, with plenty of connections to my time as a young woman in Turkey. The other is my present and future, with teen/tween testosterone-filled adventure crammed into the work. I'm writing under the influence of my boys.

I love both manuscripts, and I'm starting to feel like Janus. Look back? Or look forward? Can't I have both?

My flawed plan: I have the first 500 of each polished to a high shine - read: best of my ability. I'll know what to do when I walk through the ballroom doorway because Fate will decide which editor/agent sits across from me. I'll ask them which they'd prefer to see.

Only one itty bitty problem -- I won't be able to sleep until its over.

Janitors are so underappreciated, btw.

Donkeys, Elephants - and Camels?

2012-01-23T06:00:00.000-05:00

wikipedia

Election season brings out the animal in lots of people. (Sorry for the bad joke.)

I won't say if I'm a donkey or an elephant, but I thought you might like to know that some people think politicians are camels. Yes. Breeders of wrestling camels name their animals after politicians.

I see the resemblance. Camels and politicians look friendly at first glance. Camels bat their lovely long eyelashes at an unsuspecting person, so you think they might be helpful, you know - to carry your stuff, or give you a ride to the nearest watering hole. Politicians have great smiles... you fill in the blanks.

Get too close and both can turn nasty and spit. Believe me, "camel breath" is the ultimate insult.
I almost passed out when a camel breathed on me once. Maybe I should stop comparing these two before you think I'm too cynical/critical/insane.

Back to the wrestling camels:

Camels in the wild wrestle over females in heat. Long story short: Men got involved and camel wrestling became an Anatolian event. As a part of Turkic heritage, camel wrestling tournaments are a lucrative tourist attraction. The tradition has seen an upswing as a result, and a prize bactrian (two humps) camel can now go for up to $20,000.

I think a camel would have to go 0-60 much faster for me to pay that much, but then there are camels bred for racing too. I lived in the UAE - land of the even more expensive racing camel. Dromedary (one hump) camels are FAST. I reevaluated my perception of the camel after I saw one running past. They can get up to 40 miles per hour, which is a lot faster than my two feet can carry me. They run on animal feed, which probably costs less and gets more miles per gallon. Plus a camel can cross the desert with little water and survive crazy sandstorms.

I haven't included any camels in my work. Probably because I haven't found that character who needs to meet a stubborn pack animal yet.

Wonder who represents the camel party around here...

wikipedia

Shortcuts

2012-01-18T06:00:00.000-05:00

ARWEN

This isn't Vermont, although the picture does remind me of my days at Bennington and a certain local poet.

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference

Robert Frost

Gosh, I love that poem.

The picture above was taken at Yedigöller National Park, on Bolu Mountain in Turkey.

I travelled over that mountain a few times. The old highway (two lanes) snakes up though some breathtaking scenery, up to the top. There's a good roadside restaurant run by the Varan busline there. One really should stop and take in the view, especially when the strawberries are in season.

A tunnel bypasses it all now, saving hours. Hours! Just think of the things I can do with all that time.

The scenic route usually means we took the long way by accident, in my family anyway. So in an age when everything is "so 42 seconds ago" I wonder, will the next generation seek out these places? I think our grandparents wondered the same thing about us, yet I wander - except when there's a convenient tunnel.

Darn tunnel.

itusozluk

There weren't many tunnels where I grew up, so I probably love them more as a result. You know what? When you use a tunnel, you bypass all sorts of lovely. But when you get where you need to go, there's extra time to find a different sort of lovely at your destination.

Brings writing to mind. I prefer to follow an unexplored story trail, but I don't have time to revisit unless it's useful, because a pretty path isn't enough. Something needs to be stunning for me to make the trek. Think of the poem. Frost doesn't let us get away from his single minded idea. He takes no tangent to describe the leaves on the trees, only the leaves on his path. Seems to me like sticking to the path is a good idea.

Gosh, it took me a long time to realize that!

Off With Their Heads!

2012-01-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

image credit

You may recall last spring/summer I was actively researching Mithraic mysteries and Cilician pirates. Well, the research led me to some interesting places in my new MS -- places I'd always wanted to go, but never knew how to utilize.

Nemrut is one of those places. Search the word hierothesion, and you won't find an easy definition. What you'll find is a link pointing over to UNESCO world heritage site, Nemrut.

To paraphrase what I learned:

Nemrut is believed to be the burial site of King Antiochus I Theos of Commagene, high on the mountain top overlooking his kingdom. Hierothesion refers to the way the statues of the gods are arranged at the site. (see restoration below)

Now here's where I go off track a bit.

The statues are enormous (8–9 m/26–30 ft). Depictions of Hercules/Vahagn, Zeus/Oromasdes, Apollo/Mithra, Tyche, plus paired eagles and lions, flank the king. To confuse me some more, the statues wear Persian style dress/hair, but were carved with Greek faces. (And why are all the guys identified in Greek/Persian, but Tyche, the goddess of fortune, is only Tyche? I'm voting to call her Tyche/Mah, but what do I know?) It seems the hierothesion falls at some sort of midpoint between the two belief systems, circa 62 BC.

http://fararheill.is/risastytturnar-i-nemrut

Something so big and so important draws attention. When religious ideas of the area shifted to monotheism, the statues were beheaded, lest they be used for idol worship. No one knows when or how it happened, but the heads are now located down the hill from their respective torsos.
Maybe that isn't such a travesty after all. The statues are interesting, but I think the detached heads are what make the site unique.

The image on the right of a restored Nemrut is from an Icelandic source that I couldn't really translate well. (Feel free to follow the link and try for yourself.)

For a long time, not many people made it out to Nemrut. It's out past Malatya, near Adiyaman in eastern Turkey. Read: very far from the beach.

Tourists are coming much more consistently these days. Now Malatya and Adiyaman are fighting for road access rights, airports, and hotels. I think before they worry about the tourists, they should worry about the statues. More people means more deterioration of the site.

Controversy over Mt Nemrut spreads

And PS - No spoilers in the comments, LTM! ;)

Historical (in)Accuracy

2012-01-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

clipart etc

ost everything I write has roots in some archeological site, artwork, or historical figure. I take what information I need and leave what I don't, which isn't easy. I want to honor the history, yet my story needs are different (and more important). It takes me a few days to process the research and pick out the suitable details. I don't pretend to write historical fiction. I write fantasy, yet what I keep usually rings pretty true. However...lately, I've been wondering just how far I'm willing to drift from my sources.

As far as accuracy of place, I try to be strong willed and make the story fit the landmarks. I don't change things. Two excellent examples of my reasoning:

1) Assassin's Creed-Revelations put a port in Cappadocia.
2)The International relocated Yerebatan Sarnici beneath the Blue Mosque.

Shifts like that irk me because I know better, and because those shifts mislead people. Many viewers or readers won't know the difference, and worse, they might take the information at face value. I suppose the important issue is exposing the public to the landmark, regardless of location, but it bugs me. Does it bug you?

I find historical figures are even more sticky to handle. So much so, I'm thinking to rename some major characters in Burnt Amber to avoid a big headache later.

Exhibit A:

The Turkish series I currently <3 <3 <3, Muhteşem Yüzyıl (Magnificent Century), featured Isabella Fortuna, Princess of Castile - a whole subplot of her falling for Sultan Suleiman. Give me a break.

In fourteen hundred ninety-two
Columbus sailed the ocean blue.

That Isabella died in 1504. (I think they're referring to queen Isabella - I can't find evidence to the contrary.) What was she doing in Istanbul in late1526?

Don't screw with my head like that, people. Readers and viewers are not stupid, and we don't appreciate being misled. Although what worries me most is the idea that these inaccurate episodes may be the only history lesson people get about these rulers. At least give us a decent disclaimer. No?

So. Maybe I can and should go farther from my source than I thought, especially since I know accuracy is not all it seems to be either. Winners wrote their version of the story. What would the losers have to say?

I say creative license is a blessing. What say you?

Fountain of Inspiration

2012-01-09T06:00:00.000-05:00

wikipedia

Throughout Turkey, there are beautiful Ottoman era fountains, called çeşme. Marble or mosaic tile fountains are named after prominent figures who funded the projects, because Sultan/Pasha such and such expected goodwill of the people in return. The bigger or fancier the fountain, the more prayers a benefactor received. In theory anyway.

For city dwellers, clean water was a blessing in itself in those times. Water came from underground spings or aqueducts that might have been miles and miles from the fountain.

With the advent of indoor plumbing, many fountains fell into disrepair. Some were demolished. You know how it goes. Discovering some of the small fountains tucked into older neighborhoods of Istanbul now might require a treasure map.

My favorite fountain is nothing like the grand one in the picture above, and it is no where near Istanbul. It's a little hole in the wall on a steep path, a straight pipe mortared into a crack in the mounain, no inscription or dedication. A little plaque above reminds: No washing up allowed!

The water is ice cold, even in summer. Travellers stop to drink or refill their bottles, if they're lucky enough to know it's there. I never went up there in the winter, but many years later, that little mountain spring was inspiration for the beginning of my new WIP, Mist of Kavala.

So my reminder for the new year to all my bloggy friends: Remember the small moments.

More reading:

The Ottoman fountains of Istanbul

Istanbul fountain restoration continues Hurriyet Daily News

Haystacks & Hydrangeas à la Assassin's Creed

2012-01-04T06:00:00.000-05:00

True to Ezio's previous adventures, there are plenty of haystacks to hide in throughout Assassin's Creed - Revelations. True to Istanbul, there are also plenty of hydrangeas, or what the locals call hortensia (hydrangea macrophylla). Although I wouldn't want to be jumping into them like Ezio does, hortensia bushes in all shades of blue and lilac are found in parks and palaces across the city - in real life and in AC-R. Little details like this are the reason I enjoyed exploring the game.
Here's my take on AC-R:

Topkapi Palace is detailed fairly well, as is the Grand Bazaar, and other landmarks like Hagia Sofia, the Galata Tower, and the Maiden's Tower. The rest of the city feels like any other AC game, except for the minarets. Tile roofs and towers, courtyards and caverns. The programmers threw in some carpets for effect, but it feels like Ezio could be anywhere, especially since the Bosphorus looks like a small river or maybe a Venetian waterway. (The Bosphorus is much wider in real life and you wouldn't want to swim across, my dear Ezio.)

But if you like Ezio's previous worlds, then the familiarity is a plus. (Even I can't really complain.) I was disappointed with the way programmers handled the Yerebatan Sarnici. They must have had plenty of leftover code and thought they could get away with chopping it up into sections. I can almost forgive them. There are plenty of cisterns under the city which might fit into their labyrinthine plan, and some of them must connect to Yerebatan Sarnici. What I don't accept is the way programmers handled the caves of Cappadocia.

Problem #1: There are no navigable rivers in Cappadocia, yet Ezio hops on a ship in Istanbul and lands right at the hidden entrance to a rock city.

Problem #2: The city is inside a huge cave. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the cities of Cappadocia are carved into cliff faces, or dug seven stories down like ground squirrel warrens. Supersized, giant caves? Felt like a device the programmers used so they could suspend a challenge from the ceiling. *ahem*

So besides hydrangeas and aptly placed white tulips, what did I love about AC-R?

wikia.com

Turkish is interlaced in conversation. Push someone as you run past and you might get a dose of interesting insults. Some of the women standing around have stories to tell about their lives too, if you listen. I think they used some native speakers because the accent was pretty pure.

Otherwise, the city folk are pretty standard. Instead of Venetian courtesans, we swap out a few dresses et voilà: Romani gypsies. Veiled women and turbaned men roam the streets in between groups of Ottoman Janissaries, who look pretty darned awesome in their detailed uniforms. I've got a thing for Janissaries though, so maybe it's just me. Uniforms aside, there isn't much difference between them and the Byzantines supporting theTemplars of the AC-R conflict. All guards act the same as any soldiers in previous AC games.

Bottom line: don't expect anything outrageously different from AC-R. Expect to spend some more time with Ezio Auditore da Firenze, relive a few scenes with Altaïr, and help Desmond out with the Animus.

You know what to you need to do.

Psst...Go play the game! Desmond is up next. ;)

10 fils Tandoor

2012-01-02T06:00:00.000-05:00

wikipedia

First, I'd like to wish my friends, family, and blogger buddies-

Happy New Year - Yeni yiliniz kutlu olsun - Szczesliwego Nowego Roku

Kul 'am wa antum bikhair, etc.

The new year is a great time to think about the past as well as the future. I'm thinking back to my days in Abu Dhabi and the simple pleasure of bread, fresh from the tandoori oven, only 10 fils per loaf.

(Fils were like pennies, without consideration to the actual exchange value. 10 fils=0.026 cents at the time. Today, I could sell the coins on eBay for 75 cents, apparently. Where did I hide all my UAE coins?)

souq.com

Anyhoo. Back to our story. At the end of our street in Abu Dhabi, there was a Pakistani baker's shop. It wasn't a true bakery. It was more like a guy with an oven in the spare closet of a bigger shop. Literally. The owner of the shop facing the park at the front of the building probably sublet the space to the baker.

The baker generally sold his bread to taxi drivers and the occasional house maid, so 10 fils was an appropriate price for their meager wages. For me, 10 fils was almost free. Priceless was more like it.

We'd stop in on the way home from work. Most of our neighbors drove right on past, preferring to shop at Spinneys or the Co-operative Society for their more expensive bread. How they could resist the aroma was (and still is) a mystery to me. Pulling apart a fluffy, hot loaf, fresh out of the tandoor was the highlight of my day.

Nowadays, I'd be lucky to find that aroma anywhere. I have to go clear uptown to Nova's Bakery for brick oven baked bread - a good 40 minutes for me.

Maybe I should get myself a tandoor. These days people are building all kinds of stuff in their backyard kitchens. Pizza oven or clay tandoor, the only problem I'd have is keeping the neighbors at bay once they smell what's cooking. Just think of all the things I could make with it. - Food Network's Stephen Raichlen gave me some good ideas.
Chicken tikka, anyone?

wikipedia

Teen Book Review - The Death Cure

2011-12-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

amazon

Let’s get this over with.

James Dashner’s characters saidthat about 500 times in The Death Cure.

I read the first two books of theseries, The Maze Runner and The Scorch Trials, very quickly, but The Death Cure took me much longer. I had tostop and think if things were really possible pretty often. It was also sad andemotional, which made made me put the book down.

The Death Cure was good because there was a lot of continuous action,not like some books where there is one action scene every few chapters and therest is talking. It was disturbing and gory though. Battle scenes didn’t leavevery much to imagination because they were described so clearly. The story continuouslygot worse and left me wondering how things could possibly get worse, and then theygot worse, and worse. Creepy cranks (people infected with the flare virus)chase and trap characters to give the reader a clear view of the crank infestedworld and what is at stake.

The hero has to make verydifficult choices about people close to him. The people in WICKED (World In Catastrophe KillZone Experiment Department), which was created to cure the flare, acted likethey were giving the kids a choice. In reality, they forced characters to dothings they didn’t want to do. Finally, on the last page, we learn about thesource of the flare and the reason for it, and the reason is shocking.

I was reminded of Lord of the Flies when I read this bookbecause of the isolation from the adults and the sacrifices that were made. Bookslike this remind people of emotional consequences of war, unlike the virtualbattle fields of video games.

Thanks for reading!

This review was written by my son, Adam. He is a freshman in high school.

Chocolate Covered Chestnuts

2011-12-26T06:00:00.000-05:00

Lezzetin Izinde

Tis the season to roast some chestnuts on an open fire. Have you ever done it though? I had to go clear across the world to try some. It might have something to do with the fact that American chestnut trees were devastated by chestnut blight, or maybe chestnuts are just a European thing. The ones I usually find at the grocery store are from Italy.

Perhaps you've tried marron glacé? I adore them, whenever I can find some. It's probably a good thing they're hard to come by, though. The calorie count for chestnuts soaked in sugar syrup is insane. Some shops make them in Turkey, but as you can tell from the name, it's the French who really get credit for the idea - sorry Italy.

As far as Istanbul is concerned, there are other interesting ways to prepare a chestnut or kestane. Example: Chocolate coated chestnuts. From what I understand, the chestnuts are:

1) roasted to remove the shells
2) boiled in milk, vanilla and sugar
3) coated in (dark?) chocolate, and
4) dusted with pistachios

According to Hurriyet newspaper's 100 Tastes of Istanbul - Istanbul'un 100 Lezzeti, #49 is the chocolate covered chestnut from Bahar Pastanesi in Teşvikiye.

Best4 Pastry Shops in Istanbul
Bursa retaining sweet chestnut taste, tradition

A Dose of Dickens

2011-12-21T06:00:00.001-05:00

wikipedia

It's the holidays and Dickens is on my mind, especially since I went to see a comedy/musical version of A Christmas Carol a couple of weeks ago.
It was OK. The writer threw in some political jokes, modern social commentary, broadway bits, and a few guys walked on impersonating the "Occupy" movement for good measure.

Then I read USA Weekend's Scrooge vs Aliens: A Christmas Carol Mashup

Let's just say I prefer the old version.

I was in ninth grade when my teacher passed out a photocopy of Great Expactations. (Imagine! I still don't own a bound copy of this. What is WRONG with me?) I muddled through the first half, and then the teacher told us we didn't need to read further. (What was wrong with HER? The story was just getting good, at that point.) I didn't stop, and I remember Great Expectations as even more interesting than alllll the Austen I was reading at the time.

I loved Miss Havisham. The whole wedding feast gone wrong, the details, the decay. Then I picked up paperback version of A Tale of Two Cities, and then ohh, I was into Dickens, big time then.

I guess reading his work has shaped my writing style, if I think about it. Lots of details, some of them messy, a little bit raw. I would love to use some more dry wit and social commentary like his, but apparently that's a no-no in my genre. So I was thinking, I really want to read some Dickens this winter.

How about you?

Hande Yener

2011-12-19T06:00:00.000-05:00

handeyenerfanclub

Thought I'd share some music today. (Read: Quick post because I still have shopping, wrapping, decorating to do.)

This is Hande Yener, one of Turkey's top female pop artists. Like Madonna and Lady Gaga, she likes to change up her look often and shares a similar energy on stage. Jet black, blonde, raucous red, pink, orange...I don't think there's a hair color she hasn't tried. She's back to natural brown at the moment.

These are a few that were huge hits for her. I had a hard time choosing my favs, but these show her versatility the best.

Romeo: This song has solid, staying power. I shuffle back to it every once in a while.

Bana Anlat, 2011: This is her latest single, and most days it's playing in my car.

Hipnoz: She tried her hand at electropop with this album. She didn't do it again.

Hollywood Djinn

2011-12-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

wikia.com

Uncharted 3 started me thinking about Hollywood and the way djinn are portrayed in film. I've seen them ghostly, fiery, and without a specific corporeal shape most often. Must be tough to act when your character is a cloud though. Only Robin Williams does well with the blue puffy look.

Then Clash of the Titans, v2010, came up with some story of djinn who gave up their bodies for what looks like charcoal briquettes. Glowing blues eyes complete the cheesy effect. But this is Clash of the Titans - so cheesy is what it's all about. ;)

Actually, as characters, they are pretty decent. They help Perseus out and are instrumental in defeating Medusa. Most other movies give the djinn a nasty reputation for death and destruction. Maybe spelling it "djinn" versus "genie" has something to do with the creepy coefficient?

Then there's Wishmaster,1997. This guy just looks like Satan in a red cloak. What's up with the horns and claws? I suppose being evil entitles a djinn to whatever he wants, but... I'm not buying the look, even if it makes me wonder if my djinn need an image consulation. If I was an evil mastermind, I'd want to look pretty darn ordinary and let people think I was just like them, until I trapped them between a rock and a hard place. What do you think? What other djinn have you seen in the movies?

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

2011-12-12T06:00:00.001-05:00

deathbyrobots

I was soooo happy when I got Uncharted 3 for $30 on Black Friday. I saved myself $30 on a new game which had just come out, you see. Plus, this game promised me an adventure in the Arabian desert to boot.

We headed to a medieval castle in France, which pointed to a Crusader castle in Syria reminiscent of one of my bucket list destinations - Krak des Chevaliers, the stronghold of the Knights Hospitaller. A couple of ordinary puzzles later and we're off to the Rub' Al Khali - literally the 'empty quarter' of the Saudi Arabian peninsula. (NOT on my bucket list. I saw the edge of that desert when I lived in the UAE. Close enough for me, thank you very much.)

Sand, sand, more shifting sand, and, oh yeah, the forgotten city of Ubar/Iram of the Pillars/Lawrence of Arabia's Atlantis of the Sands. (Lots of names for this place, apparently.) Since interesting mythologies and creature creations usually come with every Uncharted, I was excited to see what they would do with the djinn.

The big reveal?

It was a brass jar, supposedly with a djinn in it, sealed away centuries before by King Solomon himself. A brass jar? Aren't we going to OPEN it? Nope. Not this time. No curse of somebody or other to mutate the Spaniards (Uncharted One), or blue dudes that inhaled too much resin (Uncharted Two).

This time, Drake merely hallucinates an attack by a few enemies who have been turned into fiery guys - and then Sully wakes him up. I was especially disappointed because, as you know, anything to do with djinn is of interest to me.

So I'm off to play the new Assassin's Creed. It's set in Istanbul, remember? I hope it's not as disappointing.

Anatolian Ground Squirrel

2011-12-07T06:00:00.000-05:00

Link to ARKive photo

My little tale:

The bird feeder in my backyard is full of safflower seeds this winter.

The squirrels do not approve.

Sunflower seeds, on the other hand, bring them out in droves. You probably already know this, and no doubt have a squirrel-proof plan of your own. It's not that I don't like squirrels. (My husband believes I am a descendant of Scrat. *ahem*) I just want the birds to get some food too.

Out on the Anatolian plain, the highway (highway being a two lane road at the time) between Ankara and Mersin is covered in sunflowers. Squirrel heaven. Except there are no trees.

So where are the squirrels? Hiding out underground. You don't even know they're there. Unless you're the farmer, twisting your ankle in a burrow hole, swearing at them for eating your precious crops. Farmers took to poisoning the poor critters. The Anatolian Ground Squirrel population dropped somewhere around 25% before they were declared "near threatened" and offered some protection.

My first sight of them was at the side of the road, as I was going xxx kilometers per hour. The farmers had just cut down the sunflower crop and flushed the squirrels out. They were up on their hind legs, all in a row (the squirrels, not the farmers). I imagine they were a group of boy squirrels, daring each other to cross the road. (Why else were they there?)

Anyhow, they were very cute, so I hope they listened to their mommies and did not cross the road. (There's a TUNNEL, silly!) After that, I wondered if the underground cities were the brainchild of some ingenious, squirrel-minded individuals. As for myself, I was looking for a way to use these critters in my writing for a couple years now. I finally found a good spot in my WIP - Mist of Kavala. (Check out my brand-spanking-new query.)

You know what - it's a good thing I was sharing this with you today, because according to my research, ground squirrels don't drink standing water. So my squirrel at the watering hole - needs to find some other reason to be there. (Oops!) I guess it can nibble on some tasty seed plants growing there instead.

Hürrem's Ring

2011-12-05T06:00:00.000-05:00

yurdan.com

Who is Hürrem?

We in the west know her as Roxelana. Remember my post a while back about her? She's the Sultan's wife with an amazing story - a real life Scheherezade.

Kidnapped by the Tatars and sold into the Ottoman harem, Aleksandra Lisowska fell in love with the Sultan, changed her religion, and changed her name to Hürrem. (Roxelana means 'the Ruthenian/Russian'.) Suleiman the Magnificent legally married her, deposing his first son in favor of Hürrem's child. The scenario caused quite a stir.

With the rise of Otto-mania and the TV series Muhteşem Yüzyıl (Magnificent Century), Hürrem has found a new following. The storyline about the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent is the equivalent of the The Tudors for Turkey.

Even if some think portraying Ottoman court rivalry is unbecoming, there's great stuff coming out of this show, especially the jewelry. Example: Hürrem's ring. Lots and lots of girls are wishing for that one. (I'm one of them.) Don't like green? They have a purple one too. You can probably find one in every color, if you try hard. Wow rings are in this year. ;)

The series story behind the ring is interesting, even if I'm not sure how much of it is historically accurate. Hürrem's ring is symbolic of her status.

Suleiman was in the process of making the ring himself before he was decreed as the Sultan. His first Haseki Sultan ('commonlaw wife') assumed he was making it for her. Then Suleiman is called to Topkapi Palace to fulfill his birthright. Aleksandra is brought to the harem, and she hatches a plan to become the favorite. (Not hard, since she was beautiful and smart.) The first wife, Mahidevran, arrives with the Sultan's first born son. She thinks she's the favorite, but it's already clear Aleksandra is taking the lead. Guess who gets the ring.

Mahidevran is furious and manipulates some girls into stealing the ring from Aleksandra - now officially named "Hürrem" (my joy) by the Sultan. In the power struggle, Hürrem gets tossed in a dungeon and beaten to a pulp, but Mahidevran is banished in the end.

Meryem Uzerli plays Hürrem. Uzerli is half Turkish, half German. Her hair is not naturally red, but it looks good on her, don't you think?

She co-stars with Halit Ergenç, a popular star from the other TV series Binbir Gece. I should write something about him one of these days. He really deserves his own post.

Here's a trailer clip for you.:

Dr. Öz

2011-11-30T06:00:00.000-05:00

image via wikipedia.com

Everybody knows Dr. Oz is Turkish, right?

Mehmet Cengiz Öz, who we all like to call Dr. Oz,
is actually Turkish-American. He was born and raised in the US, and he retains his Turkish passport. Culturally, he retains every bit of his Turkishness, which I find extremely cool. You need to look to see it though.

He walks that TCK walk with such confidence, I'll bet my yogurt soup that most Americans don't even know he speaks another language. (Turkish - not the medical jiberish he sometimes throws at us.)

Whether you've followed his skyrocketing career or not, you have to be impressed with his achievements:

Harvard - undergrad; University of Pennsylvania, TheWharton School - MD/MBA; Columbia University Professor; Cardiovascular Institute and Complementary Medicine Program, Director at New York Presbyterian Hospital
Discovery Health Host; Oprah "Allstar"; Tuner Private Networks Host; The Doctor Oz Show, etc., etc., etc.
Time magazine ranked Oz 44th on its list of the 100 Most Influential People in 2008 and Esquire magazine placed him on its list of the 75 Most Influential People of the 21st Century.He was called a Global Leader of Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum^[and one of “The Harvard 100 Most Influential Alumni” by 02138 magazine.He won the Gross Surgical Research Scholarship.He was listed in “Doctors of the Year” by Hippocrates magazine and in “Healers of the Millennium” by Healthy Living magazine.Oz is annually listed in the Castle Connolly Guide of the top United States doctors,as well as other ranking groups. - heck, just go to his wikipedia page if you need to know them all.

Writers and other frequent bookstore visitors might also recognize the New York Times bestselling series of books Dr. Oz co-authored with Dr. Michael F. Roizen. You know, YOU: The Owner's Manual, etc.

Dr. Oz has taken personal health to a new high-profile, high priority level. My gosh! The other day he even had PAULA DEEN on his show. Yes. The Queen of Butter visited The King of Better. It was kind of a showdown.

The real controversy come in where his spirituality is concerned. He practices transcendental meditation, which wouldn't be a problem except he also believes in the healing powers of positive thinking. Not a bad thing really, just an unusual position for an MD to embrace. In public.

Overall, I think he does so much more good, encouraging people to take a more active role in their own health; telling people there's arsenic in apple juice. Well, so what if that's another one of his controversies. I want to know if there's arsenic in my apple juice. Don't you?

Kelebek Vadisi - Butterfly Valley

2011-11-28T06:00:00.000-05:00

wikipedia

I'm attempting to be a WriMo still, but I thought you could use an escape, even if I'm tied to a chair.

A friend of mine was blogging about her trip to Butterfly Valley recently, and I was inspired to use in in my WIP as a setting for some challenging climbs and general boyish, adrenaline fueled adventures. (I'm writing an MG boy book.)

Daytrippers arrive by boat from Fethiye to trek the narrow valley, visit the waterfalls, and hopefully see some Euplagia quadripunctaria - leopard butterflies. Many types of butterflies flock there to enjoy the abundance of wildflowers, and naturalists stalk the winged creatures at all hours.

Fethiyedays.com

Brave paragliders inspired by all those wings float down to the beach pretty regularly. You can hop off the top of these cliffs too, for a reasonable fee, and with a qualified guide. You won't catch me doing it, I'm afraid. The only flying I do is in an airplane.

I do take inspiration from the waterfalls and the trails, though. There's no escape from the valley (insert sinister laugh) except up a verrrry steep path to a small village. Funny how I can take such a beautiful place and twist it around to suit my needs.

image via colnect.com

Turkey issued a postage stamp for it's favorite flying friend. It's a collectible now, if you have one.

Here's a decent video clip for you:

Turkey - The Bird

2011-11-23T06:00:00.000-05:00

image via wikipedia

You may be wondering why I posted a peacock photo.

Either:

A) Someone spiked my Thanksgiving punch with Wild Turkey bourbon. I live in the south now, you know.

or

B) There's a moral to this story.

(You know it's B, or maybe it's C - all of the above.) *ahem*

In Turkey (the country), turkey (the bird) is called"hindi" and I always wondered why. Hindi refers to India, meaning the Turks believe the turkey is from India. The turkey is a native north American bird.

Long story short, since I'm doing NaNoWriMo:

Europeans trading in India picked up the Tamil word "thukki" for the peacock. (I wonder where the name peacock comes from...but this is the short story.)

Then, Christopher Columbus thought he found the route to the East Indies when he landed here. Some believe he found birds which he thought were a type of thukki. (A fact he he may have used to confirm his landing in India.)

When the turkey finally came to Turkey, Turks recognized it/mistook it for a cousin of the guinea fowl and peacock, which they already called hindi.

....and Europeans were just generally confused some more by Turks selling guinea fowl.

Turkey... thukki... What's the difference?

Look fast:

If I was drinking Wild Turkey straight, I guess I might confuse the two....

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

The Kangal Dog

2011-11-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

Taner (my mc in Mist of Kavala) needed a dog. He needed a loyal, patient, protective dog. He needed a big dog with expressive eyes. A dog he was really, really, really sad to leave behind.

I can't have a dog (allergies), but I've always admired the Kangal.

This Turkish breed hails from Kangal, near Sivas, way out in Anatolia. It's a type of mastiff, a working class shephard dog, sometimes known as the çoban köpek. (There are other breeds that fall under this name too).

A pair of Kangals stays with a flock of sheep and almost blends in, except for the curled up tails. Wolves, wildcats and bears are no match for it. Owners outfit the dog with a formidable spiked collar and at 30 miles per hour, it's been trained in some countries to guard against cheetahs.

Puppies are so cute with their dark muzzles and ears, but at a height of 30 inches high (at the shoulder) and about 130 lb, this is a dog that requires an enormous backyard. If I had a farm, I'd want one, otherwise it would be cruel punishment for the dog to stay cooped up on my minuscule acreage.

Kangal dogs are the national breed of Turkey.

http://www.kangalkopegi.org
http://www.kangaldogsinternational.org/

Kına - Henna

2011-11-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

image via sohbeteli.com

I've never had the chance to use kına in my writing, but an opportunity just arose. I have a girl being sent off to the palace. :)
In the middle east, women adorn themselves with henna for holidays and special occasions, or even just to feel pretty. In Turkey, the custom is usually reserved for weddings now.

This is a more elaborate design than I've seen there. It might just be a case of where I lived though, since I snagged this off a Turkish website. The version I saw was basically a finger dipped up to the knuckle, or a blob placed inside the palm. Very basic.

Since I like the concept of the designs left behind, I'm thinking to use henna in a more modernistic way, but the details haven't worked themselves out yet. Stay tuned for the rough draft!

I used to use henna when I lived in Abu Dhabi. I still have some in my makeup case. There it was no big deal. Here: You should see the look on people's faces when I open my hand. Hehe. I guess I'm not as conservative as I pretend to be.

Henna lasts about two weeks on the hands. I don't like to get it on my fingernails because it takes forever to grow out. On the foot, designs can last for months.

Henna in the hair is another post.... I have a cute story for that one.

Yurt Kidding Me!

2011-11-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

NeimanMarcus.com

I've got a yurt in chapter 10. It's nothing like this one from Neiman Marcus, but then they're channeling Barbara Eden.

Which is not to say I haven't seen anything like it...

I lived in Abu Dhabi, and when you said party - and there was an important looking guest list - you got a big deal tent draped in gorgeous material just like this. With air conditioning, and red carpets, and biryani like you've never tasted. Even the invitations came embossed with gold calligraphy on velvet, practically screaming: Pull out your princess slippers!

However, that wasn't a yurt. That was a big deal. And lavender wasn't usually in the color scheme.

My nomadic yurt is draped in woven kilims, filled with floor pillows, lined with tassels tied up in bright skeins of wool. The outside is plain felt. In my head it's rough, black goat felt, but it could be white sheep's felt. Either way, the whole thing can be packed up and loaded onto a pair of horses in a couple of hours.

I think you'd need white glove service for the $75,000 lavender fantasy up there. No, I'm not kidding you. $75.000.

via wikipedia

What Recession? Neiman Marcus Christmas Catalog Offers $75,000 Yurt

String Bridge

2011-11-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

Today is THE day to help Jessica Bell's debut, STRING BRIDGE, hitthe bestseller list on Amazon, and receive the all-original soundtrack, Melody Hill: On the Other Side, written and performed by the author herself, for free!

All you have to do ispurchase the book today (paperback, or eBook), November 11th, andthen email the receipt to:

jessica.carmen.bell(at)gmail(dot)com.

She willthen email you a link to download the album at no extra cost!

To purchase the paperback:

Amazon USA

To purchase the eBook:

Amazon USA

Amazon UK

To listen to samples of the soundtrack, visit iTunes.

If you arenot familiar with String Bridge,check out the book trailer:

Rave Reviews for String Bridge:

“Jessica Bell’s STRING BRIDGE strummed the fret of myveins, thrummed my blood into a mad rush, played me taut until the final page,yet with echoes still reverberating. A rhythmic debut with metrical tones ofheavied dark, fleeting prisms of light, and finally, a burst of joy—just aswith any good song, my hopeful heartbeat kept tempo with Bell’s narrative.” ~ Kathryn Magendie, author of Sweetie and Publishing Editor of Rose & Thorn Journal

“Poet andmusician Jessica Bell's debut novel String Bridge is a rich exploration of desire, guilt, and thedifficult balancing act of the modern woman. The writing is lyrical throughout,seamlessly integrating setting, character and plot in a musical structure thatallows the reader to identify with Melody's growing insecurity as her worldbegins to unravel … String Bridge isa powerful debut from a promising writer, full of music, metaphor, and just ahint of magic.” ~ Magdalena Ball, author of RepulsionThrust and Sleep Before Evening

“Jessica Bell is a brilliant writerof great skill and depth. She doesn't pull back from the difficultscenes, from conflict, pain, intensity. She puts it all out there, no holdsbarred, no holding back. She knows how to craft a scene, how to developcharacter, how to create suspense. This is an absolutely brilliant debut novel.I look forward to reading hernext novel, and next and next.” ~ Karen JonesGowen, author of Farm Girl, Uncut Diamonds and House of Diamonds

Connect with Jessica:

String Bridge: http://www.stringbridge.com/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/jessica_bell
Website: http://www.jessicacbell.com/
Blog: http://thealliterativeallomorph.blogspot.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/author.jessica.bell
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MsBessieBell
Publisher: http://www.luckypress.com

Please TWEET and/or FACEBOOK this post using #StringBridge!

Rumi Inspiration

2011-11-09T06:00:00.000-05:00

I only have time for a quick post because I'm NaNoWriMoing. The italicized lines are all Rumi, taken from Goodreads this time.

When I write, I remember:

Let the beauty of what you love be what you do.

When I have to revise my revolting rough draft, I remember:

How do the birds make great sky circles...
They fall and falling they are given wings.

When I get a critique and I need to make sooo many changes, I remember:

If you are irritated by every rub, how will your mirror be polished?

When I get a good rejection letter, I remember:

The wound is the place where the Light enters you.

When I sigh and think I'll never find an agent, I remember:

What you seek is seeking you.

Remember:

Do not be satisfied with the stories that come before you. Unfold your own myth.

Yogurt Soup - Yayla Çorbası

2011-11-07T06:00:00.000-05:00

image via tulumba.com

It's officially NaNoWriMo for me, so I'm cheating on my blog and posting recipes.

An easy one that I like to make is Yayla Çorbası, which means peasant soup, or technically mountain village soup - aka yogurt soup.

For this you'll need:

One 32 oz package (4 c) of PLAIN yogurt.
Not Greek yogurt. Not vanilla yogurt. Plain. Preferably low fat, as opposed to nonfat. I use Dannon. A full cream organic like Stoneyfield Farms would be a waste of calories, IMHO. I'm picky about my yogurt.

1/4 cup flour
1 egg
1/4 cup of dried mint
1/2 of medium grain rice, rinsed
Two 32 oz cartons (8 c) chicken stock

To prepare:

Empty the yogurt into at least a 4 quart pot. Whisk in flour, egg, and dried mint. Add stock and rice. Stir frequently over medium-high heat, until the mixture almost comes to a boil. Bubbles look like they want to come through at the edges. Don't let it boil! The soup separates if it boils. Reduce heat to a simmer for about 15 more minutes, so the rice can cook through.

Serve with red pepper flakes.

I've eaten this cold. I've eaten it without red pepper flakes. I've eaten it with a splash of tabasco. Sometimes the yogurt isn't sour enough and I'll squeeze in a little lemon. Actually, this is a perfect dish to use up that container of yogurt you forgot about in the back of your fridge.

Or, if you're rushed and NaNoWriMoing like me, you can buy the mix.

The Bartle Quotient

2011-11-02T06:00:00.001-04:00

image via madore.org

You know I'm a gamer. But what kind of gamer? Betcha didn't know there's DNA involved, as in gamerdna of the Bartle Test of Gamer Psychology.

That's me on the right: The Queen of Spades.
Called “Pallas” on the French deck, possibly after the Greek goddess Athena. She faces left, and is seen in profile. On the English deck, she is the only queen with a scepter. She faces forward, a little to the right.Madore.org

I can identify with that.

Queen of Hearts, I am not. Nope. Not enough pink ink in my manuscripts. Everything I encounter is analyzed and shelved for future reference. Very Athena goddess of wisdom,/strategy/justice-like. Yup. Spades is definitely the right camp for me.

Must be why I love characters like Rowena Ravenclaw (Hogwarts) and Annabeth (Percy Jackson series. Loved the library in the cabin and the whole grey/white color scheme. I digress.)

So this all relates to the MMORPG: Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game - which I technically do not have any time for this NaNoWriMonth.

According to the Bartle Test of Gamer Psychology (at gamerdna.com), there are four categories a player trends into, with tendencies leaning in all directions in various percentages. These are my stats.

I'm going to translate this into blogging, just for fun. Hope my blogger buddies don't mind me nominating them for head of their camp.

Socializers:aka Hearts - (LeighTMoore) Spreads the love and enjoys interaction just for the experience. Involved in activities for the good of the group, such as a guild. Yes, LTM is definitely the Queen of Hearts.

Explorers:aka Spades - Analytical. Likes to discover glitches, uncover things like the hidden easter egg. Should be an archeologist, or some kind of "ologist". I think Sarah Fine probably fits best here. Hey, what do you know? She's a psychologist.

Achievers: aka Diamonds - Eyes on the rare prize, such as the 8 million point christmas cracker. I'm thinkingMatt MacNish has a high score here. Example: He wants to get 1,000 followers before he queries. He's probably got a high score in the socializer category too because of his quest to aid queriers everywhere. I thought he'd prefer the King of Diamonds, since knowledge is the rare prize we seek when we visit him.

Killers:aka Clubs. Try to affect their environment, control markets. Usually have minions. Who is this? I'm stumped. I don't have any one blogger in mind here, but I know we all have this to some degree. It's our competitive streak. Probably an attorney would be a good fit here, but I don't know anyone who writes legal thrillers. Slytherin, anyone? Maybe someone like Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg. What they do is important and good, but can easily go the wrong way. A good trickster, IMHO.

How many books have I read that tap into this theory? A bunch. Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Divergence, to name a few that are top of mind.

Which camp/suit/category do you fall under?

And hey! The new Uncharted came out yesterday. Did you get your copy yet?

The Pekinel Sisters

2011-10-31T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via hurriyetdailynews.com

I write lots about Turkish pop music, but next to nothing about classical music. (Shame on me. I was a violinist, once upon a time.) To remedy that, I give you the Pekinel Sisters.

They are identical twins (obviously).
They are Turks (not obviously).
They are internationally acclaimed concert pianists.

Güher and Süher Pekinel made their public debut at only six years old, and have swept people of all continents away with their piano duets.

Piano Magazine has an interesting article, The Pekinels in Harmony, where the sisters explain how independent they are of each other. They discuss the "twinness" they fought against and how it helped define their unique style. Rather than being identical, the music of one compliments the other, almost as if they are finishing each other's thoughts. But not quite. Apparently, understanding your twin doesn't mean you are the same as your twin.

The Pekinels speak five languages: German, English, French, Turkish, and I don't know what the fifth language is, but I think music should count as a sixth. Their distinguished education includes credits and/or degrees from:

Conservatoire de Paris
Musikhochschule of Frankfurt
Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia
The Juilliard School - Masters
Bogaziçi University - Honorary PhD

All that international study qualifies them for TCK status, in my book.

The Pekinel Sisters are also Honorary State Artists of Turkey, and they are enthusiastic supporters of music education in Turkey and abroad. They established three projects for children:

G&S Pekinel Music Department at TEVITOL, a private boading school for gifted students in Turkey
"Young Musicians on World Stage", 13 scholarships for Turkish students to study internationally
"Orff Schulwerk Project" to encourage creativity in pre-school and primary school students. In Turkey, Austria, and Germany

Have a listen:

Related articles:

Pekinel sisters on stage with 13 young talents hurriyetdailynews.com

Cinnabar and Colloidal Silver

2011-10-26T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via kafejo.com

Mad Hatter Day was on 10/6, which was October 6th or June 10th, depending upon which side of the Atlantic you call home. Since I'm confused, I scheduled this post for 10/26. (Actually, I just wasn't quick enough.)

You see, I was researching metals as poison and their unusual side effects. You know, to derange my villain a bit more, or perhaps to knock him off. I discovered some fun stuff I thought you'd appreciate.

Cinnabar can make a person "mad as a hatter". Especially if you're a hat maker that uses the mercury solution derived from cinnabar to soak animal pelts and make felt.
Colloidal Silver can make one blue as a smurf. You may have seen that blue guy on Oprah. This is what he's got: Argyria: ISV from Greek: ἄργυρος argyros silver + -ia) is a condition caused by improper exposure to chemical forms of the element silver, silver dust, or silver compounds.The most dramatic symptom of argyria is that the skin becomes blue or bluish-grey colored. via wikipedia.
In it's Elizabethan heyday, white lead makeup likely killed off many young ladies who were regular users. The look probably came down from the Greeks, Romans and/or Egyptians, but you probably already knew that.

To be honest, I don't know how to use this material. Maybe I'll try one or both on my villain, but I'm not feeling it. Maybe you need it? Someone does, or I wouldn't feel the urge to write about it.

Red-footed Falcon

2011-10-24T06:00:00.000-04:00

Okan Kocagyit

Some people will know exactly why a slate grey falcon with red boots/feet is important to me...er...to Sybil. Today though, I thought I'd simply highlight the species and give it some extra press time.

The Redfooted falcon (falco vespertinus) hunts at dusk on the plains of eastern Europe and western Asia in summer. I think the slanting, evening sun highlights insect prey perfectly, but perhaps if I were a djinn pretending to be a falcon, I might hover around at NOT twilight.(*ahem*)

The falcons roost in whatever sparce tree cover they find. Since a colony can range from half a dozen to a thousand, these birds need a lot of space.

Of course, man likes to build and farm grassy plains, so the species is now categorized as "near threatened" due to loss of habitat. It would be pretty difficult to house a thousand birds, once the people move in and take out all the trees, kill all the bugs, and pretty much destroy the neighborhood. Occasionally the birds are seen as far west as the UK, and recently some were even sighted on this side of the Atlantic in Martha's Vineyard. Are they looking for new habitat?

In Turkey, the Redfooted Falcon is known as Aladoğan. Each year it migrates through Cyprus on the path to it's winter home in Africa.

(Cyprus is another reason this falcon is important to Sybil. Sorry, Peregrine falcon, but I think your red-footed cousin is a better fit for my story.)

image via www.outdoorconservation.eu

Ezan

2011-10-19T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via wikipedia.com

The other day I was reading about Executive Producer Grant Scharbo. He just finished filming an episode of MISSING for ABC in Istanbul and he had a couple of interesting points. In fact, I'm going to pull a few lines for you:

“[Istanbul] is a city you can’t fake anywhere else. You can’t shoot somewhere else and say it is Istanbul,”

“We were scouting on a rooftop near Süleymaniye very early in the morning. The call to prayer started and I had never heard that before in my life. For someone who has never heard it, it is a unique sound and beautiful.”

(For the full article: Hollywood production sets in Istanbul’s historic venues)

His remark got me to thinking.

I have a scene with the morning call to prayer in my book. Eerie and beautiful. I don't think there is any substitute. However, there are five times a day that the muezzin broadcasts his call to from those slender minarets. Each has a distinct feeling associated with it. Imagine hearing the call in the middle of the day, with traffic screeching, music blaring, trams braking, etc. The afternoon ezan adds to a vibrant, chaotic feel of a big city like Istanbul, but eerie is not the word I'd use for it.

Sort of cute story:

As newlyweds, dh and I lived in the Göçmen neighborhood, one short block away from the Yesil Cami Mosque in Mersin. On the fifth floor (no elevator). When we moved in that summer, it was so hot that we slept with all the windows open (no AC) and were eaten alive by the mosquitoes (no screens). The first night, I listened to the fan whir and hardly slept. In the early pre-dawn hours, a breeze finally came down from the mountains and we fell asleep.

Loudspeaker at the same height as my window: BLARES THE CALL TO PRAYER!!!! PRAYER IS BETTER THAN SLEEP!!!!

I practically fell out of the bed. My husband jumped almost to the ceiling, swearing that it was judgement day.

Yeah. It's OK to laugh about it. We still do. Funny thing though, no matter how loud that darn megaphone was, eventually we stopped waking up from it.

The moral of my story is that the ezan has different effects, depending upon a character's emotional state.

Something I didn't know:

There are different versions of ezan, and I'm not referring to pronunciation variations. (Turks say ekber as opposed to the Arabic akbar. Bugs me a bit, actually.)

1) The Shi'a have a verse recognizing Ali as a Viceregent. (Better send you to the link where I got that info, because I know somebody is going to squawk about it.)

2) With his ban of the Ottoman Arabic alphabet, Ataturk implemented a Turkish version of the ezan for eighteen years. Clerics rejected it, but had no recourse until Adnan Menderes declared Arabic the liturgical language in 1950 and repealed the ban for an Arabic ezan.

Tanrı uludur
Şüphesiz bilirim, bildiririm
Tanrı'dan başka yoktur tapacak.
Şüphesiz bilirim, bildiririm;
Tanrı'nın elçisidir Muhammed.
Haydin namaza, haydin felaha,
Namaz uykudan hayırlıdır.

via http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adhan

Now, on a completely different topic: The winner of THE NIGHT CIRCUS by Erin Morgenstern is Laura Pauling.

Thanks for playing!

Ishak Pasa Palace

2011-10-17T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via agt.si.edu

The east is calling me.

First Gobeklitepe, then Zeugma, and now Ishak Pasa Palace. This place looks liked it dropped right out of a fantasy novel. No?

Ishak Pasa Palace (circa 1685) seems a pretty nice pied-à-terre for Sybil (my MC), especially since the palace is gorgeous and waaaaay out in Doğubeyazıt. Few tourists find there way out there these days, but once upon a time, the palace was strategically situated on an important trade route. What do you know? Djinn love that abandoned palace thing.

image via wikipedia

I know Sybil would enjoy exploring the compound - because that's what the palace really is - a bunch of buildings connected with halls. There's a mosque in the middle and a harem. Plenty of little nooks and carved out niches to discover or hide in...

Outside there are jagged mountains, bare plains, a town: all the stuff I need for an interesting setting.

BUT I still have work to do on the first ms and a second ms I'm planning for NaNoWriMo is set up in the forests of Trabzon. Guess I'll just have to let this idea roll around and gather some cobwebs in my head. Maybe the next time I think of the palace, I'll know exactly how to use it.

Pay it Forward & The Night Circus Giveaway

2011-10-14T06:00:00.000-04:00

Welcome! Hoş geldiniz! Bienvenue! Witamy! etc...

Just to give you an idea of what you're signing up to read: I usually blog about Turkey (the country): food, music, traditions, artifacts, flora and fauna, historic sites, whatever strikes my fancy. Often I'll throw in a post about djinn (since that's my mythical creature of choice), parallel worlds or some other sci-fi-ish thing, and sometimes I'll toss in a good writer's resource.

You're here for my recommendations. So. First, make sure you visit my bestest crit partner -

Leigh T. Moore at That's Write.
Writer/Journalist/Freelance Editor. She's already on your linky list. LTM is repped by Kate McKean at the Howard Morhaim Agency

Three other blogs I read all the time, but aren't on the list today:

Sarah Fine at The Strangest Situation
Fabulous, informative blog by a practicing child psychologist/YA writer. She's represented by Kathleen Ortiz of Nancy Coffey Literary.

Katherine Owens at KO: The Insect Collector
College professor and former expat. Loves insects, steampunk, all sorts of interesting stuff. Be sure to congratulate her. She's now represented by Amanda Lewis of The Doe Coover Agency.

Holly Ruggiero at My POV
Holly just changed her blog url, but follow her wherever she goes. I love her series posts on gems and colors. She also writes cookbooks.

image via indiebound.org

Just for fun, I'm giving away a copy of The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.
via indiebound.org

This book is being hyped up everywhere: the web, magazines, TV, you name it. The author already has a movie deal with Summit. It's not YA, but I think lots of teens are going to be reading this one. Per CNN: 'The Night Circus' looks to enchant fans of 'Twilight' and 'Harry Potter'. I'm not so sure. I thought it was more Inception meets the circus, in the late 1800s. Or maybe The Science of Sleep at the circus.

Easy peasy giveaway rules:

Leave a comment with an email address.

It's Lolly's Fault

2011-10-12T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/poplife/

Remember these guys?

Maybe this dates me, but I still have Lolly in my head all these years later. So. I say my use of adverbs is all Lolly's fault.

When I was under his spell, I even forced my kids to watch this once. They were like: What's the big deal, Mom?

Right. What's the big deal? I mean: What's the big deal? Are you kidding me?

Adverbs are a big deal.

Since adverbs were burned into my brain with this song, I've become a demented woman. I now have to walk around the house all day muttering my manuscript like a verbal minesweeper. Those darn adverbs are buried everywhere, and they can sneak up on a girl, you know.

Way back when, F. Scott Fitzgerald didn't have to worry, but now a days? They're even editing him into print. How can you make The Great Gatsby greater? Answer: Get rid of some adverbs.

So it seems even the greats are guilty, and I should just suck it up and sniff out every ly Lolly slipped into my word doc.

You haven't seen School House Rock? Well, here's Lolly for you then. But I warn you, once you watch this clip, it will haunt you forever.

Ismail YK

2011-10-10T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via freedownload.net

I made a new Facebook friend the other day.
Her request popped up in the inbox. She wasn't friends with anyone I knew and I couldn't see much from her page without accepting her friendship.

Instead of my usual "ignore", I wavered for a few days. Something just told me to click accept. Then I waited.

The next day, Leena from Finland sent me a message. She gushed about my post on Ferhat Göçer - which is apparently the only post about him in English.

I was so tickled.I'm actually reaching people. My message - Turkey is really amazing - is getting out there. People are finding my site.

So in Leena's honor, I thought I'd post about another Turkish singer I enjoy, Ismail YK.

Ismail YK is a TCK, a Turk from Germany. TCKs like to mix things up, and dance club mixes are hot in Turkey.

Why?
Europeans and young Turks hit the beach clubs, waterside clubs, any clubs you can think of, all summer long. I'm absolutely sure they go home with tons of Turkish hits in their heads. Music has a certain way of transporting you back to another place and time. Who wouldn't want to remember a steamy summer night on the Turkish riviera?

So Ismail YK has several hits:

Bombabomba.com was kind of funny. He goes on and on about this girl with a perfect figure, but in the end, she's annoying. Baz Gaza (Step On It) had a cool rap/reggae feel (and more sirens in the video). Then there's Şappur Şuppur. Let's just say he's got a bit of a bad boy style and there are always plenty of pretty girls in his clips.

And yet, there's usually a hillarious, self-effacing quip - like his father telling him not to come home and spitting in the phone at him. (It's a Turkish/Arabic thing. Kind of like: "Ptoo"on you, you unworthy bastard.) He shows a goofy, sweet side in some of his other songs, along with plenty of more traditional lyrics. His brilliance lies in some great dance tracks with a blend of roots (ie arabesque and rap).

Check out his latest (just the music):

The Nutella Rule

2011-10-05T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via laurafreelance.com

The Nutella Rule is simple.

You never, ever throw out the jar until someone scrapes down the inside.

Someone always puts the jar in the pantry with about two licks left, but they won't recycle the container. No, no! Someone has to get the last bit of chocolate goodness out. It just wasn't destined to be the person who put it in the pantry last. (Sometimes that person is me)

It's hard work making sure every ounce, or gram, is extracted. You have to get in the spot just under the rim and down in the bottom grooves. You can get a whole nother sandwich out of just those two places. You have to be patient and get some chocolate on your knuckles. Somebody has to do it. (Sometimes that person is me)

Everyone in the house has an eyeball on the last Nutella sandwich. But I'm the Little Red Hen. Paws off my sandwich! (Sometimes I'll give you half)

My manuscript is kind of like the Nutella jar. I put it in the drawer over the summer so I could "see it more clearly". Read: I wanted someone else (agent/editor) to help polish it. Except it needs me to get in there and find that extra bit of goodness. Maybe then agents will want more. (Maybe I'll give them 15%)

PS:
(You know most of the world's hazelnuts come from Turkey, right? This year the harvest was horrible. Expect the prices to go up. Pretend you're a squirrel and GO HOARD SOME NUTELLA!)

Weary Herakles

2011-10-03T06:00:00.000-04:00

via hurriyetdailynews.com

I love a fulfilling story, which is not quite the same as a happy ending, but similar, so I had to smile when I saw Weary Herakles hit the news again. His two halves can never be made one again, but at least they're together.

Traditionally, a Weary Herakles looks weary because he's leaning on his club. I think this particular example can cite his travels as a relevant contribution to his 'weary'. You see, the bust went globetrotting, while the lower half waited patiently in Antalya. Missing it's head. For years.

It all began when...

The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston acquired a half-interest in the sculpture from a German dealer in 1981, with an unverifiable provenance: The dealer's mother acquired it in 1950 from a private collection.

In 1990, the bust went on loan to The Metropolitan Museum in New York, where someone noted the possibility of a matching lower half in Antalya.

Casts were made in 1992 and the finding was confirmed. Turkey put in it's claim.

On September 25, 2011, the bust finally went home to Antalya.

It's not hard for me to imagine how this happened.

I was in Perge, where the statue was unearthed, in 1993? (I think that's when I was there.) I wandered around the ruins, peasant women in tow. They were trying to sell me hand crocheted lace, chamomile wreaths (bought one of those), anything a cottage industry could come up with....and I stepped in cow poop. Yeah. Lets just say the security was less than tight.

Monty Python moment:

Guard One: That cow looks unusually large.
Large wooden cow freezes in place. Drops a pile of poop for an unsuspecting tourist to discover.
Guard Two: Shrugs. There was a casting call for some new movie about Troy. You going?
Guard One: Nah. I heard someone loses his head.
Cow hobbles off into the night.

I'm very clever, aren't I? :D

Still, when purchasing antiquities, one should ask: Does the provenance feel right? Or did some author plant that phrase so readers can conveniently know what they need to know?

Sorry. How did this post get over to my manuscript?

Going to remove some "conveniences" from my ms now. See you on Wednesday.

Related Articles:
Weary Herakles Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Heracles finally returning to its homeland Hurriyet Daily News
Boston Museum Returns Bust to Turkey NY Times
White-Levy Weary Herakles Signed to Turkey Looting Matters

Lateral Thinking

2011-09-28T06:00:00.000-04:00

via NorthernTool.com

I spent this past weekend with some amazing authors and industry professionals at the SCBWI Carolinas conference. Except it was only when John Claude Bemis gave the closing speech that I felt I was truly swimming in my element.

His talk was about lateral thinking, which apparently expats and multilinguals do very well.

I was like: Hey! That's me! Until he gave us the warm up exercise and I couldn't come up with any evidence that I deserved the points.

In my defense, it was a low-caf Sunday morning and I'd just been bombarded with three days of information. Anyway - my contribution is a red fez - to anyone else who was there.

So Sunday night I go home to mull over everything I've learned. I pick up the short stories on the nightstand, figuring if I could get a few of those in, it would quiet the buzz in my head.

Picture this:

I'm reading in bed, engrossed in the story of an asphalt layer (John Grisham's contribution to Don't Quit Your Day Job) when my dear, dear, dearest husband mutters:

Cordless Super Jerky Blaster?

Now, usually, I ignore everyone and keep reading, but the odd combination of words just pulled me right out of the book.

Me: Did you just say Cordless Super Jerky Blaster?

You should know, my husband speaks English as a fifth language (very well, I might add) so he can be... mislead by some phrases. But he was reading the Nothern Tool catalog.

He offers me the catalog with a gesture that says "Please, help me understand!"

And here's where I:

1) Start laughing until my sides split

and

2) Come up with some great lateral thinking

All I could picture was:

Codename: Kids Next Door

via wikipedia

Have you seen this bunch of ten year olds take down an adult lately? Well, the Cordless Super Jerky Blaster looks EXACTLY like something they would use. AND the next pages in the tool catalog feature go carts to mount them on! Plus a plethora of other interesting items, but I'll let you explore them on your own.

The point of all this is: You don't need to be an ex-expat, or multilingual, or a transplant to find ideas for your lateral thinking. Lateral thinking is just ordinary stuff that you use in an extraordinary way.

The Cilician Gates

2011-09-26T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via wikipedia

I remember taking down pages and pages (and pages) of notes about Alexander The Great in Mrs. Wilcox's class. That must have been 9th grade, I think. Maybe we called it World History too. Anyhoo, I recall something about the strategic importance of the Cilician Gates from back then.

ATG, as Mrs. Wilcox preferred to call him, was in good company. Hittites, Crusaders, Saint Paul... they all travelled the steep, 68 mile gauntlet through forest and sometimes flood waters of the (now Gökoluk) river gorge. It took five days to cross from the Cilician plains to Cappadocia, if thieves didn't have their way with you first.

The pesky gates spoiled the plans of Pompey (also The Great), who wanted to ride back to Rome victorious on a contraption pulled by four elephants. The pass was too narrow and he was forced to use horses.

I say! Get off your high - elephant - you haughty Roman, you. And you kinighits - those are not horses. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, then you need to brush up on your Monty Python.)

Even now, the way is only wide enough for a slim highway to slither through, and that's after extensive blasting. The late Ottomans built some tunnels and viaducts for a narrow gauge train track that's just visible every now and then on the other side of the river.

One time we went up the old, still-twisted road instead. (I don't recommend it, unless you have nerves of steel.) The switchbacks were treacherous and someone had lost a load of cotton bales down a hillside.

It was very quiet in the car.

When we got through to the Anatolian plain, my father remarked that he had no idea Turkey had such mountains. I can only say whatever ideas I had, Turkey shattered them. I was always discovering something new. Or old. It was only new to me.

When I see this, I know home is on the other side, but I hold my breath until I get there. Behold the Taurus Mountains at the Cilician Gates:

http://www.abu.nb.ca/courses/NTIntro/images/CilicianGates.htm

And for the record: Mt. Ararat is the tallest mountain in Turkey at 16,854 ft. Yes, that Ararat. The one with the Ark.

Gazi Antep or Gaziantep? That is my question...

2011-09-21T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via digitaltrends.com

Being a creature who loves the world of words, I generally pay attention to roots/stems, possible origins of a word, etc. A few things about the town names in Turkey which I've observed:

Gaziantep might have been Gazi Antep, and I sort of figured this out in a weird way. Ask someone from that town where they're from and they might tell you they are "Antepli", or from Antep. So what's the Gazi part about? Lucky for me (and you) I travel with my handy-dandy reference guide - erm - husband. Gazi can also be spelled ghazi and means warrior. Warriors are from Antep, I guess?

How about Kahramanmaraş? Kahramanmaraş or Kahraman Maraş. I like the ice cream from there - or at least the guy in Mersin who's from there makes good ice cream, maybe it has something to do with that? Nope. For Maraş, we honor the hero.

Then there's Şanliurfa, or Şanli Urfa, aka famous, but for what? I found all kinds of foods like kebab and cheese, etc, but you know Gazi Antep has plenty of yummy stuff too.

There are probably other examples and I've noticed the trend doesn't apply to just cities. Example: Fatih Sultan Mehmet. The guy's name was Mehmet! Fatih=Victor Now we have Fatihs and Sultans and Mehmets...but that's another story.

Imagine if we had names like that. Instead of New York, it could have been Opulent York or maybeVogue York, although I suppose at the time it was named, NY was neither of those things.

Founder President George?

Perhaps I need to work on the embellishment technique.

So:

Who is the hero of Maraş? Who is the Warrior of Antep? Why is Urfa famous? Well, that seems to be my homework for the week. That and the gypsy girl from Gaziantep.

Gaziantep "Antep the Victorious Warrior"

Zeugma

2011-09-19T06:00:00.000-04:00

via losbosques.net, image credit: Nevit Dilmen

Zeugma can be three things:

1) Literary terminology (from the Greek: ζεῦγμα, zeûgma, meaning "yoke") A figure of speech describing the joining of two or more parts of a sentence with a single common verb or noun. A zeugma employs both ellipsis, the omission of words which are easily understood, and parallelism, the balance of several words or phrases. The result is a series of similar phrases joined or yoked together by a common and implied noun or verb. Source: wikipedia
There are distinctions for specific versions: prozeugma, mesozeugma, hypozeugma, diazeugma, etc.

2) An ancient Roman city

via hurriyetdailynews.com

3) A Mosaic Museum in Gaziantep, Turkey.

Three guesses on which one I'm interested in. And you're right either way. It's all interesting to me.

But those eyes want to tell me a story and I'm almost in spinning mode, so I'll write down a few notes, then plunk them into my snowflake when I'm ready. I have a character who might make good use of them.

In the meantime, if you're heading to Gaziantep, I suggest you stop in and visit her. And her friends. Apparently, Zeugma is now the largest mosaic museum in the world.

Yay Turkey!

Zeugma draws record visitor numbers on first day Hurriyet Daily News

The Other

2011-09-14T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via amazon.com

Let me just start out by saying: I'm sure I'm not suffering from multiple personalites. I worked for a psychiatrist who will vouch for me.

I picked up a book at Borders the other day called Don't Quit Your Day Job. Not that I have a day job. I'm technically self-unemployed.

Anyway, the book is a bunch of southern authors explaining how the round about way of becoming a writer is part rite of passage, part pain in the (choose physical location).

My takeaway from Howard Bahr's piece was The Other: That sentient being who seems to observe the situation from afar, who notices little details that, if one were alone, one would miss in the fleeting moment. Apparently, Mr. Bahr has one. Do you have one? I know I have one.

I know The Other is always with me, because I notice ridiculous things all the time, but I can count on one hand the amount of times The Other has made a strong presence known. The sun slants a certain way. The geese flying overhead sing a special song. The scent of earth, or sea, or perhaps chrysanthemums pervades the air. And laughter. There is always laughter, but to The Other, it seems far away. Only the details of place snap into focus.

Last time I was in an emergency room, The Other took notes on the color of the cords.

How the indistinguishable, putty tangle plugged into seemingly random receptacles.
How the floor tiles cracked where there was a surely buckle in the concrete beneath.
How someone really needed to clean the baseboards with good, strong bleach.
How bleach would have been a preferable scent to the plastic and antiseptic floating around.

There were pages of notes. They were the observations of The Other, because I was worrying about the sleeping boy on the bed.

When we were discharged, The Other watched some EMTs wheel a grey-faced man into an ambulance. Watched the doors close. Felt the whole room breathe again.Watched the wife crumble as reality crashed down.

The Other is there when I just can't be. And I'm glad for it. Who can bear such joy and such pain?

Mandabatmaz

2011-09-12T06:00:00.000-04:00

image via evimistanbul.com

I read lots of stuff about Turkey. Lots. Of. Stuff. Sometimes I come across things I don't understand. Maybe someone out there does. I usually ask my husband.

Mandabatmaz? WTF is a manda and why doesn't it sink? Clearly there's an idiom in this word.

His response: Shrug. IDK.

Google translate: Buoyant Buffalo.

Picture: Buffalo in a coffee cup? Still not making any sense. Feel free to chime in now, if you have any ideas...

aysun-tinypiccomrakcw0y.blogspot.com

Whatever the word means, the Mandabatmaz coffee shop is the epitome of a "hole in the wall". So if you're in Istanbul, find Beyoglu, Istiklal Caddesi and look for an alleyway with unusual amounts of foot traffic, and follow the incredible coffee aroma.

Custom roasted coffee beans, a copper cezve, combined with a careful twist of the wrist and you have what is known to be the best Turkish coffee in the city. The shop is featured in all sorts of guides and it's a must-do. Coffee readings not included.

The first scene of Burnt Amber is in a place kind of like Mandabatmaz, but I took plenty of creative liberties with the decor. My coffee shop was purely my imagination. It's nice to see the vision isn't so far from reality.

Related Articles:

$100 Weekend in Istanbul Frugal Traveler, The New York Times
Mandabatmaz: Grounds for Celebration IstanbulEats.com

Parkour

2011-09-07T06:00:00.000-04:00

Image via wallpaperswide.com

être et durer. to be and to last.

Parkour isn't the only thing the motto fits. My goal is to "be" a writer and to have my publications "last" on the shelf. You?

But back to parkour - aka PK - my inspiration for battle technique study this week. If you watch the clip below, you'll see a lot of graceful moves which mere mortals such as myself can only dream of doing. However, it's what Ryan Doyle says that caught my attention.

"I have to replay the situation over and over in my head until I get familiar with it," says he.

I says: Hmm. That's kind of what I need to do when I finally write a scene down. Visualization is a requirement in my art too. How many times do you replay a scene before it's right? Do you move around in the space? Experiment with perspective? That's something I learned to do as a gardener, but conveniently applies to writing.

Ryan also mentions that, with efficient thinking, he can do parkour for the rest of his life. I believe he means in his head. Which is good, because it's the only place where I can do it. :)

Anyone know why a pigeon would do a backflip? The pigeons in this clip are doing the backflip. My guess is they were drinking some of Ryan's Red Bull, but he seems to think they do it all the time. ?

Ryan Doyle in Mardin:

Other places I've seen and admired PK:

Video games like Assassin's Creed, which you know is an obsession of mine
Movies like The Bourne Ultimatum, Casino Royale, and Prince of Persia, Sands of Time, which is based on the 1989 video game (which I also love)
Manga

Apparently, Taylor Lautner is going to try some Matt Damon-style PK in his new movie Abuduction, out in theaters this month.

Here's the trailer, with a few seconds of PK featured at the end. I'm hoping the movie has more.

Labor Day

2011-09-05T03:00:00.000-04:00

http://javed-sultan.blogspot.com/2011/03/blue-mosque-istanbul.html

It's Labor Day here in the US, so no official post today, but I thought I'd point you in the direction of some interesting reads about Turkey.

First, check out what the Telegraph has to say about Istanbul: Istanbul, Turkey: Old city, new spirit

Then, scroll through very some nice pics of the Aya Sofya here: Exploring Istanbul — The Ayasofya RambleCrunch

Pedal power is sweeping the streets of the Old City: Ready to tour historic peninsula with bicycles? Hurriyet Daily News

And finally, if you're into indie films, click this one:
Turkish film sweeps awards at NY festival Hurriyet Daily News

Enjoy the long weekend!

Back Pocket Bling

2011-08-31T03:00:00.000-04:00

It's true, I sit here, chained to the chair, in my comfy yoga pants most days. No need for fashion at this end of the cul-de-sac, right? Haha. I may not have anywhere to go (right now), but I'd still like to have something nice to wear if say... I want to present myself as a hip YA writer. My Talbots work wardrobe probably counts against me in that category.

Anyhoo, this past summer, my husband's cousin was here for a visit from Paris. So being the diligent, thoughtful host that I am, I spent many days as a shopping spree guide. (Stuff is more expensive in Paris.) As I shopped with her, I visited some places out of my usual SOI (in this case, sphere of income), out of my usual shopping territory, veering into Buckle , and into a pair of Rock Revival jeans. Bling included. (The buttons are ginormous crystals.)

Confession: Wearing them makes me feel like at least ten years younger - which would make me twenty-something. :D

The very next week, this CNN article pops up on my screen : Why Are Moms Dressing Like Their Teen Daughters?

Hmmm. I don't have any daughters. So why is my cursor going over there to....click. Scroll, scroll, scroll.

Damn it. Girls don't like it when we steal there sense of style? We're not supposed to shop in their stores?

What? Like they never take stuff out of their (incredibly stylish) mother's closet anymore? Like a girl could afford these jeans? (<rant> I thought Abercrombie was expensive. The cousin and I spent a good amount of time in there too, but I only got jeans for my son. I wasn't on a spree just for me, you know. Although, why couldn't I be on a spree just for me? I work my derrière off revising and editing and </rant>.)

My point: I do not fit into anything Abercrombie because Ambercrombie is made to fit juniors. For example, if I wore jeggings (perish the thought) I would probably look like something in a bad Youtube video. I do not want to wear my daughter's clothes, but that doesn't mean I need to wear "mom jeans".

To me, the fact that my derrière fits into Rock Revival must mean those jeans are made for women. Yes? No? Maybe? Yet the models in the ads are distinctly younger than I am. Are they really marketing to the twenty-something crowd? When I was twenty-something, I was saving quarters for the laundry and eating Ramen noodles, not buying haute-designer jeans.

Gosh! How does this relate to writing YA?

Here's how: I'm a mom, pushing forty, trying to tap into the YA girl's psyche on a full time basis. I've noticed a bunch of other author/writers are in a similar demographic. Are we reliving our YA years- without having to actually relive them? *ducks* Why not? The right to such fabulous back pocket bling comes only with experience. :)

Gentlemen, I'll give you an example so you can empathize. When you were little boys, you dreamt of this:

And when you grow up you want this:

2012 Carrera image via Porsche.com

Imagine being a teen and driving a Porsche. Hmmm. Nice, huh? Except what would you have to look forward to later? When you get the keys to your shiny new 911, don't you want to feel like you've earned it?

BTW, on the way out of Nordstrom Rack the other day, I saw a new mom in Rock Revivals pushing a baby carriage. I don't think that daughter was the one who spilled the bling.

Büyükada Orphanage

2011-08-29T03:00:00.000-04:00

image via hayalleme.com

This past summer, I was swarmed by shiny new ideas, distracting me like fireflies. I suppose that's a good thing. I've got a couple of really decent ones that I'm planning to sit down and write a synopsis for in the not too distant future. Here's one location that's hovering around in my head, because setting is always my initial inspiration: Büyükada Orphanage, perched on the second highest point of the island.

Known to locals as the Red Palace, the orphanage was originally built by a French company as the Prinkipo Palas hotel. The luxury property was well equipped with a theater, dining hall, library, chapel, and (the Achilles heel) a game room for a planned casino on par with Monte Carlo. The hotel never opened because gambling is forbidden under Islamic law.

How on earth did someone think they could build a casino in the clearly Islamic Ottoman empire? There was a golden age of European investment in Turkey around the fin de siècle, amazing hotels included, but there seems to have been a change in local leadership by the time the hotel was being completed. Everybody's plans ran amok.

From what I can translate:

The Greek Orthodox community gathered funds, facilitated with a large grant and initiative by a banker's widow, purchased and then gifted the building to the Phanar Greek Orthodox Patriarchate for use as an orphanage. By 1964, the dwindling Greek orthodox population had no need for a 206 room structure. (Claimed to be the largest wooden structure in Europe - I read 85,000 sq. ft/26,000 sq. m) The site has been closed ever since.

The Turkish government reinstated the deed to the Patriarchate last November. Hopefully, this means someone will pick up a paint brush and save this amazing piece of architecture. Wouldn't it be nice if it were a grand hotel once more?

Image: Realleo via Panoramio.com

This is what the view should resemble, though this was taken down the hill a bit.

Image: Mert 16 via Panoramio.com

Google maps has a brilliant bird's eye perspective on this, with all sorts of zoomable pics. Anyone know how to embed that kind of stuff?

Büyükada Orphanage in Istanbul to be Transferred to Greek Patriarchate - Hurriyet Daily News

Battle Techniques

2011-08-24T03:00:00.000-04:00

Battle scenes are not something that come to me naturally, so I read. I watch. I learn.

Last week, a new trailer was released for Assassin's Creed Revelations. It reminded me to include something besides sword swinging in my writing: movement.

I do have movement, of course, but it's not as fluid as I'd like it to be. My biggest challenge is probably keeping everyone focused on the character I'm describing at each specific moment. Not confusing who did what, if you will. I find that includes at lot of naming names, which I don't love.

Does anyone have any tips for this problem?

Anyhoo, here is the awesome trailer. Lots of stuff going on in this one. Plenty of Ottoman? Istanbul. Or perhaps the last days of Constantinople? I'm not entirely sure.

What I do see is a perfect midway point between the tales of Al Tair and Ezio Auditore, the Bosporos Strait, circa 1453.

One of these days I'll have to make a post about Al Tair. Did you know Al Tair is also the brighest star in the Aquila constellation. Aquila being the eagle.

Teoman

2011-08-22T03:00:00.000-04:00

image via beyazgazete.com

He has a new album this year - Aşk ve Gurur (Love and Pride) (2011), yet Teoman, beloved and troubled musician that he is, has decided to leave the music business. Disillusioned.

He wrote his concerned fans a letter explaining his reasons. This is his official statement:

‘Dear friends,

I leave music for a very, very long time, or probably, never, never to return. The concert in Berlin on September 3 will be my last.’

In his farewell letter, he says not all of his songs made it to a recording studio. I wonder how much of his authenticity has been censored out of existence. Perhaps the nature of his musician's soul is simply more angst than anyone could handle.

Good luck to him.

Teoman is known for his acoustic rock, which is pretty tame, but my favorites have a little bit more of a fatalistic edge to it. Like the man himself.

Kupa Kizi Ve Sinek Valesi (Queen of Hearts and the Jack of Clubs) is one that I listen to the most.

Content warning: This is an animated clip, but there are scenes with a woman in the shower, in bed, etc. Little bit more than PG-13.

We were destined to each other by a card fortunetelling,
she was the beautiful queen of hearts, me being the jack of clubs..
That thursday by midnight I've met her by chance over the bridge,
I told her not to cry, but she kept on crying so far as she stepped down the banisters.
Is your hair soaking wet or the life is itself wet?
Does the wind always carry along rain within for you?
Are you gazing at the space or are you bored of the questions I've asked:
Does this autumn never ever leave your eyes behind?
Let you be a snowflake to perch on the tip of my tongue,
Be a snowflake to melt in my mouth...
She was dripping wet, she got undressed, touched my body
she found my living cells in my little coarse skin...
I was happy as she fell asleep I clasped her on my arms,
as she wandered in her sleep all those unknown names laying down all naked...
I was proud in my dream, " I've known it from the beginning" I murmured,
the card fortunes are surrprisingly meant to be something to believe in...
Then I woke up and froze imn wonder staring at the writing left on my misty glass by almost a ghost finger:
"Good-bye"...

translation by Lyrics Translate

One that I listen to before I write for Sybil:

Senden Once, Senden Sonra (Before You, After You)

these screaming aloud waves
and gloomy beautiful gulls
keep crushing into wind
and (they) come to fill in my heart.
I'm alone on the edge of the cliff
between the life and death.
all my life passes away
under my feet.
how many more bodies should I have
to forget you?
before you, after you...

translation by Lyrics Translate

WriteOnCon

2011-08-17T06:00:00.005-04:00

image via Wikipedia

Ever felt like you were out of ink and inspiration? That was me these past few days. Until yesterday.
I went to writeoncon's annual online conference.

That's where I am today, and you should be there too. Have you seen the list of impressive people slated to be there? I'll catch you up.

Holly Root was talking Myths and Misconceptions with some editors. Suzie Townsend, Sara Megibow, and Jessica Shinsheimer were there for LIVE Q&A sessions. Steven Malk opened a thread for questions, and a bunch of others amazing agents are still waiting in the wings. Plus there are Ninja Agents lurking in the forums.

And the authors? Talk about inspiration! Make sure you stop in to see Beth Revis' vlog. I literally had to grab a tissue. I picked up some great info on Magical Realism from Nova Ren Suma and Compelling Settings from Jessi Kirby. I tell you, it's a who's who of YA lit in there. AND there are amazing prizes. Critiques, ARCs, signed copies, etc.

Yesterday I only missed two or three sessions and I'm preparing to glue myself to the screen today.

Did I mention all this awesome is free? Well, a donation would be nice.

Sumela Monastery

2011-08-15T06:00:00.001-04:00

image via Wikipedia

The history of Sumela Monastery began in 386 AD, when a couple of priests found a black Madonna hidden in a cave behind the amazing 1860 facade we see here. Why they were clinging to a cliff hundreds of feet above the Altindere River is a mystery to me, but caves and especially monasteries seem to like remote locations. You can't tell how high up it is in that picture, so here's another to give you a better idea.

Image via Wikipedia

While the Black Madonna ties goddess culture nicely into my story again, I just adore the location for my Peri. Forests and secret places are a specialty for them, and I'm picturing my character going up the mountain through one of the famous fogs of the area, looking for sanctuary.

Anyhoo, my brain is so far from useful lately, where writing is concerned. Too much vacation has made my synapses rusty. The kids go back to school soon, though, and Ramadan will be over, so I'll be able to get back into a normal rhythm. I hope. I signed myself up for a critique at the Charlotte SCBWI conference in September, so I'll need to get the ole rear in gear to get myself ready for that. I'm going to spend this week getting back into the blogosphere and commenting. I think some of you are starting to wonder where I went...

Visit Sumela Monastery in Turkey by 5minTravel

MiniaTurk

2011-08-09T06:01:00.000-04:00

via wowTurkey.com

That's not Gulliver and this is not the land of the Lilliputians. Just thought I'd clear that up right now.

Ever try to fit a landmark in the crop marks of your camera lens? I can never capture the sense of place in a picture. Sometimes the words even escape me. (Imagine that!) Miniaturk is a pretty good way to get that difficult shot. It's Turkey in miniature - scale models of sights around the country, all in one convenient location. Bet Minaturk is pretty amazing during the Tulip Festival... and it's a great place to bring the kids, who just might be bored stiff from all the museums.

Here's a 360 tour.

Pepper Paste - The Secret Ingredient

2011-08-03T06:00:00.001-04:00

via Turkey-in-photos.com

I found some really nice eggplant today at the store, so I'm going to make some dolmas for my dh, since it's his birthday. It got me to thinking (the dolmas - not the birthday) about the secret ingredient. Well, actually there are a couple secret ingredients, but one I can't omit is the Turkish pepper paste. Yummy stuff, I tell you.

In the villages around Mersin, women dry their peppers on a string in the sun. Then they add salt and put them though a mill, whole. Sometimes they're dried on a sheet in the fields. I buy a commercial variety in a jar which isn't quite the same, but works better than not having any at all. I get it where I get all my other Turkish stuff, on Tulumba.com.

So I'm off to stuff some eggplants... check these sites out for more ideas.

Turkish Hot Pepper Paste - Biber Salcasi

Turkish pepper paste: Magic in a bottle

Gobekli Tepe - 11,000 years and counting

2011-08-01T11:24:00.007-04:00

via Wikipedia

Still out gallivanting with my visitors, but something dropped into the ole inbox this past week that I thought you'd like to see.

In the 1960's, Gobekli Tepe was dismissed as a medieval cemetery. Thirty plus years later, German archaeologist Klaus Schmidt believed otherwise. His 1995 dig revealed Gobekli Tepe as the world's oldest temple. It predates Stonehenge by about 6,000 years. (How many points should we give to the Cradle of Civilization?)

All this is really interesting, but the point which gave me pause is this:

To Schmidt and others, these new findings suggest a novel theory of civilization. Scholars have long believed that only after people learned to farm and live in settled communities did they have the time, organization and resources to construct temples and support complicated social structures. But Schmidt argues it was the other way around: the extensive, coordinated effort to build the monoliths literally laid the groundwork for the development of complex societies. Source: Smithsonian magazine
Go read more: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/gobekli-tepe.html#ixzz1ThEjrjZs and check out the interesting pictures too!

Here's a History Channel program about it.

Guest Post - Tween Book Review

2011-07-28T06:00:00.006-04:00

via Amazon.com

Like last Wednesday, I'm giving the blog over to one of the boys. This time it's Zach, my eleven year old. He says this is his favorite book this summer.
DEPARTMENT 19 by Will Hill

DEPARTMENT 6 is the Army.
DEPARTMENT 13 is the MI5.
DEPARTMENT 19 is the reason you're alive.

When Jamie Carpenter's mother is kidnapped by strange creatures, he finds himself dragged into Department 19, the government's most secret agency.

Fortunately for Jamie, Department 19 can provide the tools he needs to find his mother, and to kill the vampires who want him dead. But unfortunately for everyone, something is stirring, something even Department 19 can't stand up against...

Review by Zach Abiad

Department 19 got straight to the point of why everything happened in the first chapter. It has lots of action with weapons like the MP5 submachine gun that immobilises vampires, the Glock18 pistol that distracts the vampires with a UV light attachment and the T-bone. The T-bone is a compressed air-powered wooden stake launcher that is used to kill vampires.

This book has mystery too because you wonder where Jamie’s mother is. I dislike some parts of this book because there are some boring parts with lots of talking. The most exciting part was when the giant were-wolf comes out of the forest and attacks Jamie and his squad. I also dislike the part when Larissa gets turned into a vampire by an old guy.

Büyükada, Istanbul Clip

2011-07-25T06:00:00.008-04:00

I've got house guests this week, so here's a clip of Istanbul while I'm entertaining.

Guest Post - Teen Book Review

2011-07-20T06:00:00.000-04:00

Special treat: I get the day off because my son is here with a book review of Warlock by Michael Scott (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series). Enjoy!

Alcatraz:
Although their ally Dr. John Dee has been declared utlaga, Machiavelli and Billy the Kid will follow the plans the Elders have laid before them: they will loose the monsters of Alcatraz on the city of San Francisco, thereby triggering the end of the humani race.

Danu Talis:
The Shadowrealm that Scatty and Joan of Arc have entered is far more dangerous than they could ever have imagined. And they haven’t landed here by chance-the warriors were called for a reason. So were Saint-Germain, Palamededs, and Shakespeare. The group was summoned because they must travel back in time to Danu Talis and destroy it. For the island of Danu Talis, known in humani myth as the lost city of Atlantis, must fall if the modern world is to exist.

San Francisco:
The end is finally near. Josh Newman has chosen a side, and he will not stand with his sister, Sophie, or with the Alchemyst, Nicholas Flamel. He will fight alongside Dee and the mysterious Virginia Dare. Unless Sophie can find her twin before the battle begins, all is lost – forever.

In the fifth installment of this bestselling series, the twins of prophesy have been divided, and the end is finally beginning.

With Scatty, Joan of Arc, Saint Germain, Palamedes, and Shakespeare all in Danu Talis, Sophie is on her own with the ever-weakening Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel. She must depend on Niten to help her find an immortal to teach her Earth Magic. The surprise is that she will find her teacher in the most ordinary of places. (dillonscott.com)

Review by Adam Abiad

Warlock was very similar to the fourth book, Necromancer, but not anything like the first three in the series. Scott has to summarize for too many characters and it's several chapters before any interesting new action takes place. This also meant too many switches in perspective. You're reading about the Flamels and Sophie, and the next chapter is Dee, Dare, and Josh. Then some characters switch sides, and even worlds. There are also flashbacks to Danu Talis, just to add another switch. The switches make you lose interest. It gets intense at the end of each chapter and you want more, but you don't get it, and you have to remember the last time you read about the next character.

Scott crammed the action, added more cool new monsters, and increased the pace. Sophie's chapters are typically more talking than action. Josh's chapters are where all the excitment is. Supporting characters are just filling in blanks. There's no other way though. The other books kept adding characters and they all need to reach the goal. All that and there's still one more book. I hope Warlock took care of most of the loose ends.

Narlıkuyu Cove

2011-07-18T06:01:00.046-04:00

There's no r in July, but that's when I want to sit out by the water and eat seafood, ocean breeze in my hair, drink in hand... Back in CT, Lenny's in Branford's Indian Head was my go-to place. Lobster and steamers: mmm. In Istanbul, Büyükada was probably my first choice, aside from the stuffed mussels from the vendors near Eminonu. In Mersin, my favorite place was Narlıkuyu.

Way back when the area was still very backwater, I headed that way all the time. It's right near my two favorite places in the world, KızKalesi beach and the cliff of Akyar.

The restaurants at the end of Narlıkuyu cove are built right at the edge of the water on a low sea wall made of weathered limestone. Spring water bubbles out between the stones and swirls into the crystal clear sea at your feet. Most establishments have an arbor of some sort, covered in purple bougainvillea, grapes, or just woven reeds. Don't expect high end, white table cloths. The chairs are plastic, but I guarantee you won't care.

In place of a menu, the waiter brings over a selection of the day's fresh-caught fish, whole, on a huge platter. (I hope they still do.) Lagos, aka white grouper, is the best catch and they usually serve it up fried, but you can get it grilled, etc. It's getting a bit scarce and divers go spearfishing for it, so it's priced higher. There's always sea bass, red snapper, and other tasty fish if you'd rather have that. Some places serve octopus, which is really good. (I'd never try to cook it myself.) Try it with a tall glass of Rakı.

via wikipedia.com

Don't forget to visit Turkey's smallest museum in the village center while you're there. It's a one-room roman bath with a mosaic representation of the Three Graces.
Sigh. No ocean in Charlotte. Maybe I should head to Charleston for a few days, otherwise I'll have to wait until September for an oyster roast.

Blogiversary!

2011-07-13T05:59:00.039-04:00

Guess it's a good time to look back at what I've achieved. As of yesterday, these are the stats:

224 posts with
31,119 page views and
1,585 comments from
111 countries

Is this good? Heck if I know. What I do know is that a surprising number of Romanians hit my site, which I never expected.
Anyhoo, my new laptop is supposed to arrive today (YAY!), Harry Potter comes out tomorrow night (DOUBLE YAY!), and Japan has computer generated popstars (?). What? It's summer and I'm trying to catch up on my George RR Martin. Ran out of bloggy thoughts, etc. See what happens when I go unplugged for any length of time? I can't stay focused. Or it could be that my struggle with painfully slow internet connections has fried my brain. Hope I can be more enlightening next week.

I Don't Give a Fig!

2011-07-11T06:00:00.012-04:00

via Wikipedia

Well, actually I do. This morning I was out in the yard, checking on my figs. They're not quite ready yet, but I expect a bumper crop this year. Can't wait! There's nothing quite like a fresh fig. (Wait - didn't I just say that about an apricot?)

In CT, I could never have a fig unless it was in a pot, brought in for the winter, etc. Here in NC, I have Peter's Honey (prolific, Sicilian-type) growing near my herb garden. In Turkey, fig trees are everywhere. In fact, my Eniste has a huge wild fig growing right outside his orchard.

I remember when Eniste first bought the land. It was a barren plot up on a hillside overlooking Mersin. The only thing of interest was the fig, covered in ripe, russet colored fruit. DH climbed up to pick some and we had a feast. Eniste says the tree is still there, but now it's surrounded by his orange grove.

The fig tree itself is full of meaning. It's the Tree of Life for some cultures. I could go on and on and on about it, but due to my currently limited browsing capabilities, I'm directing you to an interesting blog called Gypsy Magic. Lots of great, detailed information about symbolism and such on that site. The post on Fig Trees - Legend and Lore is amazing. There's info about medieval fig cures, divination with fig leaves, ancient roman fig festivals, etc. It's really worth the click!

RIP, My (Un) Faithful Friend

2011-07-06T06:00:00.008-04:00

RIP. Rest. In. Pieces.

I remember the day you arrived in your pretty cardboard box.
I surfed the net with abandon.
I started a new WIP.
I thought you were a soulmate.

But that feeling...

Didn't
Even
Last
Long

because of some

Xtremely
Problematic
Scenarios

Like your motherboard crashing (3 mos),
Your random qwertys popping off (9 mos),
Your latest Technicolor screen pixel tricks (36 mos).
A 1970 RCA would be proud to try.

I'll miss your shiny silver keys,
Your cherry red cover,
Your (can't think of anything else).
Yet, I feel a sense of loss.

Waiting in a new laptop, folks...so I'll be working on an eight (yes, 8) year-old Sony VAIO with limited internet access. Therefore, content here will be less interactive than usual. I apologize for the interruption in quality service.

Kendin Pişir, Kendin Ye & Alfresco Alla Turca

2011-07-04T06:00:00.002-04:00

via turkeysforlife.com
Cin Bal in Kayakoy

Happy 4th of July! Since picnics and family barbeques are in order today, here's a Turkish take on the matter.

Me: Pack up a bunch of food. Trek to a scenic place. Unpack the food. Remember that I forgot to pack such and such. Usually, it's an essential item - like napkins, forks, the bottle opener... and if I wanted to grill something on a real charcoal fire...well then, I guess I forgot the matches or the starter sticks, or something like that.

Kendin Pişir, Kendin Ye (literally: You cook it, You eat it) is the Turkish solution to my headache.

At first I thought it was odd to have a restaurant where you cook your own food, but basically the idea is this: someone else gets everything ready and I just show up. So instead of the above routine, imagine this:

Get group of friends and family together in the car. (Half the battle - maybe meet everyone there?) Drive to scenic place. Order meat from the butcher on site. Choose side items freshly made by village woman who cooks better than grandma. Start a tab for drinks. Have already perfect hot coals brought to the grill at your table. Grill like a pro. The best part? The staff cleans up after you! :)

Eating & Drinking - Kendin Pişir Kendin Ye - Cin Bal Lonely Planet

Kizkalesi Spring

2011-06-29T06:00:00.001-04:00

Summer is really throwing me for a loop, so if y'all don't mind, I'm turning back to spring and a quick little clip about one of my favorite places: KIZKALESİ. Catch you on Monday with a post about Kendin Pisir, Kendin Ye and interesting Turkish picnics. :)

SPRİNG TİME İN GİRLCASTLE-KIZKALESİ'NDE BAHAR (MERSİN-TURKEY) from umut cor on Vimeo.

Apricots

2011-06-27T06:00:00.046-04:00

Image via Wikipedia

Sweet southern peaches are in season -yum! It reminds me of the time I was up in the village of (I don't know. It was somewhere around Arslankoy.) and a farmer gave me a giant peach. Like... James had nothing on me with his "giant". Anyhoo - a word about the more famous cousin - errr - neighbor of my peachy friend.

Prunus armeniaca is the latin name for apricot because it's thought the fruit originated in Armenia. Today, Turkey is the largest exporter of apricots with Malatya as the main production center. You can safely guess that most of the apricots on the shelf at the grocery store are from Turkey. (Fresh ones are probably from California.)

And while fresh, locally grown, apricots have no equal, most of us don't live in the sweet spot where they're cultivated. Apparently, the apricots are fussy about soil and have a very short season. As a result, the most common apricot you'll see is a dried one.

Some interesting uses of apricot:

Egyptian amar al-dīn: Dried apricot paste reminds me of a huge fruit roll-up that you dissolve in water for a very tasty drink. People usually float some almonds on top. Gosh! I could go for one of those right now.

Italian: Amaretto liquor is flavoured with extract of apricot kernels. I always thought it was almonds, but the two are interchangeable and often mixed.

Medicinally: Apricot is an antioxidant (carotenoids), a laxative (high fiber), and the kernels can be made into poison (hydrocyanic acid). In the old days, people thought apricots were an aphrodisiac. (??)

Idioms: In Turkish: Bundan iyisi Şam'da kayısı means the only thing better than this is an apricot in Damascus, or it doesn't get better than this. In Arabic: Bukra fil mishmish means tomorrow when it's apricot season, or it's never going to happen. In China: Expert of the apricot grove refers to a physician.

Did you know Jacques Pepin loves apricots? Must be why I like to watch him cook.

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Which Way The Wind Blows

2011-06-22T06:00:00.033-04:00

via hurriyetdailynews.com

I've heard of the Sirocco and even used the Mistral in one of my chapters. It got me to thinking about the winds of Istanbul. There are two major ones. Lodos (Notus) comes up from the south. In the winter, it cancels the ferry schedule it's so rough. Poyraz (Boreas) comes down from the northeast. Both are named after Greek wind gods.

Care for another one of my adventure stories?

This time, I'm a naive young woman on Büyükada. DH and I borrow a Zodiac from a family friend and take it out fishing one day.

The owner says to us: Make sure you come back before the wind picks up in the afternoon.
DH: Absolutely!

So we head off on our merry way, enjoying our little outboard cruise around the island.

Me: checking out all the houses on the shore from a new perspective. Picnic lunch, etc. We anchor on the back side of the island in the forested park area. There's a pretty steep rock face on that side. (read: no safe place to hide) lalalalalala. No fish anywhere. It is the middle of the day. Well, we catch one rock fish. Ugly as sin.

Loose track of time and guess what....the wind changes. The sea just up and does the cha-cha underneath us, slapping me around in the boat like the fish I'm supposed to be catching.

Me: fear for my life. That rocky shore is getting awfully close. No houses in sight on this side of the island. It takes three times as long to get back. Almost run out of gas. Worst. Fishing. Trip. Ever.

That was not even Poyraz. Not even close.

Now in Mersin there are winds of a different sort. There you want the north/south dynamic. Winds from the south bring air through the house during the day. Winds from the mountains in the north bring cooler air down at night. If you're buying an apartment, direction is one of the the first things you check. If the house faces east/west? Too bad. How sad. Lowball offer.

On a hot summer evening, we joke about the heat: "Don't worry, in a little while the wind will come down from the mountains." We even have a special word for the sea when its waiting for a wind, reflecting the moon like a mirror - Yakamoz.

Which way does the wind blow for your hero?

Istanbul Winds Battle Over the City

The Wind Gods

Emrah Yücel

2011-06-20T06:00:00.105-04:00

ftnnews.com Turkey - Be our guest ad

Did you notice there are lots of great ads for Turkey lately? I have. In fact, I was watching Glee and saw the Times Square ad on the right, designed by Emrah Yücel.

Kudos to Yücel! Since his ad campaign started, there's been a measurable increase in tourism from the US. I'm talking a double digit percentage. After you've seen his ads, you'll want to go too. Don't take my word for it. The United Nations' World Tourism Organization voted his ad campaign the best 'country advertising' in Europe. In fact, you should really visit his link (above) and check out the other beautiful things he's done.

haberturk.com

So who is this guy? He's a Turk. Grew up and went to school in Ankara. Lives in LA. (That's where talent like his likes to dwell, I guess!) Does important stuff, like found the Turkish Film Council so that Sony pictures can have people like Clive Owen run around the rooftops of Istanbul (The International).

Yücel has worked on high profile projects like Avatar, Kill Bill, Narnia, and What Women Want. Have to mention the last one, even though it's from way back in 2000, because Yücel certainly knows what what we Americans want - we want authentic adventure! Sure some of us are interested in dusty museums (myself included). We'll even settle for replica theme park. (OK, the theme parks are great, I admit.) But Turkey offers the real thing. That guy in the picture looks like he's climbing in Cappadocia. Yücel made another ad where there's a girl resting against a bas relief of Nike - the goddess, not the running shoe. Touch history! It's lying around all over the place in Turkey. Literally.

btw - Istanbul was voted number one place to visit for NY Times readers in 2010.

Dear agents and editors,
Want to ride this wave? I've got just the book for you.... I promise I'll get it to you as soon as I finish this last edit. ;)

More US Tourists Coming to Turkey Thanks to Designer's Ad Campaign

Turkey Gets It's Place At Times Square

The Scent of Amber

2011-06-15T06:00:00.000-04:00

Image via WikipediaThere are many reasons why I chose amber as a part of my book title, but the first is probably scent.

Wikipedia: The term “amber” is loosely used to describe a scent that is warm, musky, rich and honey-like, and also somewhat oriental and earthy.

"Oriental" and "earthy" are key for me, although I suppose "warm" is important too.

How do you get that scent? You burn the stone. In fact, the name for amber in Germanic languages is litterally "burn stone". In Polish it's burstyn. (I grew up surrounded with burstyn. Who knew it would be so important to me one day?) When you heat amber, the stone softens and eventually an oil is released, leaving a black residue behind. Flame unlocks the essence, if you will.

The flame is also important to my djinn (and to Zoroaster). Fire represents the life force and connection to energy. Energy is one of the properties people associate with amber too. Perhaps that's because amber is smooth and warm to the touch, almost like the life blood of the tree still remembers how to live in the stone.

Of course, many authors have referred to amber's trapping abilities. (Dragonfly in Amber anyone?) It works for me too. Like any good heroine, Sybil gets stuck in a bad situation. The difference is, for Sybil, the amber is key to (How much can I tell you? Me thinks I'm too close to spoilerdom here. Sorry!)

Scentiments.com

Vanadis/Freya - who just decided to show up as a facet of my MC - wears a necklace of amber (Brisingamen), cries tears that turn into amber, there's even an invocation to her about it that I use in the end.

There are many more attributes to amber in folklore and I can go on, but I'm getting away from the purpose of the post. The evocative scent of amber. Go get some! :)

I hope someday an editor appreciates the thought I put into this...

Istanbul Summer Days

2011-06-13T11:39:00.000-04:00

I had a long week of promotion ceremonies last week. I didn't even realize that the blog was set for 6 pm instead of am! Sorry!

Anyhow, here's the Turkophile's fix of the day: a short clip about Istanbul. I hope it keeps you satisfied until Wednesday!

Paradise and the Peri

2011-06-08T06:00:00.084-04:00

via spongobongo.com

One morn a Peri at the gate

Of Eden stood disconsolate

-Thomas Moore

One of my characters has always reminded me of a fairy, so I decided to dig around for details of the eastern equivalent, the Persian Peri.

Beautiful winged Peri are descended from fallen angels. They repented and, in search of redemption, they often frequent the human world to help people. The evil Daeva persecute them for not having enough courage to rebel against good.

Probably the most famous western tale about Peri is Thomas Moore's Paradise and the Peri , which is part of his adaptation of the oriental romance of Lalla Rookh.

via pirages.com
more images in the related article below

Engaged to the young king of Bactria, Lalla Rookh goes forth to meet him, but falls in love with Feramorz, a poet from her entourage. The bulk of the work consists of four interpolated tales sung by the poet: The Veiled Prophet of Khorassan (loosely based upon the story of Al-Muqanna), Paradise and the Peri, The Fire-Worshippers, and The Light of the Harem. When Lalla Rookh enters the palace of her bridegroom she swoons away, but revives at the sound of a familiar voice. She awakes with rapture to find that the poet she loves is none other than the prince to whom she is engaged.

Sort of a reverse Scheherazade thing going on here, I guess. Anyhoo, thank goodness it's public domain because it's out of print and originals like the one above cost thousands of dollars! I'll let you know what I come up with...

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Solar Sizzled

2011-06-06T06:00:00.004-04:00

via habercisiniz.com

Here's a little household adventure thought I'd share:

Last weekend, all four of us were out in the backyard, moving wheelbarrows of dirt (read heavy, red clay), weeding, moving stones, and just working hard. By the end of the 92 degree day, we we covered in grime and all needed showers badly. Especially the boys.

OLDEST: Streaks out of the shower in under two minutes.
ME: Hmm...What's with that?
YOUNGEST: Goes in for his turn. Point two seconds later: "THE WATER IS FREEZING, MOM!!!!!"
ME: "DH, Did you have any hot water?"
DH:"No. I thought you used it all up with the dishwasher and washing machine."
ME: What century do you live in? "Did you check the water heater?"

Apparently, one of the boys had knocked the hot water heater knob down to ridiculous, so I had to wait for another hour while it heated up something for me. And the conversation about freezing water (and what century DH lives in) turned to solar hot water heaters. Specifically the gravity fed hot water heater, aka güneş enerjisi, of our summer condo in Turkey.

ME: "Let me tell you a little story kids."

Almost every rooftop in Baba's hometown sports an ugly (usually orange) water tank connected to a solar panel. The system heats water very well and thankfully, the villagers don't have to chop down the forest to get warm water anymore. At the summer condo, we had an old-fashioned, gravity fed version. Mersin is steamy in the summer, so hot showers aren't appealing. Why spend the extra money on a pressure regulator?

GAH!

In comes Mommy (the American bride) and HELLO! I practically lose the top layer of my skin the first time I shower.

You see, we lived up on the tenth floor and the gravity thing works a little too well when you're closer to the tank. Cold water from the municipality has more pressure, so I turned it down to let the hot water mix in, and then the hot water took over! I turned the hot way down and then the cold was too strong again. Ever try to adjust a knob after it's been in the same position for nine months? I inched it up and down, up and down, and...you get the idea. The water was nice for a minute and as soon as I got under it, it would change. I think there was a malicious djinn living in that tap!

So for the rest of the summer, I stood outside the shower trying to adjust between scalding and freezing. And since there's no winning that game, I just got used to taking cold showers.

OLDEST: Looks at his dad. "You fixed that, right?"

What's With the White Horses?

2011-06-01T06:00:00.051-04:00

Image via WikipediaThe white horse is a divine cliché. (See that pun...hehe.)

Because white horses are less common than other colors, they make for exceptional mythology, all over the world. Creatures like the Celtic white unicorn, Greek winged Pegasus, Norse eight legged Sleipnir, or even Donkey of Far, Far Away play the part of whatever desireable trait a myth requires. Purity or fertility are popular themes.

Sometimes though, being a white horse isn't such a good thing. People like the Magyars might think you're a perfect sacrifice to the god they're trying to bribe. Or you might be stuck with eternal service to some hero/saint, without any vacation days.

Tishtrya got a pretty good deal. As the Zoroastrian representation of the Dog Star, he only works on the 13th day of each month and the fourth month of the year. Of course, he had to battle the evil black horse demon Apoasha first. Tishtrya brings rain to drought stricken lands and lends a literary trope to my MS via the Camargue horse.

Before you roll your eyes, know that the Camargue horse was right there staring at me, daring me to look away. After that, a regular horse just wouldn't do. On the other hand, the white knight wasn't so...ah...fortunate.

Announcement of the week:

My new post schedule for the summer is Turkish Miscellanea on Monday - Lore and Symbolism on Wednesday. I find I can't respond to my Friday commentors and the kids are home and I'm trying to re-vision an ms and you know the drill!

Memorial Monday

2011-05-30T06:00:00.002-04:00

Image via Wikipedia

I went to school in DC and Memorial Day meant one thing: Rolling Thunder.

I'm not a biker girl. Never aspire to be one. But I really am awed by the thousands of bikers who show up each year to show support for POW-MIA (Prisoners of War and Missing in Action).

I've heard the ride starts in California, gathering members along the way to reach the capitol in a wave of - yup -Rolling Thunder. And let me tell you, that's exactly what it sounds like when they roll into town.

I'm thankful for the sacrifice of so many soldiers. No one likes war, but one visit to a cemetary like Arlington, Virginia or Colleville-sur-Mer in Normandy and you really have to send up a prayer for all those young souls - every chance you think of it.

So today is a day when I'm thinking of it. From my ancestors who battled in the Revolutionary War, to my grandfathers who fought in World War II, to my cousin who serves today, and to any family who sends loved ones out under our flag, thank you.

Yerköprü Şelalesi (Landbridge Falls)

2011-05-27T06:00:00.002-04:00

tr.yenisehir.wikia.com

Want a refreshing reward for your trek to Alahan Monastery - besides the panoramic view and Byzantine ruins there? Head up the road a bit to the Yerköprü Şelalesi. (Land bridge falls)

I'm a huge fan of waterfalls and I am so inspired by this place. The sheets of moss dripping with white veils of water, verdant ferns and figs surrounding the swirls of crystal water below, the ancient cavern air laced with minerals.... Hmm... Imagine what's lurking in that dark cave.

Me: Wonder to worst case scenario in under two seconds. Probably a good thing - I was heading toward thesaurus rape.

But really, it's magical. Just watch the clip below and you'll see what I mean.

Now...how can I sneak a scene with this place into my manuscript?

YERKÖPRÜ ŞELALESİ-YERKÖPRÜ WATERFALL (Mut-Mersin-TURKEY) from umut cor on Vimeo.

Magical Creature Must-Haves

2011-05-25T06:00:00.035-04:00

Cover via AmazonI know I hit the jackpot when the eleven-year old boy of the house strokes the cover of a book and asks "Oooo...is this for me?"

Yeah. My Borders find of the weekend: The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures by John and Caitlin Matthews. (On the sale rack for $9.99!)

It's in a perilous place right now. As in, I want to read it and the boy has confiscated it while I wasn't looking. It's OK. While he was at grandma's I quickly read the main passsages I needed. And he has to go to school tomorrow. hehe.

But really, many times I've found myself surfing the net, looking for a creature that does such and such, and wishing I had the Monster Book of Monsters to give me a clue. This is that book!

Unfortunately, there aren't that many creatures from Turkey or the Middle East in the volume. I think part of that problem is that the source material is either a) passed down in rote or b) has never been translated. Still, several entries point me in a promising direction and if I find more info, language isn't going to be a barrier.

BTW, it seems there's been an alignment of the planets in regard to writer's guides this week. I read a great post on The Writer's Guide to Psychology over at Sarah Fine's, and I was researching a semi-precious gem on Holly Ruggiero's Writer's Guide to Crystal and Gemstones. Check them out!

maNga at Istanbulive in NYC

2011-05-23T06:00:00.012-04:00

A little background:

Istanbulive in New York city is a free summer concert in Central Park. The past two years were very well attended and caught some really good press from places like The New Yorker, National Geographic, NBC and the Lucid Culture blog dubbed it "Turkish Woodstock". Unfortunately, this year in question because of funding, but the advertising is going full steam ahead...so I thought I'd let you know about it after all. (Check out the strategic tulip in the logo.)

One of the confirmed artists, Zülfü Livaneli , sings a more traditional set- which the entire crowd seems to know the words for - just hum along. He's famous enough that when U2 went to Istanbul, he sang a couple songs onstage with them. He's internationally aclaimed for his film scores and has been to Cannes. French newspaper, Le Matin, says he's a real poet. And he is.

According to Instanbulive, The New York Gypsy All-Stars (NYGA), masters of contemporary Balkan Gypsy music, is a musical chemistry experiment with explosive staying power. Living up to their name in every way, the NYGA blend traditional Gypsy and Turkish melodies with a scorching jazz and funk backbone, creating a unique sound that satisfies the brain and soul. The band exemplifies New York in the most eclectic sense possible, hailing from Macedonia, Greece, Turkey and Brooklyn.

They sound pretty good, if you ask me.

But the real purpose of my post is the alternative rock band, maNga. Their title, Beni Benimle Birak is on my playlist for Burnt Amber, and I just think some of their songs are really cool. Some are a little crazy, but... they definitely have fun with manga of the other sort in their video clips.

So, if you're in NYC on Friday, June 17th, 2011, check it out!

My Mersin Backyard

2011-05-20T06:00:00.026-04:00

Narlikuku via Mersinliyibiz on Facebook

The End of Grade exams are over and my kids are counting down the number of days left this school year. I can just feel summer creeping in between the cloudbursts.

It means less productivity on the writing front, but more days to float around in the pool, mulling over ideas. More chances to lounge in the chaise while I swallow a book whole...

In that spirit, here's a leisurely cruise up the Mediterranean coast to some villages near my old "backyard" in Mersin. (Beta readers: There's a flash of Narlikuyu and Aykar - and Kizkalesi, of course.) Enjoy!

Mavi'nin Gözünden Mersin Koyları from umut cor on Vimeo.

Scorpion

2011-05-18T06:00:00.000-04:00

Image via Wikipedia

House of the Evil Eye, Antakya, Turkey

The scorpion, aka the akrep (Turkish) or aqrab (Arabic), is a lot like the snake. It has a dual meaning.

An akrep can be a symbolic embodiment of evil or sexuality. (I'll let you extrapolate what a woman might mean when she claims to be "stung by a scorpion".) Yet the akrep is also protective design embroidered into the hem of a women's dress, or worn as an amulet to keep general evil at bay.

I suppose it's like fighting fire with fire. For example, in the mosaic at right, the evil eye is being attacked by all sorts of things associated with badness - snake, dog, pitchfork, centipede, jackal (I think), crow, and of course, the scorpion. Even the little demon is pointing a strategic part toward the eye. KAI CY means "and you", so the message is : If you put your evil eye on me, I'm sending the evil back out after you.

Remember in the depictions of Mithras, there's a scorpion grabbing the sacrificial bull by his - Well, I guess evil and sexually are intertwined in both of these examples. Let's try another.

Sufi mystics like to use the akrep as a symbol of their mastery over evil. Some Sufis even claim immunity, treating bite victims and performing ritual-like scorpion handling demonstrations.

Yeah...Some people may treat scorpions like pets, but I'm still not keeping any around. Where's my lavender?

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