Welcome

Hi,

My name is Arthur Duchannes, and this is my first blog post ever (as you can probably tell). I’m not entirely sure what I’m doing yet, but I have recently discovered that agents and publicists alike prefer writers having blogs, to show they are willing to work hard, to already create a platform with an audience, and to make it easier for fans and interviewers alike to contact them. Now I am nowhere near the point of having fans, but I decided to start early.

My main passion is writing, so that will be the main focus of this blog. I recently finished writing, editing, and formatting my first ever novel. It is called ‘Til Death and centers around a young cop named Nasim Alfarsi, who struggles to gain his colleagues’ respect. You can expect blog posts about this book, but also about everything else I’m working on and writing in general. I’m still figuring out what people want to read about and what I am comfortable sharing, so bear with me.

However, I get excited about other things too. One topic I will likely be unable to refrain from posting about is food, and baked goods in particular. At this point it’s a hobby for me, but I love sharing recipes with others, so don’t be surprised if one pops up on occasion. Other than this, I don’t know yet. This is the beginning of an entirely new adventure for me, and I am excited to share it with whomever stumbles upon this blog.

The minute of free time I have…

Like the title suggests, I am VERY busy these days. I have an important university deadline 11 days from now and I’m awfully behind. Still, until I can get my creative writing out of my mind I won’t be able to focus on it.

I’ve had some lovely breakthroughs. I finally wrote out my planning for In the eye of the beholder and figured out half the storyline for Unusual (both to be found on my Wattpad page, if interested).

And I’ve had some disappointments. I find I seriously dislike the first few chapters of In the eye of the beholder, but can’t figure out how to fix them. I’m desperate for feedback but haven’t received any in a long time, and when I did it wasn’t useful.

By the way, anyone seen that Grey’s Anatomy season finale? Holy shit. I need more, now please. Wow. They never disappoint. I find I deal with relationships (of any kind) much like Owen Hunt does, even though we’re completely different in other aspects of our personalities. Aside from that, I really want Minnick gone for good. I don’t like her character at all, I don’t like how (SPOILER) Arizona forgave her so quickly, their entire relationship sucks.

I can’t really think straight right now so if this blog post doesn’t make sense, my apologies. I’ll end it now. I would just like to remind everyone that I really suck at titles. Now, without further ado, I present to you another (very) short story:

 

Weapons Of Ancient Egypt

345 B.C.

Nectanebo II, pharaoh of Egypt for the past 15 years, was pacing in his chambers. He was on the verge of making a tough decision that all his advisors were opposed to. He didn’t care; he had to do it.

Many years ago, Persians had taken control over Egypt. Horror stories about that period were prevalent but Nectanebo knew it couldn’t have been so bad. Still, once the last Persian had been kicked off the throne, the great Amyrtaeus wanted to make certain such a tragedy would not occur again. He collected the brightest minds of the kingdom to help him create a superweapon. Unfortunately he was killed before the weapon could be put to use.

Baenne Nefaarud I, his killer and next pharaoh, had learnt of the weapon and claimed it as his own idea. He put it to use and soon his kingdom flourished. The creators, so fearful of the pharaoh they didn’t dare contradict him, were allowed to live, provided they continued to work, this time on improving the weapon.

Half a century later, Egypt seemed unconquerable. They had used the machines to build pyramids, to battle the enemy, and to control the citizens. The apple of Nectanebo’s eye was his temple dedicated to the Goddess Isis. Everything seemed perfect.

But Nectanebo did not have a suitable heir to the throne who he could trust with these weapons. They flew in the air without need for a pilot. It was marvellous. Yet he deemed them too dangerous in the wrong hands.

He suspected one of his servants would betray him for possession of the throne and he could not allow for them to have these weapons. The world would end, war would prevail until mankind was nearly extinct. He would not be the cause of this. He would rather let Egypt fall into Persian hands one more.

So tomorrow he was to announce these weapons would be destroyed and all writing about them as well. He had even hired some artists to replace images of these flying vehicles with other works of art. History was not to repeat itself, not with this matter. He would make sure.

#

‘’You cannot do this, Nectanebo,’’ his closest advisor and old friend told him. ‘’You will destroy Egypt.’’

‘’I will not allow that, my friend. Believe me, I am doing this for Egypt. My name will likely be forgotten but I will die in peace knowing I prevented a massacre of gigantic proportions.’’

‘’But the Persians! They’ll kill you without second thought. They will kill all of us. You cannot allow this to happen!’’ the young man yelled, upset.

‘’We will keep them at bay. And if we fail, it is because my predecessors let out soldiers slack. We may have these new weapons but we still need our soldiers to be strong.’’

‘’How can you speak so lightly? Do you not care for the kingdom? Do you not care… for me?’’ the man spoke, fresh tears staining his face. Nectanebo’s heart flooded with regret. He did care, for his kingdom and for his dear friend. Could he truly not understand Nectanebo’s reasoning? He wasn’t doing this out of spite. He was doing it out of love, love for humanity. Even if they were both killed it would have been worth it. And they would meet again, in the next life.

He pulled the man close to him. The least he could do was provide some comfort.

#

Nectanebo woke early next morning. He was going over his speech in his head, making sure it would be perfect, when one of his advisors stepped into his chambers.

‘’Pharaoh, if I may address you, I kneel before you as your humble servant.’’

‘’Speak what you came to say,’’ Nectanebo ordered him, not in the mood to listen to the man’s empty praise.

‘’Pharaoh, I thank you and beg for your forgiveness. What I am about to say is nothing short of insubordination but I dare say it despite this fact. I believe you are making a mistake, dearest pharaoh, wise king. I beg of you only to think once more, consider the consequences of what you are about to do, oh pharaoh.’’

Nectanebo was tired of listening to the man. ‘’Leave.’’

‘’B-but pharaoh,’’ the man stuttered.

‘’Now.’’

His advisor left, muttering something under his breath that Nectanebo couldn’t hear. The man should be kissing his feet for allowing him to live. Nectanebo did not have time for this. He had made up his mind and would execute his plan.

#

‘’People of Egypt, I stand before you as your pharaoh. I have gathered you here because I have made a decision. We have all grown accustomed to having these droning flying vehicles around but this will change. Within seven spins of the earth I want all these vehicles brought here, where I will have them destroyed. I have ordered some artists to remove every hint of these weapons from our writing as well as our art. The transition will not be easy but I ask you to have faith in me, your pharaoh.’’

The crowd was silent for several minutes. Then one man started chanting ‘’all hail the pharaoh,’’ repeatedly and surprisingly melodiously. Soon others followed his lead until the entire crowd was chanting. Tears appeared in Nectanebo’s eyes. These were his people and they would do anything for him. He vowed to do everything for them.

#

The Persians kept their distance for several moons before they realised the sky was suspiciously empty. They were closing in and Nectanebo had to send all his soldiers into battle. As more moons passed he was running low on men and the Persians were getting closer every day. He appealed to his people, asking them to fight for him, for their kingdom.

The amount of volunteers shocked him, moving him to tears once more. he sent them out with everything they could possibly need yet they were bound to lose without help of the weapons he had destroyed. He awarded their families with all he could spare but it never felt like enough.

Soon, he was allowing women and elderly to fight too. He had little choice. The people, his people, continued to have faith in him. He could not let them down. He tried one final battle strategy.

#

‘’Nectanebo, they failed!’’ the pharaoh’s friend told him, having run all the way from the outside of the gates, where he had spotted the messenger.

‘’They failed! Did you hear me? What are we to do now?’’

Nectanebo put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. ‘’There is little we can do, my dear friend. The Persians are coming. I say let them come. We will gather everyone who is left and willing to fight and when they come, we will fight with all our might.’’

‘’But Nectanebo!’’ the young man yelled, in a panic now.

‘’Hush, my dear, it will be alright. Trust me.’’

The man looked at his closest friend and saw the determination in his eyes. He nodded. He would trust his dear pharaoh.

#

All the men, women, and children were gathered behind the gates. They had all been more than willing to fight for their pharaoh. He had equipped them as best as he could but he knew they stood little chance. He was among his people, alongside his friend. They would fight until the end.

A young boy came running through the gates, excitement and awe visible on his face. ‘’They’re coming!’’

And sure enough the first row of Persians appeared in the distance, from the northeast. Nectanebo grabbed his friend’s hand and reassuringly squeezed it. He was ready to fight with all his might, alongside the people he cared for so deeply. ‘’To battle!’’ he yelled.

The year was 343 B.C.

Fin

Decisions, decisions, decisions

I am indecisive. There, I said it. My mind freezes as soon as I am faced with a decision to make and it drives everyone around me crazy. I’m the worst person to bring to restaurants, especially those without drink menus. Why wouldn’t they have one? How am I supposed to know whether they have ginger ale or cassis or ice tea. Am I supposed to settle for a generic coke or fanta just because I don’t know what else they have? Are they going to force me to ask the waiter/waitress? It’s an introvert’s nightmare.

I don’t think I’m an introvert. I’m no extrovert either but I never understood the ‘needing time alone to recharge’ thing introverts seem to do. I really don’t need time to myself. I hate being alone. I want to be around people. But I’m no party person either. I think ambivert would best describe me out of the limited options I have.

Anyway, back to decision making. It should be obvious to anyone reading this blog that I can’t make up my mind. I keep changing things, never fully satisfied with anything. Just look at my posts; they totally lack consistency. Were I any better a person I would’ve stopped this nonsense and stuck to whatever decision I made last. Unfortunately for everyone involved I am not. I hope this will be the last major revamp of this blog but who knows, really? I won’t make any promises. In any case, I’ll try to make this last.

So first of all, I want to discuss my writing. I’ve grown a lot but I still need to improve and I desperately need a place to talk about everything I’m doing without the person I’m speaking to going crazy. At least here you get to decide whether you read on. I might post some short pieces I wrote over the years but I’ll mostly talk about my characters, the messages that can be found in my stories, what emotions I’m trying to convey, etc. And if my thoughts and processes turn out to be useful for someone else then all the better.

Originally I started this blog because agent blogs kept telling me I needed one if I ever wanted to be published so I did it and made some social media accounts but it’s not for me. I can’t force myself to write 140-character posts several times a day. I can’t even get one done every month. I’m one of those people who tends to rebel when they are forced to do things. Tell me I have to do something, even if I had every intention to do it before you told me, and I will do the exact opposite 9 times out of 10. If you want something done from me, ask me. That’s your best shot.

Now I’m going to do this my way. If I’m as bad at this as I am at keeping a diary this might very well my last post in months. But I’ll try.

Secondly, I want to share some recipes with everyone. I found some great ones over the years, some of which I perfected over time, and I want to spread the joy. My signature dish is carrot cake so I’ll be sharing that one soon, hopefully.

Thirdly, I might share some stuff I learn about at university or some thoughts I have on relevant contemporary issues. I’m quite involved politically and love sharing my ideas on these topics. I’m always open for requests (as long as they are reasonable) so feel free to suggest some. I also love debating about ideas so hit me up if you’re up for it. (I’m particularly passionate about feminism and will force you to be as nuanced as possible.)

I probably won’t open up too much about my personal life but there should be plenty of content that can satisfy your curiosity about me as a person. Knowing myself I probably won’t proofread any of my posts. I’m not inclined to do so, I find going over details a rather tedious task. I’m more of a broad picture type of person so expect leaps of thought rather than detailed explanations of how I came to my conclusions.

If you have any feedback on anything, feel free to share. While I hate people not liking something I say, think, or write, I do appreciate criticism. Without it, I can’t grow. I want to improve and if that means hearing how much my writing sucks 10 times every day then I’ll take it.

I ran out of things to say so I guess that’s that for now.

Have a story:

Fate of a Villain

Zachariah ducked just in time. A gulf of flames rolled right over his head, scorching some of the longer hairs on his head. Josiah, his arch enemy, had really upped his game lately. The number of attacks on his life had increased, and so did their danger. The blond had come dangerously close to killing him.

Zachariah had never exactly understood why Josiah had it out for him. They were both villains, with their own territory, and they respected each other.

The attacks started 7 months ago, without a warning. One moment they were discussing what to do with the humans, who were increasingly displeased with their treatment – he wasn’t too worried about them, they couldn’t do much against him and his army of villains, especially if he was to work together with the other villain leader. That was what the meeting had been about. – the next, before he realised what was happening, the blond’s face had changed and he barely managed to move out of the way, the fireball killing his second in command. Since then it had been war.

Now, 7 months of vicious attacks later, the amount of scars on Zachariah’s body had increased twentyfold. He had a nasty scar near his right eye from a booby trap in his bedroom. He had shot back, but not as viciously, as he had a soft spot for the man. He didn’t want to kill him, or even really hurt him, so he meticulously planned attacks that would scare him off without actually inflicting physical pain.

‘’Boss, are you okay?’’ his second in command yelled out as he hurried over to what once had been the lift of the apartment building but what was now reduced to rubble and metal scraps. He looked at the man in front of him and got up, not wanting to show the pain he was in.

‘’I’m fine, Micah, but it is time for us to devise a plan to stop Josiah once and for all.’’ He said it with such severity it brought chills to Micah’s spine, the exact response he desired from the man.

#

As the villain was laying out his plan to stop Josiah’s attacks, his messenger, Hades, burst onto the roof, heaving for air. Zachariah shot him a murderous look, a warning that it better be serious or he’d be in real trouble.

‘’The humans! They got one of us!’’ he managed to get out between gulps of air. The villains shot each other looks of surprise.

‘’Ours or Josiah’s?’’ the shortest villain of the group asked, his thoughts far ahead of everyone else’s. Zachariah’s heart started racing. What if it was Josiah? He wanted to bash in the messenger’s head for taking so long to reply.

‘’Josiah’s. Krim. He was an arrogant bastard, always showing off, so today they took him. He never saw it coming,’’ the messenger replied, and Zachariah let out a sigh of relief.

‘’Maddie, Joachim, go to Josiah. See whether he wants to work together now,’’ Zachariah barked at two of his younger villains. They seemed pretty harmless but they knew what they were doing.

‘’The rest of you, take whichever humans you want. We’re going to have ourselves a party,’’ he winked at the group, hinting at the massacre to come.

A cheer erupted in the crowd and they all flew, ran, jumped, or beemed away, to hunt their favourite prey. Zachariah himself sat down and floated about a foot above the roof, simultaneously making it comfortable for him to think and instilling awe in the petty humans who decided to wage war on their oppressors.

An hour later he felt a presence on the roof. He sensed it were the two villains he sent out to Josiah. He turned around and nearly fell onto the roof with shock. He managed to keep his cool, though, and stayed afloat. The two were barely alive. Their clothes were torn, Maddie had bald spots between her thick salt and pepper coloured hair, Joachim had a deep gash running from his left clavicule all the way down to the hem of his boxers. Maddie seemed to be missing a large chuck of flesh from her right arm, and her legs looked so much like spaghetti bolognese Zachariah was surprised to see her still standing.

‘’Josiah,’’ was all Joachim said before collapsing. Zachariah rushed over and felt his pulse, not finding any. He was dead. He ran towards the apartment the main medic of the villains lived and smashed through the window. Too late did he see the trap set for him. The air seemed to explode in front of him and his world went black.

#

Zachariah was mad. Completely pissed off. He was currently on his way to fight Josiah in person. The bastard had gone too far. Two of his people were dead because of him, and he himself had lost an eye in the explosion. He was raging with fury, burning everything that got in his way, leaving behind a trail of dead humans, animals, and car cadavres. The lower ranking villains didn’t dare stop him, and the higher ranking ones were almost as angry as he was. It was time Josiah got what he deserved. They were not going to get in Zachariah’s way when he set out to do what they all wished they could do themselves.

He finally reached the villain’s lair and threw a fireball at the gate. The guards scurried off to warn their boss, leaving Zachariah to contemplate which to kill off first. He decided to blow up the one further ahead, to make a bigger impact on the other one. In no time Josiah was out and the two started their battle. His followers attempted to joint he fight but he blasted one away and the rest got the message. It was a fight between the two leaders. They yelled profanities at each other between blasts.

Suddenly a wave of water flooded the lair, immersing the blond villain. Zachariah looked around him confused and spotted a human. Before he could do anything, electric current ran through the pool of water, electrocuting the drowning villain. Zachariah, angry beyond anything anyone had ever seen, sent out a cloud of fire from his skin, burning everything within a 5 kilometre radius. The heat vaporised the water the villain had been submerged in, leaving him within an inch of death.

Zachariah ran toward him and gently took him in his arms. A tear ran down his face.

‘’I-I’m soh..’’ the dying man started to say. The dark-haired man kissed his forehead, one of the very few unblemished parts of the villain’s skin. A calm smile settled on the blond’s face. Zachariah cherished the moment. Then he stood up. If the humans wanted war, they could have it.

He enhanced the volume of his voice and spoke a message to everyone on the planet. ‘’YOU BROUGHT THIS ONTO YOURSELVES. I’LL BE MERCIFUL. YOU GET FIVE SECONDS TO SAY GOODBYE TO YOUR LOVED ONES, A CURTESY NOT GIVEN TO MYSELF.’’

He took a deep breath. He channeled the beast he had leashed inside him. All the years he spent trying to tame it, kill it, cage it, all would be lost now. He took a last look around and let it all out. Within a second, the entire earth was in flames.

– End –

A little bit of everything

Hi guys,

At this point in my life I’m not very reliable. Why is this? It’s simple, really. I’m trying to figure out some stuff in life. I am currently between jobs, working very hard to secure my future, while trying to juggle everything else.

I know I’ve said I’d post something new every month but that isn’t doable right now. Instead, I will try my best to update quarterly: one post every 3 months.

Cons:

1. Less exposure
2. When something exciting happens it might be months before I can tell you guys
3. ??????????????

Pros:

1. More content
2. Higher quality content
3. Less effort for me
4. Less stress
5. Time to focus on other things, which in time may lead to more time for the blog
6. ??????????????

 

I hope I’ll be able to keep this up. As it is, I’ve divided this blog post into several sections, for those of you who aren’t interested in everything I say.

1. What have I been up to?
   • work – stories, articles, etc.
   • leisure – my trip to Budapest (incl. restaurant recommendation)
2. Plans for the (near) future?
   • work – story ideas, plans, etc.
   • leisure – books, films, sport
3. Recommendations
   • books/authors
   • music
   • films
   • tea
   • other – Duolingo app
4. Recipe
5. Sample of my (creative) writing – short story/poem

 

1. What have I been up to?
   • work

Approximately 6 months ago I finished my first mystery novel. It is set in 1997 in a fictional Middle Eastern country, where a couple is found murdered. Their marriage was arranged and it’s up to Nasim to figure out what happened. He’s eager to prove himself to his superiors but leads are thin. When his boss’ daughter disappears, the focus shifts. Will he solve either case and prove himself?

I don’t think I’ve ever been this proud of anything I’ve achieved in my life. I’m currently in the process of editing it and then it’ll be off to some agents.

In the meantime, I’ve written a bunch of short stories, some of which deal with highly sensitive topics and may make people uncomfortable. If all goes well I should be able to post those sometime this year.

The first one (Cancer is a bitch and so am I) follows a woman suffering from cancer. She’s lost almost everything, lashed out at everyone in her life, and will most likely die alone.

The second focuses on Angela, a woman in a happy marriage who sees no issue with the fact that she never orgasmed. Until her friend Barbara finds out, anyway.

The third one is from the point of view of a serial killer with a conscience who worries about the increasingly short periods between his murders. His favourite coffee shop always helped calm him, so why shouldn’t it this time?

 

Aside from my writing, I decided I needed a kick in the butt to start applying for jobs again so I’ve been doing that. A lot. Feel free to recommend jobs for me (though I should point out I live in the Netherlands and intend to continue doing so).

 

• leisure

A month ago I went to Budapest with my mum. It was only a short trip but we had a lot of fun, saw some great sights, and ate amazing food. The latter is what I want to focus on here. There was one restaurant, located next to the Szent István Bazilika, called Bestia that particularly caught my eye.

I don’t usually eat the skin on meat or fish – the texture and flavour disgust me – but there I ordered the salmon, with a side of delicious triple-baked potatoes, which was prepared to perfection. The skin was crispy, exactly what the piece of fish needed.

I can also confirm the burger there is to die for. As is their elderflower drink. Seriously, I had two glasses, each 400ml, in less than two hours. And if that wasn’t enough, I was convinced into trying dessert. The name of the dish on the menu (something crude like coconut panna cotta with maracuja) does not do it justice. It was served in a glass: coconut tapioca on the bottom, topped with a layer of coconut panna cotta, passion fruit (i.e. maracuja) custard, passion fruit jam, toasted shaved coconut, and probably some other layers I’ve forgotten by now. It was innovative, modern, and absolutely scrumptious. 10/10 recommend. If you have a spare few hours in the inner city, try it.

 

At the beginning of this year, I made a list of 12 + 12 + 1 books to read this year. I haven’t read as much as I wanted throughout 2016 so I needed to up my game. 12 books are a must, 12 books are optional extras in case I have more time than I expected, and 1 book is a bonus.

My list:

1. Map of Bones (James Rollins)
2. Black Order (James Rollins)
3. De Branding (Minette Walters)
4. P. Lovecraft’s The Classic Horror Stories
5. The Drop (Dennis Lehane)
6. World Gone By (Dennis Lehane)
7. Winnie The Pooh (A.A. Milne)
8. Splinter The Silence (Val McDermid)
9. De Terechtstelling (Val McDermid)
10. Superfreakonomics (Levitt & Dubner)
11. A Brief History Of Time (Stephen Hawking)
12. Zero Hour (Clive Cussler)
13. Hope and Memory (Tzvetan Todorov)
14. The Idiot (Dostoyevsky)
15. Moby Dick (Melville)
16. Wit’ch Fire (James Clemens)
17. Het Lijden Van De Jonge Werther (Goethe)
18. The Essential Kafka (Kafka)
19. Excavation (James Rollins)
20. Het Mysterie Van De Maan (Knight & Butler)
21. The Last Oracle (James Rollins)
22. Crime & Punishment (Dostoyevsky)
23. Duivelsveer (Minette Walters)
24. Neanderthal Man (Svante Pääbo)
25. The Seventh Plague (James Rollins)

So far I’ve read 1-3, 5-7, 12, 16-17, 19-21, 23, 25. I am happy to be able to tell you that each and every one of those books is great. Not a surprise, considering there are some of my favourite authors up there. I must say that I didn’t expect to love Wit’ch Fire as much as I did, as it was my first introduction to high fantasy (I think that’s high fantasy anyway… I’m terrible with genres), but it blew my mind and I am currently reading part 2 (Wit’ch Storm), even though it’s not on the list.

Currently I’m alternating between Crime & Punishment, Kafka, and Wit’ch Storm. I found myself unable to read any of them in one sitting and simply had to read something else in between. It’s proven an adequate solution. Right this very moment I am in the middle of chapter 4 of Kafka’s Trial, which is part of the book mentioned above. In case anyone is interested, most of my classics are from Wordsworth Classics, though I’m equally satisfied with Collins Classics, Everyman’s Library, and Modern Library.

 

2. Plans for the (near) future?
   • work

Until this summer I will be too busy to get much writing done but I intend to continue writing at least one of my new works. I started it a few weeks ago so the story is still in its infancy but I’m excited for it and I know it’ll be good. It focuses on Katja, who is haunted by her past. Normally she’s a great cop, not even 30 yet and already on her way to the top. However, when a girl is raped and murdered her past threatens to catch up with her. Having been a victim of a crime herself, a crime that still hasn’t been solved, she may not be the best person for the job. Alongside her trusted partner Nick, who has his own big secret, she shrugs off her nasty co-worker’s jabs at her sexuality and immerses herself into the case.

 

For this summer I got some fun things planned. A protagonist in one of my stories is a journalist and I want to write (and hopefully publish) a few stories in her name. I have two planned: one about toilets and one about comfort women.

 

• leisure

I am eager to finish my list of books (mentioned in 1.2), starting with the ones I’m currently reading, then moving on to The Idiot (Dostoyevsky), H.P. Lovecraft’s horror, and Wit’ch War (book 3 in the series by James Clemens), which I doubt I’d be able to read in one sitting either. Since last month I’ve come to accept that I cannot leave Clemens’ books until next year, so I’m doomed to read them now.

 

As for music, I am waiting for Marilyn Manson’s Say10. As far as I am aware, it has not been released yet. Google has been very helpful, announcing the release date as ‘’2017’’. Big surprise. If anyone has more specific knowledge, let me know. I want ittttttttttttt.

 

3. Recommendations
   • books/authors

I struggled with what to put here. Do I choose one author or three? I didn’t want to put two, because I feel more connected to odd numbers. One would make sense because this is one blogpost and it seems like the normal thing to do. Three makes sense because this one blogpost has to satisfy people for approximately three months. And that way I can recommend more than one genre too. Three it is.

My first recommendation is Dennis Lehane. He’s on my list twice because I found two of his books I hadn’t read yet on sale on www.bookdepository.com (free shipping, yay) so I had to buy them. Simple as that. He writes crime novels, and each one is more surprising than the last. When you think you know what’s about to happen, he throws in a plot twist that warps your entire worldview. His characters feel so much like real people, all of them flawed but lovable, too, and worthy of my empathy. (Not sympathy. They made their own mess and they deserve what they got.) For a quick read you can turn to The Drop (less than 200 pages), but his series starring Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro is equally thrilling start to finish. If you haven’t yet, and you’re not opposed to murder (in books, not in life), give his books a try.

Secondly, I wanted to put in the spotlight an author of youth books that are compelling for adults too. This man’s name is Charlie Higson (and I checked, because I always get his name wrong). His The Enemy series is refreshing, a new take on zombies (because they’re not zombies, they didn’t die), and captivates the reader within the first few chapters. SPOILER ALERT. MOVE ON TO THE NEXT PARAGRAPH IF YOU DON’T WANT THESE BOOKS TO BE SPOILED FOR YOU. I’M SERIOUS, STOP READING NOW. PLEASE. The author is not afraid to kill off beloved characters, which is a plus even if it breaks my heart every time, and he brilliantly sketches an image of London after the sickness. The one thing that disappointed me was the ending of the last book (The End) of the series of 7 (!!!). It was good, but I wanted to know more, to let the story continue until they find the cure. I’m usually fond of open endings, more so than closure, but I wanted more than a sliver of hope here.

IT’S SAFE TO READ NOW. Finally I wanted to recommend a classic author, namely Dostoyevsky. I’ve read many of his works, starting with Notes from Underground and working my way from his other shorter works to Crime and Punishment, of which I’ve currently read the first 3 parts (of 6 + epilogue). Next on my list is his The Idiot. His works bring about a peculiar feeling and it’s so easy to empathise with his protagonists. They’re weird, occasionally behave erratically, have long monologues that make little sense interchanged by seemingly endless trains of thought, until those are abruptly cut off. It’s like a rollercoaster. Brilliant.

 

• music

Here too I can fortunately think of three bands/artists to recommend so I won’t have to stick to two.

First off there’s a new band from the UK called Circus of Horrors (found on Facebook under Circus of Horrors UK). Their first album is freely available on Youtube, alongside various covers they did, including one of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah that will blow your mind.

Their second album is available on their website, but it’s more coherent than the first and definitely worth the money (I don’t have a pound sign on my keyboard but it’s 8 pounds [or 7,99] which is doable, really). The theme of their second album is aliens coming to attack earth. It’s absolutely brilliant, laced with Public Service Announcements that are both surprisingly realistic and musically gorgeous.

Since I am intellectually challenged when it comes to categorising things into genres, be it music or books, all I can say is that their music sounds like metal or one of its subgenres and occasionally involves screaming and growling and other not-clean vocals. (I swear I tried to learn all these definitions but they just won’t stick.)

Be open-minded, give them a chance?

My second recommendation is a bit older, and has also already made an appearance on this blog but whatever. They’re one of my favourite bands and I’d mention them in every blog post if I could. That band is Sum 41. Their new album, released in October 2016, is called 13 Voices. I could play it 24/7, and would have were it not for my neighbours and this annoying dependency of mine on sleep. Each and every song on it is catchy. I could recite the lyrics after less than a week. It’s a big ‘’fuck you’’ to society accompanied by some more introspective, personal songs, just like what we expect from them. It’s clear they’re not 19 anymore but they’re still rocking as if they were. Though I probably just screwed up their image with that uncool phrasing. Oops.

Finally there’s Gregory Porter. My mum fell in love with his music before I did but we can both agree it’s brilliant. He’s one of those artists that people of all ages can love, no matter what their musical preferences. I got his Liquid Spirit CD for my birthday last year. Needless to say it was one of my favourite gifts.

 

• films

I wish I had more to say here than I do but I don’t watch that many films. The one film that comes to mind is The Admiral: Roaring Currents (from 2014). It’s a Korean masterpiece. There’s something about watching battle strategies play out that is mesmerising, and the Admiral was a fascinating figure.

 

• tea

This may seem weird but I’m a huge fan of tea; hardly ever do I drink coffee. I have two brands that I recently discovered that I needed to share with the world. First off is Yogi Tea. I’m slightly addicted to their Sweet Chai. It tastes of star anise and other spices and leaves a nice burn in your mouth. I’ve had so many cups these past few months, I don’t know how much money I spent on it all. (It’s €3,29 per pack here, which is double what I’m used to paying for my tea.) They have a wide variety of flavours, something for everyone’s liking. My personal favourites are Sweet Chai, Ginger, Black Chai, and Choco Chili, though their Sweet Mint is utterly delicious too. I just choose to buy Pickwick or Lipton’s Minty Moroccan instead, as it’s half the price for the same taste.

Then there’s Teekanne. It’s a German brand that’s obviously cheaper in Germany than here. We only get 3 or 4 of their flavours, including their Indian Chai (yum!), but I found Innere Ruhe when I went to Germany. Despite my aversion to Rooibos tea, I really enjoyed that one. If you find it, count yourself lucky.

 

• other – Duolingo app

This gem is worth having. You can download it FOR FREE. Whoooooo. Personally I am mostly using it to learn Danish (don’t ask) and I’m at 40% fluency already, having started last October. They have a wide variety of languages, though not all of them unfortunately. My mum is using it to learn English, which you can do from Dutch as well as from all the other languages it teaches and a few more. You should check it out yourself though.

In order to learn most other languages on there, though not all, you need to understand English. Now I know that won’t be a problem for whomever is reading this, as I doubt you’d understand this if your English wasn’t at least decent, but it’s good to keep in mind when you recommend it to others. I’m also refreshing my French with it, learning a bit of German (not sure whether I’m learning German or refreshing it, as I can understand more than I thought but speak less.) and Spanish, and I even attempted some Hungarian (because of our trip to Budapest).

Trust me when I say that Hungarian is hella difficult to learn. If you’re not good at learning languages (which is okay, not everyone can be super talented in that regard. Maybe you’re great at science or art or something else entirely.) don’t attempt it unless you have to or really want to (to give me the finger for not believing in you, for example).

 

4. Recipes

Time for food. This blog’s subtitle is ‘’books and food, food and books’’ after all. I was going to post only one recipe but I didn’t want to exclude people based on their beliefs so I added a second recipe, which is vegan. If you’re a meat lover who isn’t even going to look at that second recipe because it’s vegan and vegan food is crap, get over yourself. Stop being immature and just look at it, taste it, and then judge it. N.B.: if you cannot intuitively tell when meat is ready in a pan, this recipe is not for you. I have no cooking time for you, sorry. I don’t cook according to recipe, most of the time.

Pork tenderloin with sambal and coconut

Tip: read the full recipe before starting it.

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon sambal manis (or any sambal really)
• 50gr grated coconut
• 25gr breadcrumbs (i.e. paneermeel, semmel brösel, chapelure, paniermehl, panko)
• 4 pork tenderloins (this is to use up all the mixture. Feel free to substitute with chicken filet.)
• Salt
• 2 tablespoon water
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons oil (for your pan)
• 3 plates (1 deep, for the egg mixture)

Mix the beaten egg, sambal, and tablespoon of water together on a plate. Mix the coconut and breadcrumbs together on a different plate. Put flour on a separate plate. (In total you now have 3 separate plates.)

Cut the meat into nice medallions (choose your own size.) and cover them in salt and flour. Then you first soak them in the eggy mixture, then roll them through the coconut mixture.

Put oil in your pan and let it heat up. Bake them until they’re good. And they will be good. So good. Enjoy. Serve with whatever the hell you want. I served it with wok vegetables and pasta once, but it goes well with rice too. Or potatoes and green veg. Whatever you like. Make it your own.

 

Vegan quinoa mixture

Now apparently quinoa is bad because Bolivian people used to live from it before it became a trend and we took away their main food source. So don’t eat it too often.

Originally this was supposed to make a veggie slider but I cannot for the life of me make it keep its form so I leave it be.

Ingredients:

• ½ red onion, finely diced
• 6 small mushrooms, diced (1 ¼ cup. I literally measured this using my tea mug.)
• Salt
• 1 can kidney beans, drained (standard size, you know which I mean.)
• ¾ cup cooked quinoa (cook it according to the package. Again I measured using my mug. American sizes are weird.)
• 1 TABLESPOON chili powder (not kidding here. You can use half a table spoon if you don’t like spicy but it’s pretty good with the full tablespoon.)

Fruit the onions for 5 min with the salt, add mushrooms and leave for another 3 minutes. Take off the stove, add the kidney beans. Mash it all together. Mix it with the quinoa and chili powder. Either bake it a little longer in the pan or serve immediately with green veg or so. Enjoy.

 

5. Sample of my writing

Message to the Older Generation

 

The future is important

What will you do?

Pulled in all directions

Without a fucking clue

Grab the opportunity

The pressure is rising

Do this, do that

Leads me to despising

The very system we live in

Jobs I’ll never have

I said I don’t want this

Are you going deaf?

Listen to my wishes

Do I have a choice?

Don’t want it to be a drag

Don’t we deserve a voice?

All focus on economy

Where is the joy?

Let us go our own way

My life’s not a toy

We’ll make our own mistakes

Go against the herd

We might surprise you

Ours is the world

So let us do ours

Just leave us be

Only one knows what’s best

And that person is me.

My apologies – blog on hold

Hi all,

I know there aren’t many people who read this blog but I think it would still be only fair for me to apologise now and let everyone know what’s going on.

2016 has been a rough year for many people, present company included. In order to clean up some of last year’s mess, I decided to really focus on working towards my goals in 2017.

It will be lucky if I get to write at all this year. For this reason I set my writing goal very low, at only 2 chapters (or 2000-6000 words) a month. Any more is truly a bonus.

I set my reading goal low too. 12 books, with an optional 12, and a bonus book if I manage all 24. This may seem like a lot but it includes winter holidays, summer holidays, a trip to Budapest, and many long hours on the train.

The blog is simply an extra responsibility that I cannot handle right now. I always set the bar too high for myself, pushing me until I’m near a burn-out. Even now my schedule is ambitious. I’m a perfectionist at heart, always hardest on myself, but it is time to learn to take care of myself or I won’t be able to function properly.

Balance has always been important for me, as I need deadlines but also plenty of downtime. Unfortunately I’ve been so stressed I haven’t accomplished much of anything over the past year. My family life is tense, my friendships are on the verge of crumbling, as is my sanity, my professional life is more demanding than ever, and I’m generally struggling not to drown.

I thought everyone deserved some honesty here. I don’t have any valid excuses, but I do have my reasons, and it’s time for me to choose me. Starting this blog at the time I did was a terrible call on my end, the timing couldn’t have been worse, but I’m leaving it up anyway.

I will do my best to post some short stories I wrote over the past few years, just to have something up, but no more often than once a month.

Finally, I would like to thank anyone who has read any of my posts on here. You’re the only reason I kept going this long.

Rant about people who think I’m stupid

Today I got a haircut. Big whoop, right? The problem is that I’m dissatisfied. Not because the haircut is ugly, because it isn’t, ir because the hairdresser was incompetent, because she wasn’t, but because she didn’t listen to me. She heard me tell her I wanted it a certain length, then told me she didn’t think it was a good idea. I assured her I had it that length before and loved it and stupidly assumed she would listen to me and do what I asked her to do. I was paying her after all. Instead she left it too long. Twice.

I get it, I really do. She went to school and specialised in this so naturally she’s the expert, not me. Getting advice from people who you think don’t know what they’re talking about is frustrating. However, they pay you to do what they tell you to do. It’s your job.

If I hired a plumber to move a pipe in my bathroom, I would expect them to do what I asked. Perhaps they think I didn’t need to move it or that it would make more sense to move it elsewhere, and that’s okay. I even urge them to voice their opinion. But if I tell them to do it my way I expect them to do so without complaint. I pay them to listen to me and follow my instructions. They may think I’m an ignorant, arrogant bastard but I still expect them to do as I asked. Because it’s their job. Maybe I asked them because I had my reasons. Maybe I am just an ignorant fool. It’s irrelevant.

I could hire a make up artist and ask them to use pink lipstick. They may think red would look better with my complexion or hair colour but they should still use pink because I asked them to, regardless of my reasons for asking. Maybe I was thinking of wearing something in a colour that didn’t match with red and maybe I just wanted to push my opinion. It’s irrelevant, and they should do as I asked.

The same goes for hairdressers. They probably know better than me but I expect them to listen to me anyway. Because there is a chance, no matter how small, that I did my fucking research and know what I want. And even if I’m an utter fool, I still expect them to do what I pay them for. If I’m going to look like a fool, I want it to be because of ME. At least that way I can learn from my mistakes.

I’m not as clueless as you might think, regardless of how seemingly outrageous my request. I pay you. Treat me with respect.

Sum 41’s 13 Voices

Yesterday I was banned from the kitchen because we eat too much sugar (apparently) so I am afraid I cannot post my birthday cake recipe for the sole reason I haven’t made it. But fear not, I have some tried and true recipes saved for future blog posts. This one, however, will focus on something else entirely: music.

I have been a Sum 41 fan for over a decade now. Their music helped me through some tough times and they never let me down. After Screaming Bloody Murder I was excited for the next one, and here it is, 5 years later. 13 voices.

For those of you unfamiliar with the band, they are a rock band with pop and punk influences. Their songs have meaning (deeper than a woe my brokem heart, though there’s nothing wrong with that) and many are a ‘fuck you’ to society. They are unhappy with society and vocal about it.

Today happens to be my birthday and the first gift I opened was their CD. It’s a beauty.

It consists of 10 songs, including the pre-released Fake My Own Death, War, and God Save Us All (Death To Pop). Trust me when I say this may be the best album released this year. Each song fits perfectly with all the others, and they never fail to chill my spine.

Not many bands have been able to so consistently bring me to tears with their music. I can’t choose a favourite album of theirs, let alone a song, but Sum 41 sure as hell deserves a place in my top 3 of favourite bands of all time.

To be honest, I could talk about Sum 41 and music in general all day. I will spare you, but I hope I inspired you to at least check them out on Youtube.

What do you think? Are you a Sum 41 fan? What was your favourite album of 2016?

Banana bread (not overly sweet)

When I made this I didn’t have ripe bananas so I used underripe ones. I was still very tasty. Don’t worry too much about the colour of your bananas. As long as they aren’t green, you’re probably good. The original recipe is from Handle the Heat and all credit goes to Tessa. Her version was topped with a chocolate glaze, but I left it out. If you want it, head over to her website or, if you’re an experienced baker, make your own.

Many recipes call for mixing the dry ingredients together, then mixing the wet ingredients in a separate bowl, and adding dry to wet. I don’t think I’ve ever done that. I read the step but I never want to add to the amount of dishes I have to wash, so I skip it. This recipe was no different.

All my recipes are in grams. If you are a cup kind of person you’ll do better to check the original recipe over on Handle the Heat. For all my conversions, I use http://dish.allrecipes.com/cup-to-gram-conversions/ or my own judgment (particularly when it’s a liquid).

Preheating your over to 180C/350F would be advised.

Ingredients:

160 gr flour

150 gr sugar (I used white caster sugar, although the recipe didn’t specify)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda (do not confuse these two)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon each, cinnamon and nutmeg (ground, obviously)

3 mashed bananas (the more spotted/ripe, the sweeter your bread)

2 eggs (it says large, but can anyone really tell the difference? As long as they’re not tiny, you should be fine)

115 gr butter, melted and cooled (this step confused me. Was I to measure the butter once melted or before? I measured it first, then melted it and made a fine bread. Feel free to play around [at your own peril of course].)

170 gr plain yoghurt (it says half a cup so I guessed it would be similar to the molasses/honey/syrup measurements in the link I shared earlier)

1 teaspoon vanilla

What made most sense to me was to melt the butter first, then pour it into the bowl so it would cool faster (as it was more spread out). Once that’s cooled, add your bananas, eggs, yoghurt and vanilla and whisk (or mix using a handmixer) until combined. Add all the dry ingredients (I tend to mix the small stuff in first, so spices, salt, baking powder and soda, mix, then add the flour) and mix until just combined.

Bake for 55 minutes on 180C (or 350F), until a toothpick comes out clean.

^^ Example of what the end result should look like. Alternatively, proof I actually made this before sharing it.

Personally, I gave it a 7/10 rating but my mum, who prefers her desserts not to be overly sweet, was more excited about it. Still, easy as cake (and delicious as one, too). Enjoy.

My birthday is coming up and I intend to make my own cake (tart?) rather than buy one, so that recipe should be up over the course of next week. Additionally, I intend to share one of my short stories (in a separate post but in the same week).