Tag: competition

It’s been another week of crazy weather, including two named storms: Dudley and Eunice. Fortunately, our area missed out on the worst of the weather, although we can see snow on the hillsides surrounding Edinburgh.  No telling what Mother Nature will throw at us over the coming week.

Here’s this week’s quote (Compliments of http://www.wisdomquotesandstories.com/): “Don’t believe everything you hear. There are always three sides to a story, yours, theirs and the truth.”

So who was born on this date in history? Let’s find out who in the writing world was born on February 20th, the third Sunday of the month. (Compliments of http://www.onthisday.com/today/birthdays):

Henry James Pye, English poet, British Poet Laureate (1790-1813); Johann Heinrich Voß, German poet; Adam Black, Scottish politician/publisher; William Carleton, Irish novelist; Nérée Beauchemin, Canadian physician and poet; Nikolai Garin [Michailovski], Russian author (Tjoma Kartashov); Pieter Cornelis Boutens, Holland, mystic poet/scholar (Verzen); Jacques d’Adelswärd-Fersen, French aristocrat and novelist; Pedro Munoz Seca, Spanish playwright (Vengeanza de Don Mendo); Shiga Naoya, Japan, novelist (Road Through Dark Night); Hesketh Pearson, England, biographer/playwright (Writ for Libel); Georges Bernanos, French novelist (Diary of a Country Priest); Russel Crouse, journalist/novelist/playwright (Life with Father); Freida Geiken, autobiographer (National Historic Taping); Cecil H King, Irish/British daily newspaper publisher (Daily Mirror); René Jules Dubos, French US microbiologist/author (Health & Disease); Jascha Golowanjuk, Swedish writer (Acrobat); Pierre Boulle, French author; Rex Tucker, TV writer/director; Alex La Guma, novelist (A Walk in the Night); Pramudya Ananta Tur, Javanese author (Anak semua bangsa); Robert Altman, American screenwriter, producer and director (The Player; M*A*S*H; Nashville); Richard Matheson, American author; Adrian Cristobal, Filipino writer; Charlie Gillett, British pop-rock and world music radio presenter and writer (The Sound of the City), born in Morecambe, Lancashire, England (d. 2010); Andrew Bergman, director/screenwriter (Soapdish, Honeymoon in Vegas); Kenn Nesbitt, American children’s author; and Sally Rooney, Irish writer (Normal People).

Any names familiar to you? I know two names of today’s list: Henry James Pye and Robert Altman. Whether you recognize anyone on the list or not, if today’s your special day I hope you have a great one!

My Published Work

I’m thrilled to announce Mission: Angola (Xavier Sear Thriller Book 1) is now on the short list for the 2021 Chanticleer International Book Awards in the Global Thrillers category.

Competition will be stiff during the remainder of the 2021 contest. Further information regarding the finalists, first place winners, and genre grand prize winners won’t be available until the end of June.  Plenty of time to keep on with other things while the remaining contestants await the judges’ verdict.

If you haven’t seen the synopsis about this book, here it is:

Joao and Caterina Regaleria’s twentieth wedding anniversary celebration was fast approaching when a contact from the past reaches out for his assistance.

Colonel Theodore Mwelewe, a former enemy commander during the Angolan war and now an important politician, requests Joao’s help. The colonel’s adult son, Peter, was kidnapped while working as a doctor for the Christian Aid Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Reluctant to get involved, Joao contacts Xavier Sear, a former CIA operative. They became friends when Joao served as a member of the United Nations Peace-Keeping Forces in Angola and Sear was an observer.

After Caterina’s persuasive intervention, Joao and Sear head to the DRC to rescue Peter. Treachery abounds at each step of the way. Will they be successful or will the situation deteriorate even further as various players follow their own agendas?

My Work in Progress

This week my writing time was taken up by real-world requirements. I hope to finish chapter twenty-five of Ultimate Escalation over the next week. My manuscript received another twenty-three reviews, bringing the total to 552. Once again, plenty of suggestions to enhance my writing and showing me what’s working and what might need a tweak.

Here’s another snippet:

The roar of a commercial plane rolling down the runway echoed in their small compartment.

Ajit placed his hand on Vladimir’s AK-47 and tapped him on the knee.  “We’re here.”

Vladimir opened his eyes. “I wasn’t asleep—just contemplating our mission.”

“Who would have thought our reunification movement would be conducting their planning in a hanger on one of Pakistan’s international airports?”

Vladimir chuckled. “Yes, and the military is providing overall security. When will they find out?”

“I hope long after we’ve moved.” Ajit rubbed his chin. “Let’s join the others.”

Vladimir and Ajit climbed out of the hidden compartment and shook hands with the departing Umar.

Ajit led the way into the office.

Grigori, Fedor, and Eduard stepped forward. After sharing man hugs with Vladimir, they sat around a scarred wooden table. Stretched across the surface was a map of the border area.

“How is the initial training coming along?” Vladimir studied the frown on Grigori’s face.

“I admit, not as good as I would like.” He pointed at Fedor and Eduard. “However, they’ve reminded me to do my best. I think they’ll be ready for the first demonstration in three days’ time, but nothing is certain.”

“Understood. Vladimir gazed at the map. “Remember, this is just the beginning. Mishka and his team will begin demonstrating across the border.” He glanced into the faces of the three former Spetsnaz soldiers. “Make sure they are unarmed, at least for now. As things progress, we’ll allow an escalation of violence if it seems to be helping the cause.”

“Yes, Vladimir.” Eduard pointed to the map. “When should we begin splitting our volunteers into separate teams?”

“As soon as possible. Suggest you acquaint yourselves with your men.”

“If I may add, Vladimir.” Ajit half-raised a hand. “I’m expecting at least another hundred supporters tomorrow.”

“Okay. When they arrive, they’ll be split among the teams. Anything else?”

The Russians shook their heads.

“After the first demonstration, I want to gauge the reaction by the government and the people.” He turned to Ajit. “Do you have people you can trust to embed themselves with the demonstrators and report back?”

“Of course.” Ajit grinned. “I shall be one of them.”

Vladimir raised a brow. “Just keep out of trouble. Plenty of time for that later.”

More next time.

This brings us to an end for another week. I hope you found something of interest. If you have any suggestions for a topic you’d like to read about, please let me know. Until the next time, thank you for reading and hope you drop in again.