Googling yourself is like a box of chocolates...

Both The Rejectionist and Jet Reid have linked to this lovely blog post on Failure by Rebecca Brown at The Stranger Blog. Failure can be soul sucking, so its nice to view it through a different lense and be reminded that it is just a small part of the whole, that it can be essential to the process, and does not neccessarily mean you are doing the wrong thing. Ha ha - take that Failure. Failure is not, and should not be, the end point.

It is excellent fun googling myself. Sometimes it is as good as chocolate. And if you were Forrest Gump you might say googling is like a box of assorted ones. My last googling discovery was that the Singapore Public Library system had purchased my novel Jack the Viking which tickled me pink. This time I have discovered that my book The Were-Nana is on the 2010 picture book list for The Sakura Medal voted for by readers from international schools across Japan. That my books are being read in other countries is a thrill.

Went to see Shutter Island with my older daughter on Wednesday evening. Based on a Dennis Lehane novel, this psychological thriller made for an interesting watch and one where concentration was required to take in and make sense of all the evidence and clues provided. I felt a little cheated/manipulated as the twist unravelled at the end, although post movie thought processing has made me feel a little more charitable. It really probably needs at least a second viewing to pull it all together although lines are conveniently blurred in places to fudge some of the story line. All that aside the final line of dialogue of the movie is a stunner which made up for any failures and easily justified the ticket price. This reminds me of the final scene in A History of Violence. The physical violence of the movie is a stomach churning difficult watch but is pretty much essential to the story. Yet, although I saw that movie months ago, that final scene has stayed with me and gives that story an emotional intelligence that raises it above the average dramatic action movie. I want to write stories that have the same effect (without the violence though). That make the ending a surprise you didn't see coming but make you think 'of course'. That stay with you after you close the back cover, that leave you feeling satisfied while making you wish you could see what happens next. Now producing something like that would be a thrill.

Have a good weekend folks