The title for my second book

Well I have been writing the title two different ways but finally found what has confirmed what I want for the title. No spoilers yet but I got help from a 714 year old book and a Chinese diplomat who visited and stayed at Angkor Wat or as it was called back then, Yasodharapura. His name was Zhou Daguan and his book that was finally translated into English in 2007 after all those hundreds of years was one of the first books I bought to start this journey.

Book cover revision

Knowing what you write... right?

“We know there are known knowns: there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns: that is to say we know there are things we know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns — the ones we don’t know we don’t know.” —Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Defense Department briefing, Fe. 12, 2002

I just saw this quota and though I can't stand the person who said it it brings out a very important topic to me and what has always been dear to my heart. When writing, be accurate!
I once read a piece written by a girl who was visiting some friends in Phnom Penh. She was writing on the Coupe of 1997. Now granted the magazine was just a small mothering magazine with a small readership. But it was a magazine and while reading it I got to the point where I was holding my head say "Where in the world did she get her information?" or "How could she say such a thing?" I wrote to the editor who I knew and brought up each point. About the only thing the girl got right was where she was staying while in the country... My friend the editor told me to write to her directly and tell her what I felt about her article.
I wrote to this girl and told her I had also lived through the coupe that she had called a civil war... I asked her if she knew the definition of either? I then asked her about all her other gross mistakes? Her reply was simple. She didn't really care and hadn't checked her facts and blah,blah...
To say I was floored by what she said to me and her article and her lack of caring... She was writing and reaching people who didn't know and some may not care but when a person who reads something knows the facts and sees them distorted it makes you really want to scream. Another case came up about 1/2 a year ago. There was an article in the BDN, Bangor Daily News and it was about this one victim of a dog attack. The victim had been attacked by a pit bull... no maybe a Bull Mastiff or was it a Pug...? The thing was they had some animal doctor giving facts about dog attacks and certain breeds and though I have never owned a Pitbull or a Pug I have owned a Bull Mastiff. She gave all these suppose facts... SUPPOSE FACTS. Well I went to my friends at Dog Fancy Magazine and complained and asked for help. This person who wrote the article never checked anything she just wrote, probably to meet a deadline BUT even with suppose facts from the experts you would think they would check?? NO they don't so I go the information I needed and double checked it... and wrote back to this woman and then then she gave me the address of the dog doctor... what a waste of time. Neither cared that they were putting out gross facts about dog breeds. One of the things that really cracked me up was that when I told both these women that they had both said a Pit bull could reach weights of up to 200 lbs... that was like a light bulb going off . She said also this woman could have been attacked by a Pug... first they didn't even have a clue as to what attacked the woman, then to give gross facts about dogs like a 200LB Pit Bull... They finally did find the dog that attacked the woman, it was a mix. BUT what I am trying to get across is it's very important to know what you write and to get your facts straight.
I write fiction but that still doesn't excuse me from not getting the facts correct. I love to research and I am always double checking what I wrote and though this little piece has nothing to do with my books it does have about writing in general so now that I have had my little venting time I will get back to work.

The saving of a Queen

Jayavarman walked through the crowd who gathered for the up and coming wedding of the Prince of the Cham. People partied, bells rang. Incense floated to the heavens as did the chants of the monks. Prayers for a fruitful marriage.
Jayavarman walked with a purpose, only one in mind. To get back what belong to him, his wife, his friend, his queen. The woman who had been with him down through the ages and a lowly Prince of the Cham dared to take her... He would not live out the day, that Jayavarman knew for sure.
He stopped an obscure man, no one noticed amongst the well wishers. The Prince must be very sure of himself. Well he hadn't changed much since their last meeting a year ago. Only more cocky.
Jayavarman took in the lay of the palace. He had told Sean he would handle this on his own... he knew though his men would never leave him to himself. As he boldly walked up the steps of the palace he felt a presence behind himself. Turning first to his right,and then to his left he saw what he he had grown accustom to seeing, his men... his men who would follow him to the gates of hell and back.
"I thought I told you this was a private battle Sean..." Smiling at his General.
"Sean kept step with his future King. "And I told you I never listen to orders when they make no sense. We are here to help you get our future queen back and kill that sneaking rat of a prince once and for all..."
Jayavarman smiled as they climbed the final stairs and stood before the doors of the temple. Inside the gongs sounded, the beginning of the ceremony would start.
Jayavarman put his hand on Sean's shoulder, his other hand clasped his dagger. "This could be dangerous you know... we may not all make it..."
Sean smiled at his leader. "You forgot all of us here will later be the ones who save the crown prince... so yes, we will all make it. Also I know something you don't know." He smiled a smile that Jayavarman had known since they were young boys. "And what is that?"
"Another worm hole." Now let's get Indradevi back, get ahold of the prince, kill him and we will get back without anyone even knowing what hit them."
Jayavarman smiled. As his hand got ready to push the door of the temple open a monk came up to them. His look of puzzlement spread as all the men pushed past him. They walked in and all eyes turned on them.
Jayavarman saw only one and that was Indradevi's eyes . She looked up, tears spilling from her eyes then a smile broke over her face.
Jayavarman said just above a whisper. "Let's get our queen back..."

Writing

Well just to say my next book is over the hump of the beginning and wrote 5 pages today. I have twenty pages done on this new book so far. The characters are coming along nicely again. They are getting to know one another again after the ending of the first book. I did take a few pages out a couple of days ago after reading half of the Ramayana. Things are flowing now.
The photos included are of the hospital in Bangkok, Bumrungrad Hospital, I use in my books. The same hospital I lived at for about three months when waiting for the birth of my youngest son and where he went back to to have a life saving surgery. I want to show as much to give everyone a feel for my world that I am creating.

Photos and a new book by John McDermott

The gate at Angkor Thom, one of my favorite photos done by John McDermott. I have known of his work for a very long time. MaryKate brought back a card for me of one of his photos.

These peaceful faces are at Angkor Thom at the Bayon which is the center of of Angkor Thom, which was built by Jayavarman VII. Some say the faces are of him, not all are identical, some say they are of a Buddhist divinity.

Elegy: Reflections on Angkor Exhibit Opens in USA
Beverly Hills — For more than a decade, American photographer John McDermott has devoted himself to capturing the soul of the ancient Khmer capital of Angkor on film. His new exhibit features a collection of monochromatic photos from his new book Elegy: Reflections on Angkor, a study of the stone temple ruins in Cambodia.


Elegy: Reflections on Angkor by John McDermott
McDermott first visited Cambodia in the mid-1990s, when the country was still recovering from decades of civil war and genocide. When he returned again in 2000, the photographer committed himself to recording the ancient ruins of the mysterious Khmer civilization that were still untouched and unknown to most of the world.


Faces on The Bayon by John McDermott
The Khmer Empire flourished from the 9th to the 14th centuries, but its magnificent capital of Angkor — with temples covering almost 250 square miles — was virtually abandoned to the jungle upon its collapse.

In the late 19th century, French explorer Henri Mouhot brought the civilization to the attention of the West for the first time. Since then, the Angkor archaeological complex has welcomed an increasing number of international tourists and researchers. Some two million visitors are expected this year.

McDermott’s vision was to create a comprehensive portrait of the temples in a timeless style mirroring the mystery of a place that has almost no written history. As the book and exhibit reveal, McDermott’s images were made before this major influx of tourism changed the character of these remote jungle ruins. Sadly, many of the views McDermott captured in his photographs are no longer visible due to changes in infrastructure and restoration efforts.

Hailed as “the Ansel Adams of Angkor” by The New York Times, McDermott’s body of work reveals “a moody, surrealistic world redolent with the mysterious spirit one encounters when visiting.”

The exhibit at the Sundaram Tagore gallery includes sepia-toned silver gelatin prints and archival pigment ink prints. To create his vision, McDermott uses specialized black and white film and strong darkroom interpretation.

His book, Elegy: Reflections on Angkor, was released in 2010. His photographs are on display as part of the permanent collection in the National Museum in Phnom Penh, and are held in private collections around the world.

Oprah Winfrey choses “Elegy: Reflections on Angkor” as a Book to Watch
Oprah has chosen “Elegy: Reflections on Angkor” as one of “18 Books to Watch” in April 2011.

American-born photographer John McDermott has been dubbed the “Ansel Adams of Angkor”—and you can see why: His moody photos of Cambodian temples are full of light and shadow as befits both ancient peoples and current circumstance.

— Sara Nelson

Updating old post

I added a photo finally of a dance troupe that was up at Preah Vihear last August, 2010. Also a thank you to my son Arun on my book cover design.