Diane

Why do you write the books you do?

November 30, 2021 by Diane, posted in Natural Selection

I’ve been asked many times, “Why do you write the books you do?”

My answer is simple: I write the books I want to read.

Not everyone will like my books. Those who like one book may not like another. I accept that, and I will continue to write books I enjoy reading.

Northern Survival is not like Natural Selection. Northern Survival is for adults and focusses on adult issues: marriage, divorce, betrayal, kids, lost love, survival. The characters are adults in their 50s who have lived different lives but have both experienced the cruelty of people, ones they initially trusted. There is cursing, cruel words exchanged and mild sex.

Natural Selection, on the other hand, can be read by anyone 14 and up. In fact, mature youth as young as 12 years old can read it. Two of the main characters are in their early 20s. They’re naïve, have never had a serious relationship and have no children. They have not been made cynical about love by past experiences. There is no cursing, cruel words or sex.

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A Glimpse into the Magical World of G. Michael Vasey

November 29, 2021November 28, 2021 by Diane, posted in Non-fiction

Do you want a peek into the world of magic? Do you want to hear what those who make a little magic think of their craft? Do you want to hear about the experiences they’ve had?

This year, I came upon the podcasts of author G. Michael Vasey. During the 30 minutes or so conversations, Vasey talks with someone connected with magic or the supernatural in some fashion.

Last week, he had an interesting conversation with author Alan Richardson about his latest book, Visions of Paviland. Richardson refers to the book as a magical diary.

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Describing an Abandoned Town

November 28, 2021November 26, 2021 by Diane, posted in Book Launch, Natural Selection

I’ve stumbled upon several abandoned buildings tucked away on rarely-travelled dirt roads. Exploring them is exciting and creepy. Some where sketchy when it came to structural integrity and others were mysterious because of possible wildlife they may have harboured.

I can describe collapsed roofs, sun-baked decomposing wood, weather-soiled floors that felt spongy when I walked on them, and the stillness of the air when glassless-windows made it feel like the building was part of the overgrowth.

However, I’ve never been in a town or city that has been abandoned for so long that the buildings are hollow, signs are missing letters and the streets are a patchwork of broken pavement grown in with weeds and shrubs and hardly recognisable.

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Warm Memories of Hot Cocoa

November 27, 2021November 27, 2021 by Diane, posted in Recipe

When I was born, my family lived in a run-down shack on the outskirts of town. My bed was a drawer in my mother’s dresser. It had also been the bed for the brother who had been born 23 months before me and the brother born 15 months after me.

The shack, as my parents referred to it in later years after we moved into the house my father and old brothers had built on the same piece of property, had four spaces. I say spaces because while I don’t recall living in the house, my mother described it in a similar manner. It had a living room and kitchen combined. My parents had a bedroom that had room for their double bed, a dresser and a crib. The other ‘room’ was a space off the living room and kitchen, but there was no wall separating it. My mother had put up a curtain to create privacy and to block light from reaching the children as they slept.

A cinder block basement provided additional space for storage and beds for the four oldest boys. The outhouse was out back down by the large birch tree.

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An Easy Perennial Source for Garlic Flavour

November 26, 2021November 25, 2021 by Diane, posted in garden, Natural Selection

While I have a good supply of garlic bulbs, there’s another plant that can provide the flavour, and it’s available fresh from the garden between early May to late October. This plant also provides greenery for the dish, whether that be scrambled eggs or soups.

The perennial that everyone can grow and that thrives from being cut regularly is garlic chives. It’s so easy to grow and propagate that once you have one small plant in your garden, it won’t take many years before the clump grows to a fair size and new plants pop up around the mother plant. Don’t consider these new plants as weeds, though they may be mistaken for blades of grass in the early stage. Move them to the location of your choice or share them with a friend.

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Midgarden Garlic Update

November 25, 2021November 23, 2021 by Diane, posted in garden

On November 4th, I planted my Midgarden garlic. I had prepared the bed a few weeks earlier by cleaning out the weeds and spreading two inches of compost over the top. No, I do not work it into the soil. I practise the no-dig method.

I estimated between 33 and 44 cloves from the 11 bulbs I had harvested in August (see the post: Garlic Update for 2021). However, I was shocked to have 71 cloves. That’s an average of 6.45 cloves per bulb. I knew the bulbs were big, but I had no idea I’d get more than four cloves from each.

Doing the math, this indicates I may get 458 cloves to plant in the fall of 2022.

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Reconnect with the Land and Local Farmers

November 24, 2021November 23, 2021 by Diane, posted in garden

Heavily processed and unnatural food practices have been a normal part of the food system in North America for only about 60 years. Before that time, most foods were naturally organic and few people ate processed foods. Both my parents grew up in rural areas where everyone in the community got 90% of what they consumed from their backyard, the forest around them or the ocean. Flour, salt, sugar and a few other basic baking ingredients were the only food items they bought.

While governments, organisations and activist groups prattle on about environmental issues and claim the end of the world is nigh, they offer little in real solutions. They keep talking globally when the answer is locally. When I think of the popular slogan “Buy Local”, I don’t think about buying from a local store. I think of buying food and products grown and created near me, not a thousand miles away. I want apples grown within 100 miles of me, not 500.

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Honouring a Western Star from Decades Ago

November 23, 2021 by Diane, posted in Book Launch, Natural Selection

I’ve written many stories, so I’ve used a lot of names. My fantasy novels contain dozens of characters and while I try not to use the same name twice, I sometimes do.

While looking for a name for one of the soldiers who served at Casa Royal, Ravencroft, County Regal, in my latest novel, Natural Selection, my youngest son was talking about a few of the stars from old western films he had watched. The name Jack Elam came up and while my son prattled on, I considered the name. Yeah. That sounds good.

While many won’t know who this man is, those familiar with old westerns will recognise it immediately.

William Scott ‘Jack’ Elam was born November 13, 1920 in Miami, Arizona, USA. He’s best known for the villains he played in western films. Later in his career, he turned to comedy.

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A Special Find at a Second-hand Shop

November 22, 2021November 21, 2021 by Diane, posted in garden, Recipe

We have a wonderful local second-hand shop. We’re only a village, maybe even a hamlet, but this shop is always brimming with donated treasures for resale. Sometimes I spend only a dollar. Other times, like last week, I spend over $10.00.

Things aren’t expensive. In fact, they are priced less than most yard sale items. Many of the things I buy cost between 50 cents and $2.00. That doesn’t mean things are cheap. Some might be, but most are good quality.

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Our First Dusting of Snow

November 21, 2021November 19, 2021 by Diane, posted in garden

Winter is on our doorstep and creeping into the garden. Earlier this week, I tucked in the garden for the season. The only thing left to do is cover up a few plants with evergreen boughs when the temperature remains mostly around zero degrees.

On the morning of November 18th, we had the first dusting of snow. It didn’t stick around long, but I captured a few images in the garden. I’ll share them here.

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