Water

I have some news about the next book, in the Currents series, called Water.

The first time I told my sister about it, she asked me, "who names a book, water?", and I could not help but shrug my shoulders and say "me." Yes, I have long had odd ideas and as such, this does not scare me one bit.

So, I submitted "Water," to an editor for a review and it is going great so far because he takes me back to high school where I would write an essay in blue and receive it in red.

There are so many changes to be made, it drives me mad. I also know that he is doing me a favor, one that I might be so kind as to return in the near future.

I wanted to share the cover page with you; but this is bound to be edited too, since it's the fourth cover and it has a long way to go to being perfect.

What do you think?

I have also pulled out Fire, from the online amazon store to make some revisions in the line of distribution and access. I had previously selected the Createspace store and Amazon U.S, but a few readers requested me to make it available on Amazon Europe so they could buy it- so if you are trying to access the book this weekend, I do apologize for the inconvenience. It would be available for purchase from Sunday evening.

Water is more of a build up to the story of Ustawi's life. Here is barely reached puberty, but there is more going on in Leo and he is learning just how much is expected of him. I could say that it is a turning point in the story, but wait and see, and maybe you can tell me what you think of it. I hope this book does better than Fire, but that it also makes you laugh as much as Fire did ( for those who loved Ulioko, watch out, he's not stopped drinking the royal wine here).

Wandering

I was asked to write a short author's bio for some article I had submitted in a competition.
I thought about it while in a matatu from Kisian to Kisumu, and when I got to the house all I could come up with was:
"Dora is a full time wanderer who dreams of becoming a Professor one day. Of what? She doesn't know, but she loves reading and can be spotted at Java sometimes taking coffee. To follow her journey, check out her profile @herhar."
I thought that was not such a serious depiction and so I went for something like:
"Dora lives in Kenya. She loves reading and writing, and hopes to get better at writing if not now, then maybe tomorrow. She can't wait forever you know. To follow her in this awesome quest check out her profile +dora okeyo."

I have since written thirteen drafts and let's just say that nothing comes close to all the stuff I want to say. One thing is true, that I am a wanderer. I am neither her nor there, and I have perfected the art of being elusive especially to my friends of late. Grace complained. Joseph complained. I told them the best way to draw me out of hiding was to invite me to coffee at Java. They did so, and I spent less than twenty minutes with them.

Why?

I am working on a lot of things, but am nowhere near completing even one of them.

This bio has been eating me up today because it's like writing a tweet. I have to talk about myself in less than one hundred words and it's at such time that I realize I have over a thousand words.

 

You know, there are times when the pressure is on you to deliver something and you freeze. I have often used this in my stories. When say characters reach a breaking point and the woman asks the man, "give me one good reason why I should believe you!" And the man freezes. 

He opens his mouth to say what he feels when he is with her, or how he cannot explain why she is angry at him and what he's done. Before he knows it, she has walked out on him and he's single.

 

Crazy, but true.

All it took was one request: "Please submit an author's bio of less than 200 words."

 

I thought about it while sitting on a sambaza from Kisian to Kisumu. I have written a total of fifteen drafts and am still awake as my mom watches "Married Again" ( an Indian drama on Zee World), thinking of what to write and how it will come across. Will it truly depict me?

 

Minefields

I seem to be making my way to posting here during the weekends. I'll do something about it.
So, how has your week been?
Did you get most of the things you wanted done? How many are left pending?
I had a hectic week because of the mileage I had to cover at work, but so far, I have reverted to waking up at 5am and sleeping at 11pm. I have no tangible answer for what I do in between save for something that started on February 6th.
I started watching two Indian drama series on #ZeeWorld : Saloni at 7pm and Married Again at 10pm.
So at least that counts for why I sleep late, but whatever happens in between then is taking at least two cold showers because of the heat in Kisumu.

So far I have sold all the copies (fifteen of them) of Fire that I had! 

I am working on Water and also getting the other copies available here in Kenya for other people- but I learned something else that made me feel uneasy about support from friends. It is not to incriminate, but it hurt me when some people who had been pestering me about getting copies simply looked at my book- and shrugged and then let it be, then gave me the excuse that they had no money, but were quick to treat me to lunch. I turned them down, and maybe one day when they'll read this they would understand what I told them that day before excusing myself and heading back home.

And that is more of the climax of my week- I broke up with five friends. Four because of their misplaced priorities and one because he was in love with me.

And somewhere between Tuesday and Thursday I learned that you cannot dictate the terms of your relationship, and if people do not build you or encourage you to be a better person- or are a constant source of negativity, then getting them out of your life should not hurt or weigh you down.

I have also listened to Daughtry's #Baptized album this week, so much so that when I was feeling down I found myself belting out "Can I get a Witness?" in the middle of nowhere.

 So far, wherever I go, I am bound to make mistakes, get hurt and hurt others- and though sometimes it might seem like things will never be okay, I know that even flowers grow in minefields. I know that the sun shines on the minefields and when it rains, each drop of water goes down into the ground...and no matter what happens, I am not alone because I am a force. Forces are as beautiful as they are destructive, isn't that why hurricanes are named after women? But, my prayer is that I may not destroy the people I love as I leave my mark in this world.

I have also learned that when you are in a race you have cheerleaders: there are those who would scream when you win and those who would turn their backs and pack their pom poms when you lose. You choose. The best cheerleader is the one who is in the crowd, who feels your heartbeat when you are about to win, and the one who feels your muscles cramp when you are about to lose, and the same one who will remain seated on the benches when the lights are out to remind you that you are not alone, and that at dawn you should practice because you are winning the next race.

I'm grateful for this week, because I have learned that am selfish, and stubborn and a hopeless romantic!

Sticking to a plan

I'm a stickler for planning, and getting things done according to a schedule, so much so that surprises can either piss me off or leave me unbalanced. So, yesterday it did hit me that we are coming to the end of this month which means that I'll have to share another story this coming August on this story blog  and that got me working overtime. Good thing is, I already have a story to share. So, what's the hold up? I have to ensure that I'm in the right frame of mind to pull it off because it seems as though there's a lot more to be done. Now, a friend challenged me sometime this past week- he said "we have smartphones but dumb people." I noticed he did not have his very cool Samsung Phone, but a simple GSM phone. When I asked where his phone was he simply said, "I'm switching off Dora, I'm done with fake friends."
"What fake friends are you talking about?"
"I have fake friends, see on facebook I have 5000 friends, and on twitter I have like three thousand followers- but what use are they? I mean, when am sick or feeling down none of them is around, all we do is chat and pretend to care about the same things yet when it comes down to it, I'm just me, and well around three friends only. So, I'm out, I'd rather live my life with the three friends than fool myself that I've got  thousands of them...and maybe when I die, you could write my eulogy. I know you would tell the truth and all, but it's just crap, this online thing is just crap." I looked at him, and held his hand then asked, "am I part of the three?" He laughed and said that I was all the three, and that's when he challenged me to think things through. He said that the internet never forgets, and it was the way he said it that had me thinking about it. Are we as estranged as my friend pointed out? I have 5000 + friends on facebook and a writer's page too. I also have over a thousand followers on twitter and yet I always have my family and close circle of friends to turn to at the end of the day. I know that most of my online friends like what they read about me, and we are friends as a result of opinions and not principles. So, I'm not switching off. I still like getting on twitter and sharing links and getting to hear from my family and friends. So, what did I do instead?

I created another blog! 

Yes, another blog that's out to prove that people can always inspire us no matter the place or time.
The blog is titled "I met this wonderful person," and you can access it here
You never know, I might just meet you next :-) 

So, what about my plan? I had started off the year by declaring that it would be a writing year for me, because I want to advance my writing by challenging myself to write in as many genres as possible- but still maintaining the quality and voice of the work, and so far I have been doing that. Talking to my friend only brought an idea to mind and I executed the idea...and I do hope to always learn and look back on this as one of the greatest milestones and achievements I've made regarding my writing.

The perks of being a Goalkeeper!

I feel like a goalie right now.

I have had the whole day to reflect on my actions and some of the goals I had hoped to achieve by the end of the day. It's been a chore, but in a way...it reminded me of something. Arsenal won their first cup in nine years! Epic, right?

Well, not so epic because my friend Grace- called to gloat, because she knows I like Manchester United. So, here's what happened.

I met with Grace, she is finally getting married to Joseph and all they can do is talk babies and holidays. I was happy for her, until she started going on about how #MUFC sucked this season- and laughing at her hubby to be because he was a supporter. It went on for 10 minutes. I never let stupidity reign supreme for more than 5 minutes but I had to let Grace rant because she happens to the one Arsenal supporter who does not know more than 5 team players and doesn't agree with me that Ozil has teddy-bear eyes!

(Cute, right? Yeah, just look at those big googly eyes!)

But that's not it. I realized that we share three things in common with Joseph: #MUFC, coffee and we both use litter bins. Yes, Joseph does not litter! (Hooray for Grace! Her house and compound will be clean)

So, what's it about being a goalie. I watched replays of some games on YouTube to get the gist of this post, and it hit me how tough a goalie's job is.

Every mistake you make counts!

The goalie is the last man in the team. He can make many saves during a game, but if he misses once- that could lose his team the trophy and the title. One miss and that's it! On the other hand, take a striker for example- he can miss many chances, slip up on passes but when he scores just one goal he is redeemed! And the striker can be substituted by another player at any point in the game. The goalie has 90 or more minutes to deal with the pressure of incoming balls at high speeds!

The goalie is the last man in the team because everything boils down to him. When a striker has the ball, he has at most 19 people who want to see what he'd do with it, out of the 19, 9 are willing to help him score. A goalie on the other hand has nothing but the net and fans! The net is willing to accept the ball, while the fans curse or applaud him depending on his action. He has no one backing him but himself. In fact he has the whole world against him at that moment when a ball is fast approaching him.

So, why do I feel this way?

I lost out on a writing competition after making it to the second round. I know there are many more opportunities- but I looked at my submission and realized that I lost because I started on the theme but in the middle deviated from it. It's something I should have seen during the revision process but didn't and it's cost me a shot at $650.

Have you ever felt so drab? When you make a mistake it often costs you something, but the one thing that matters is how you get back up. A goalie goes to every match carrying the hopes of his team and fans on his shoulder, but my favorite Goalie of all time Edwin Van Der Sar once said, "It's not easy being a goalie, but you learn to know it's just you and the ball, and your hands. You have to catch that ball."

You have to try in life, if you don't try then you'll never know what it means to catch a ball, or watch it slip through your fingers.

I am not happy with myself, and I know I will not make the same mistake again- but for what it's worth I thank Grace for being happy about Arsenal's win, and I hope that she'll finally find Ozil as adorable as I do.

(Just sayin!)

--
How can one change the world if one identifies oneself with everybody?

Wherever this goes

Today's post title is inspired by The Fray's song "Wherever this goes" taken off their latest album Helios

The song goes something like this:

We could slow down
Waste away in this town
Standing on the sidewalk
Watching this parade
Or we could get out
Pack our suitcase right now
Find ourselves a bus stop,
Make our own way!

Cause it feels like I've been here forever
Afraid to beat my father, and afraid to leave him too
But it's my name I painted on the doorway
Tells me where I came from and what I gotta do!

Wherever this goes (goes), no matter how far (far)
Baby, you are the song that's written on my heart
Wherever we stand, wherever we fall
It don't matter at all, cause I will be forever yours
From this moment till the day the curtains close
Wherever this goes!

I attended the morning service at church today, and as I was making my way back home- there were these traffic cops and guides all around town. Some roads were blocked and when I took a good look around I noticed that there was a marathon taking place. How come I never knew of this? I mean seriously? To make it funnier still, I was not the only one- most people attending the second service had to use alternate routes because they would interrupt the marathon. I could not get over this- but on the bright side, look at what I bought:

​

I have 100 grams of coffee to consume this coming week.I have missed my coffee and I'm happy that I get to use my coffee-maker to brew some of my favorite drink and hopefully share it with Mom because I know she'll want some of it.

So, where is this going?

Writing.

I have come to learn that if I push myself just in the right direction I would get what I need. So, I am hoping to publish Currents: Fire by December this year- and looking into getting the print copies available for sale here in Kenya. It's a big deal for me and I am working on this because it's my initiative and no one can do it but me.

So, what is Currents about?

It's a story that follows the growth of a boy named Ustawi. He is born a Prince and raised to take after his Father in ruling their kingdom.

Why Currents?

People are not constant or definite. Circumstances can either change people for good or bad, and currents are dynamic. The story is a four-part series:

• Fire
• Water
• Wind
• Earth

In the first book "Currents: Fire" the story starts "Desire burns like fire, and so in the beginning was the desire for a legacy." The rest follow Ustawi as he faces challenges in living up to his father's legacy. It's a story about power, love, crime, family and most of all being able to stand up for what is right.

I have something great to look forward to and wherever this goes, all I can say is that I'm doing what I've set my mind and resources to and we shall see the outcome.

I hope you invest in a copy. Buy one- read it, love it, dislike it, and share the word. (I'll remind you of all this once it's out of course!)

--
How can one change the world if one identifies oneself with everybody?

Unboxed

I know not if the word "unboxed" exists.

I choose to use it.

I woke up today at 3:20am, and found myself thinking of the days I relished being part of the 5am club. I have resorted to odd hours nowadays. I sleep when I can, and wake up to either read a book, or write stories, most of which I discard at the turn of dawn.

I had a moment today. It was neither an 'a-ha!" moment nor an "oh-my-gerd!" moment. It was an "uh?" moment. I knew I had to do two things: change the template settings of this blog, and the read The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin

I am yet to get to the book, but some time during that moment- I had this intense feeling that I am overly emotional and should just forget it all and get back to sleep. I did so, at 4am and woke up at 7:14am thinking of making some toast and brewing a pot of coffee. So, what brought on this "uh?" moment?
I was chatting with Grace (she's an awesome friend, and so, I keep mentioning her in my posts)- and she'd asked me why I slip through her fingers most of the times. She said that I'm hot and cold, and just when she thinks she knows me, I surprise her- and she wants to know why?

I immediately laughed, and told her that no one has ever used a line from Katy Perry's song, to describe me. She said she was serious and sent me seven angry emoticons to prove it.
I don't know.
I am a human being- hence I'm always changing and what I say and do now is not what I'll say and do in the next second.

It just got me thinking of how easy it is to follow the rules and be what everyone around you expects- and in the end you become a collage- a collection of people's expectations and opinions such that you can't bear to look at yourself or be by yourself- for you are driven by others.

Isn't that sad?

Well, I've just gotten an idea for a novel, and maybe I could work this one through.

But, my hope for you today is that you are unboxed. If you've been boxed- then simply get out of it and always bear in mind that you are evolving. Create. Inspire. Learn and most of all- listen. There's so much you get out of people by granting them your open ears and closed mouth.

PS: What do you think of the new look?

How do I do it?

"How do you do it? I mean, just with writing, blogging and always being on the road- how do you manage?"

Someone asked me this and I could not answer her. It was there at the tip of my tongue, but I could not say it. I shrugged and smiled- but I could not find the words to tell her.

I can write a short story of 9,000 words in a day, but cannot answer a question like that.

Having gotten over my episode, I plugged in my earphones and played out The Fray's album #Helios. I had to take a breather because my head was spinning with so many ideas and I needed to settle down- cool off.

How do you do it?

Tell me, how do you manage to pull off the things that you do?

It's not an easy question- because though you might say that you simply wake up and plan your day, well, I've come to appreciate the saying that "you plan and God laughs," so not everything would go like you planned. I love writing and reading books. I also love listening to music- and there's always the desire to achieve more than what I do on a daily basis, but that's just the hanger in my closet awaiting a designation.

Things might not always go as we've planned, and I was looking at all the mail I have sent in the past year- and was not surprised to find that 80% of them were job applications. I had graduated and needed a paying job to at least cover my bills and do give back to my mom for having supported me all through my education training time. What is interesting is half of those never responded. Of the other half, some had turned me down for being overqualified and the other few did hire me. I never did analyze my mail as I have done this morning. It just goes to show that there's always something you can do.

I also viewed my Author Profile on Smashwords and just realized that I have published 22 books since I joined in November, 7th 2011.
22 ebooks!
22 stories!
22 tales of worlds that seem far yet are always within our reach. I couldn't help but feel stumped! It's not been easy.

Even as I post this, I have come a long way to 50,718 page views and it's always great when I get to know that there's more I can do every second of this life that's granted to me. So, how do I do it?

By ceasing every opportunity.
Every day is a blank page that could either be a book or books by dusk. 

I have approached publishers and been turned down numerous times. I have also had two big publishing houses here in Kenya- use my work one without consent and the other paying only ten percent of what they offered. I have learned from them- and I'd not work with them again.

I have also come to learn that there's always a plan B,C,D,E,F,G,H,I,J,K,L,M,N,O,P,Q,R,S,T,U,V,W,X,Y,Z. What matters is how quick I am at activating them and to what end.

So, how do I do it? By making the time because I enjoy doing what I do- and it's always an opportunity for me to learn something.So, it's not about what everyone is doing but what you are doing that's making a positive difference in your life.
If the goodness doesn't flow from within you to those around you...then at some point you'll end up feeling wasted- and you'd cease the chance to have made something out of what you had.

Now, I throw it back to you: How do you do it?

What's Happening...

It's Wednesday!

I have to admit, that it is not my favorite day of the week, but today is very special because I decided to continue writing a story that I really hope I can share with you in a few weeks time.

I had submitted a short version of the story for this year's 2014 Commonwealth Writers Workshop to be held in Uganda, but haven't heard from them regarding my submission.
So, I figured why not put it out there? (Thanks Mark, now I can post it on Smashwords )

I had a wonderful day, though I was up by 5:40am and ready for the road by 6:10am, it felt like years before I left the house. I was at Ranjira Primary today. It's at Namb-Okana- just a few meters away from Rabuor, and my short stay there was lovely. I learned more about management and responsibility from the School Patrons, than I believe any MBA would ever teach.

So, what's happening?
I'm writing!

It's been a month since I shared 21 Days with you, and now this April holiday- it's all about another story. I did declare that I will improve on my writing by working on full length novels, writing in the first voice, writing about love and relationships.
I am doing just that- and I am pleased with my progress thus far.

About the Cover Image:
I am a member of Deviant Art and there are a lot of great Deviants in the world, and TynkaBillisek is one of my personal favorites.
Her works have a certain appeal that just grows on you. The image I've shared with you for my story- is her piece. You can check out her beautiful pieces on http://tynkabillisek.deviantart.com/

5 days to the release of 21 Days!

 Pic. credit: Astralseedstock

I have been working on #21Days.
This is the title of my second ebook this year in my bid to write more full length and explore the world and lives of my characters. So far, I have managed to type out the first two days and I cannot help but wonder why my editing is getting in the way of typing the remaining days, but all the same...I have 5 days left to share it with you.

I uploaded a mock video about the release and writing process of the story on YouTube and you can watch it by clicking ----> here

It's been one strange journey for me given that I was working full time and sparing my break hours to write snippets of the story, but all in all, you must have noticed that something is different. On January 31st, this year- I said I'd embarked on writing this book (here's the proof ) and I shared this as the working cover image:

So what do you think?

The 1st or the 2nd?

All the Wrong Reasons!

Happy Sunday people!
How are you doing today?

I'm good- if you call waking up at 9:10am feeling like I should sleep till 6pm- then I'm definitely good. So, what's new today? Well, it's been exactly five days since I blogged and for the love of me- that feels refreshing!

Someone told me to take a look at this year, and think of all the milestones I have achieved and somewhere in between her being a Master Yoda- and a friend, I could glimpse at myself being annoyed by her (no offense she's pretty and a good friend, but I wasn't up to it). It was definitely one of those days where coffee could have been a better substitute. So, now that I think about it- I definitely don't feel like reviewing what happened this year because of the nostalgia.

I would however admit that I have learned the value of good friends and family.

I also came to the resolution of writing full time. It is in this light that I'd be so happy to say that I did achieve some clarity with my voice and style and just what genre of writing is comfortable for me.
I wrote more than 50,000 words this November during NanoWrimo. I also attained the 7,000 download mark for my ebook I Love You This Much which is still FREE on Smashwords.
I am in the process of writing a Four- Part novel series titled Currents, and this had me sign up for an online course on basic Politics and Government in Sub-Saharan Africa. So, it definitely has some governance, dirty politics, disregard for human rights and one man on a quest to self-actualize.

But one thing I have to admit is that- I learned that a Devil's Advocate is important, having someone who is willing to be against you just so you can see both sides of the story before making a wrong decision that could affect your life negatively.

There's one project that I started this year---> The Graduate Diaries and it is my hope that I will continue with it because there's always a lot to be learned about employment, job creation, career paths and most of all use of talents and skills.

So- did I just veer off the topic or what?

I guess a bit of me had to share what my focus has been and why I have steered away from blogging for 5 days. So there you have it, I am embarking on full time writing and will learn as I go and hopefully we'll be telling a different story next time.