Regular readers of this blog know that Charlie’s Bar is an Aruban institution of sorts. The place is absolutely packed with left behind items. It’s difficult to describe so here is some video footage.
Charlie was a good friend and may he rest in peace. I made him a character in An Island Away because he embodied the spirit and sensibility of San Nicolaas, which is a town like none other. See you around there someday.
As the photo below shows, three pallets of my novel, An Island Away, just arrived here in Aruba. This was a welcome sight as many stores have run low or sold out completely. More are on the way, too, because I’ll be hosting several events this month as well as in December.
For more information about An Island Away or to read excerpts, go to my website through the link here at my blog.
Thanks and happy reading!
Here is a photo taken at the New Hope & Ivyland Railroad yard. It’s of a massive steam engine that is undergoing a complete rebuild.
I wrote a short story called, Big Iron Holiday. In it, two friends (Ellsworth Botcher and Ned Fry) reunite after the end of the First World War. One is a railroad superintendent, the other is a pilot. I intend to use this short story as the basis for a novel titled simply Big Iron. The novel will follow these two characters and their lives as the United States evolves through the boomtimes of the 1920’s, the Great Depression, and the lead-up to D-Day. There will be some other characters, too, ranging from Hollywood stars to the men who kept the railroads running through all types of conditions.
As readers of this blog know, I like long books. Big Iron will be a long book. It is my hope that it will run more than 750 pages. Good characters, like the ones I have in mind, should easily be able to carry it that far.
What’s your favorite long book?
As stated in earlier posts, I enjoy writing in public spaces. I also do a bit of writing in a home office. The right music helps make the words flow and lately I’ve been listening to Alicia de Larrocha. Her recordings of the Mozart Piano Sonatas are nothing short of incredible. In the first place she plays them in what I would call a “clean” style, sticking to the score dynamics as penned by the composer. In other words, she doesn’t overdo it. Her phrasing is as crisp as good dialog and the subtleties of each piece are pleasantly accented without being intrusive.
If you like Mozart’s piano works, I highly recommend the RCA “Complete Collections” set by Señora de Larrocha. I found this on iTunes.
Finally, whatever piano she played to record this album should be in the world hall of fame for legendary instruments, or perhaps the Smithsonian.
The Bent Page 
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