Showing posts with label supernatural. Show all posts
Showing posts with label supernatural. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

"What the Night Knows" by Dean Koontz

Dean Koontz has been my favorite author since I first picked up a copy of “The Bad Place” back in 1990. I liked it so well that I subsequently purchased nearly every book he has ever published. When I was selected to be an early reviewer for “What the Night Knows”, I was beside myself with joy and anticipation. Let me just say, the book did NOT disappoint.

Two decades ago as a young boy, John Calvino snuck back into his house only to discover his parents had been brutally murdered. When he hears the strange sound of bells ringing in his sisters’ room, he locates a gun and investigates to find the sinister, hulking, misshapen form of Alton Turner Blackwood standing over his dead sister, his other sister already viciously and violently killed as well. After taunting John and issuing a promise to revisit the atrocities on his future family, Blackwood turns and John shoots him and empties the ammunition into the killer’s face.

Later, John learns that his family was the last of four families that Blackwood intended to kill, 33 days apart. Now a homicide detective, John Calvino learns that impossibly, the murders are somehow happening all over again. With his own family to protect, John has to figure out a way to stop the cycle from repeating and deal with Alton Turner Blackwood once and for all.

“What the Night Knows” is a suspenseful, riveting, pulse-pounding, spine-tingling, creepy, supernatural thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat and checking your closets, mirrors and crawlspaces for things that literally go bump in the night. Never before has Koontz dealt so well with the topic of ghosts, malevolent spirits and demons. This is definitely one of his best works to date and is a must-read, especially if you are looking for a gripping page-turner!

Cheers!
~ Peter West

Follow-up on Distractions

A few days ago, I posted an article about “Writing Free from Clutter”. In that article, I talked about how it is necessary to get rid of distractions in order to be a serious writer. After writing the post, I took a close look at the distractions in my own writing and decided to make some changes. I found that I spend most of time between eight primary activities — working, spending time with family, sleeping, eating, video games, watching television/movies, writing and reading.

Working — I can’t do much about that one. Somebody has to pay rent and bills and put food on the table. Spending time with family — I’m not willing to give up much time here, but what I am willing to do is set aside specific times to read and write and to communicate those times. Sleeping — currently, I am only sleeping 5-6 hours a night, so doing with any less would probably be detrimental and would degrade the quality of my writing. Eating — I’m already a fast eater, so I can’t really save any time in this area. Video games — Between Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect/Mass Effect 2, I have spent at least 20 hours a week, if not more, playing these games. I have decided to set limits to my playing time. One hour a day during the week and two hours on Saturday and Sunday, so no more than 9-10 hours a week on video games. Net savings: 10-20 hours a week. Television & Movies — I will show my before and after viewing schedules below. I have saved several hours a week here as well. Writing — Well, the goal is to have more time to write, so MORE time here would be good. Reading — I don’t do nearly enough of it and considering the best writers are also avid readers, it is important to me to have more time to read as well.

TV Viewing Schedule (before):
Monday: Chuck, The Event, Chase, Monday Night Football (DVR)
Tuesday: NCIS, Glee (DVR), NCIS: Los Angeles, The Colony
Wednesday: Survivor: Nicaragua, Top Chef, Top Chef: Just Desserts
Thursday: Fringe, Project Runway, The Mentalist
Friday: Supernatural
Saturday: College Football
Sunday: NFL Football, Amazing Race, Undercover Boss, NFL Football Primetime

TV Viewing Schedule (after):
Monday: Chuck, Monday Night Football — only if Colts are playing (no DVR — come in late)
Tuesday: NCIS, Glee (DVR) (The Colony is over, so that freed up that time slot)
Wednesday: Nothing (Top Chef is over)
Thursday: Fringe
Friday: Supernatural
Saturday: College Football — only actively watch IU, else all games are in the background only
Sunday: NFL Football (Colts only), Amazing Race, NFL Football Primetime (Colts only)

As you can see, the schedule before equated to roughly 34-35 hours a week in TV viewing time — WAY too much. Afterwards, the schedule was pared down to 13.5 hours, so that saves 20 hours a week. Between the time savings in video games and television viewing, I have added 30 – 40 hours a week to my schedule. That’s practically a full-time job! I figure I can add an extra hour of sleep and an extra hour of quality time with my wife and children, and an extra hour and a half each for reading and writing. That sounds really good! Wish me luck! I urge you to look at your own schedules and see where you can find more time to do the things that you love.

Cheers!
~ Peter West