Music soothes the savage beast

Gosh, what a difficult week.

The one constant has been good music.  I'm obsessed with good singers at the moment.  As some of you may know, I recently discovered Adele's, Rolling in the Deep, wrote an entry on it last month.  Then Tony told me to check out Gregory Douglass's cover of Adele's, Set Fire to the Rain. I gotta tell you, I'm liking his version better.  Check out his video on youtube:

Gregory's voice is just beautiful.  Love it!!  If you do too...You can get the single on iTunes: http://bit.ly/h5NUrB

Then on Thursday night Sara Ramirez sang "The Story" on Grey's Anatomy.  I liked her version because of the melodramatic flair...but that's the Latin blood talking. This beautiful Chicana has an amazing voice.  I didn't realize how brilliant until now.  Which of course led me to find another track by Sara called "Break My Heart." It's crazy good and you should have a listen in case you were looking for something new.

Last one...but I almost don't want to admit to this one. Carla Bruni (sound familiar? Italian model, now wife of current president of France).  Yep that one.  In 2003, she had this really sweet sounding song called "Quelqu-un m'a Dit."  I think the rasp-iness to her voice is like vin doux.  Anyway, I listen to this song and it makes me sigh.  

Hope you enjoy these tasty treats...peace and much love.

L~

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2011 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

I feel like a sunflower today

I feel like a sunflower today trying to get the maximum amount of sun exposure as I can. It feels delish after a long grey wet winter.

Let’s see, a little good news:  I’m going to be a reader for Icarus magazine. I’m very excited about this and I’ve attached their link to my blog so you can check them out. Sci-Fi rules!! I know it’ll be amazing to be part of this group. I’ve checked out their current issue and they have an interview with my favorite author Kathe Koja. Yep, I think I’m in the right place Toto.

Okay, I’ll be perfectly honest and fess up that I haven’t done much writing on my novel this week. What’s the hold up? I’m distracted. I don’t want to get into the specifics of that distraction, merely that my brain seems to be trying to work something else out, not writing related. I don’t know if I am using said subject as a way to avoid the writing or if I am genuinely moving through something. Either way, I’ve been doing a lot more journal writing. A place to kvetch and pour my liver out onto the page in all it’s bloody glory. Ick…I just grossed myself out. Is it me or does this tea taste bitter now? Oops, it’s actually the tea, I left the tea bags in there too long. Anyway, I think the journal writing helps diffuse the strangle hold…or at the very least loosen the white-knuckled grip.

All for now…peace,

L~

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2011 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

First Cuts are the Hardest

I finally finished reading the novel Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I’ve been reading it in small jags on the train to and from work. A fiction work based on actual events of the internal conflict in Nigeria in the early 70’s. The story was raw because it addressed the massacres of the Igbo people during that time. It was not an easy read but it helped paint a picture in my head about how people live and get by in a time of war.

Having lived in the States most of my life, I have not seen war up close. Conflicts have always taken place in other countries. And although 9/11 was a tragedy, it does not constitute a war time reality. As I write my novel, I am trying not to sensationalize a rebellion. In fact, I am thinking about the day to day grind of living through an extended war in the States, in the distant future. What would that look like? What are the sounds? Who would survive? How would people live? At one point, I had a group of scavengers enter the picture but it started to go down the path of a zombie movie and that’s not really what I’m trying to create with this science fiction story. That section will be axed shortly. So Half of a Yellow Sun has helped create a mental image of what the states might look like if we were caught up in an extended internal conflict. I’m hoping to depict it a gritty naturalistic way.

My wheels are spinning and I just need some traction to get going on revisions. The first cuts are always the hardest so I plan on working on those tonight.

I also wanted to make a quick mention of an interesting sci-fi movie I watched last night called Code 46 (2004). The premise revolves around genetic engineering and IVF. And how human cloning had gotten to the stage where people needed to get genetically tested before they could be permitted to have sex because they could potentially have too many genetic markers in common. Tim Robbins and Samantha Morton are the leads…and I love them both in this film. At times, the film gets a bit esoteric regarding fate and destiny but the science and politics of control over sexual desire is really quite fascinating. If you have Netflix, you can stream this movie until Friday (4/1/11).

Peace,

Lily~

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2011 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.