Stephen King's "NIGHT SHIFT"

Have you ever read a book and thought to yourself that there is a possibility that something would similar would happen in real life? That was what I felt when I was reading this book. Even though they were all short stories, but each one of them carried a meaning that is strong enough to get your thoughts to fly away with curiosity.

According to another book by Ailsa Cox called "Writing Short Stories", King write stories to feed the curious minds who secretly think that something awful would happen. Of course, in King's definition of "awful", in my opinion, would be ridiculously gruesome and I would not dare to imagine that something as bad be possible in real life.

But as scared as I was after I finished "Jerusalem's Lot", I continued reading. And each story began to feed my right brain of the strange yet unique things that I once thought would be a wild imagination that could not be shared.

And boy, did King prove me wrong! He has established characters in backgrounds that are believable and that even the least creative minds could conjure up in their heads. It gave me a whole new perspective towards the genre.

As a writer myself, I am in the midst of deciding what sort of genre and style that I should stick to. And after the advice by the man himself:

"The scariest moment is always just before you start."
-Stephen King

...I believe that I will find the answer as I write. Perhaps I would not be the one to notice it first, but it will be recognized soon.

Thank you for reading.

Cheers!

BOOK REVIEW: "Wenny Has Wings" by Janet Lee Carey

I don't usually cry when I watch movies or read books, but Janet Lee Carey's "Wenny Has Wings" made me cry like a baby!

This book was about a family of four that lost their youngest member. Wenny and older brother Will North were in an accident. They were hit by a lorry and both of them died. Fortunately, 11 year old Will managed to come back, but Wenny never did.

After he came around, Will began to write "letters" - that seemed like journal entries - to his dead sister. He discussed about what he saw when his heart stopped for 10 minutes, about how their parents seemed so depressed after her death and how he blamed himself for not taking better care of 7 year old Wenny.

When Will had recovered - physically -, he had to resume his normal daily life such as going back to school. At first, it was hard for him. Not for the fact that he had to go to school. But because of his parents who seemed to have lost their spirit.

But as the days and letters go by, Will had become strong enough to endure the pain and become brave enough to confront his fears. He made friends and gained new - and interesting - experiences along the way to his emotional recovery.

Carey had a good way of telling a story from a child's perspective. The little details that she added in the story had me smiling and crying as I was reading. It is definitely worth the read.

BOOK REVIEW: "Size 12 is not Fat" by Meg Cabot

I have a fair share of reading chic lit novels when I was younger. And I would have to say that Meg Cabot's books have always attracted my attention. The writer of "The Princess Diaries" saga (now a major motion picture in collaboration with Disney Studios) tells her stories as it is; honest yet witty. Most of the stories and details are straight to the point, which to me is a good thing because I tend to get bored easily with over-flowery words.

When I first saw the cover of "Size 12 is not Fat", I was thinking: "Oh, it must be about a super skinny gal who is all weight-crazy and watching every detail in her meals and exercise regime."

But I was wrong. I judged a book by its cover. And I just made a bad pun. Sorry!

Anyway, it's not at all what I thought it is. In fact, it was a mystery with a chic-lit atmosphere so it's not too intense.

Heather Wells was a teen pop-star but she hadn't been too happy with the songs that they made her sing. So after she quit showbiz and grew older, she found a job in a New York college dorm and rented a brownstone with Cooper Cartwright (Heather's ex-boyfriend Jordan Cartwright's older brother).

Although Cooper and Heather lived in the same place, they weren't romantically involved (even though Heather sometimes wished that they do). And to make things more complicated, Jordan - also a big star and still was - had been constantly trying to get Heather back.

But she could see through Jordan's lies that he was just trying to get back at her and his older brother Cooper.

Then one day, there was an emergency at the college dorm where Heather worked at. A girl was found dead, suspected by elevator surfing. However soon, when another similar case was reported, Heather began to think that it could not be an accident that killed those two girls - "because girls generally don't elevator surf", Heather Wells - but it could be a murder.

This novel had a balanced combination of thrills and suspense as well as drama. Oh, and by the way the title of the book is actually Heather Wells' quote as she was convincing the people around her that "size 12 is not fat"!

Guess what size she is?

BOOK REVIEW: "After Dark" by Haruki Murakami

This novel is about two sisters with different personalities and point of views. One is the sleepless, college freshman little sister named Mari Asai. The other is the forever-sleeping model –and older sister – Eri Asai. The story begins a few minutes before midnight and is carried out all the way to daybreak.
Most of the story takes place with Mari as the main character. She was first “found” at a diner, reading a book by herself, just to wait for time to pass by. Coincidently, she met a young trombonist whom she had met a couple of years back. Mari has an uninterested-about-anything-that-passes-by trait that makes her an amusing character.
After that, she encountered with Kaoru. She is the manager of a love hotel called Alphaville. The story goes on as she stumbled upon more people that changed her perspective towards life and her sister. Meanwhile, the writer expressed Eri’s night to be long and cold with unwanted “eyes” watching her even in deep slumber.
Before I go on, I have to warn you all for spoilers. For those who would want to know about the ending without reading the book, leave a comment and leave now! While for those who would not mind, you may stay.
This book ends with Mari finally returning home the next morning. She even went to her sister, pleading her to “come back” from her slumber. Eri has been sleeping for a long time, but it was not a coma. She wakes up now and then to eat and the occasional visits to the lavatory. Besides that, however, nothing. She would return to her bed to sleep. Personally, I think one of the main things that the writer is trying to tell us is that no matter the indifferences between family members, blood is thicker than water. Sisters are sisters, and that is that. Nobody can change the fact of our own flesh and blood.
Do you think so?

Writing a song...

It's not easy as it looks!!! But I have to get this done or else I'll be off the team.