Katsuren at the Center of the World

Katsuren is not only the title of a novel but also a real place, a UNESCO world heritage site. The ruins of the castle, or gusuku, overlook a deep water harbor sheltered by the Katsuren peninsula in Okinawa. Unlike the sites closer to Naha or the incredibly beautiful Nakijin gusuku farther north in Motobu, Katsuren is not well visited because it is well off the beaten path of tourism. However, at one point in history, it was the center of trade for that part of the world. A character in the novel Katsuren remarks that ancient coins and pottery from far away are always turning up if you poke around in the dust at the castle site. Surprisingly--or not surprisingly if you know Katsuren's history--a coin from ancient Rome turned up last fall. So did a coin from the 17th century Turkish empire. It is not so hard to imagine trade between Katsuren and China, the Philippines, even Thailand. But Turkey way at the far end of the silk road, and Rome--farther still! What a wonderful find! As the author of a novel featuring a brand-new archeologist beginning her career at the back-of-beyond Katsuren site, this news gave me a super thrill. Thank you, archeology!

What is a Goya? (2)

Goya grows in the shade of its own vines. It is a prolific vegetable and a mainstay of Okinawa cooking.

What is a Goya?

Sometimes called bitter gourd, goya is Okinawa's signature vegetable. You sometimes find it in salads, but mostly it is cooked in a frying pan to be added to stir-fry dishes. The most famous of those is surely goya champuru, which is a hodgepodge of scrambled egg, Spam, and goya.

To prepare the goya, wash it but don't even attempt to peel it. Instead, split it lengthwise and scrape out the inner white pulp. Next, slice it into thin half moons, as if you were slicing celery for salad. Finally, take a handful of salt and rub it into the goya slices and wait for about 15 minutes. Then, rinse the slices to get rid of the salt and a lot of the bitter taste of the goya. Now you are ready to cook with goya.

Look what I found!

Imagination is powerful, but reality is even better. In the new Okinawa novel, my hero Sam Ryder gets an idea concerning energy conservation. According to this photo, it looks like someone beat him to it. This charging station for electric cars is at one of the markets on Route 58, on the way North to Motobu.

Rain, Rain

Okinawa gets a lot of rain. Everyone, including this "shisha", learns to live with it. As in the rest of Japan (except for Hokkaido) there is a rainy season--May in Okinawa, June on the main island Honshu. This year, at least so far, the rain is cool and refreshing.

Rain is what you make of it. Today it is misty and moody, just the thing to awaken one's inner romanticist and make creativity sprout. I personally am taking advantage of the season to go on a writing retreat. Be back at the end of June!

What does Karen want?

According to Amazon, what she wants is a terry-lined shower cap. Imagine my surprise at googling my own blog, only to find Katsuren had become an Internet tout for bath goods. I think the least they could have done, after using the book as a link to the bath goods site, is show the shower cap model relaxing with a copy of Katsuren. LOL

Another Song for Sam

Sam is barely out of his teens. He is not a geezer, who wheezes about "the good old days" and moans about the newest generation. To Sam, the good old days are happening now. He IS the newest generation. But still, he cherishes the Okinawa mystique as much as the old men in his bar do. And that's why he sings them this song:

Make the crossing to Yonaguni.
Look out from the eastern-most cape.
See the waves below
break into flowers of foam.
This is the country where feelings go deep,
and hearts are like churning waves
resolving their turmoil
in flowers of foam.
Forever may it be:
the land where hearts grow deep!

(translated by C. Nisaragi from "Agari-zachi", by Kina Shokichi)

Sam and his Sanshin

The quintessential Japanese musical instrument is a three-stringed sanshin. Since a sanshin has long strings and no frets, any note can be played and any kind of mood can be invoked. Upbeat, dance-able songs? OK! Quiet, moody ballads? Equally OK!

When the hero of my second Okinawa novel wants to announce his new business, he picks up a sanshin and plays a song that goes like this:

"Meet me at the west gate.
Be sure to ride up in style.
I'll let you into the castle,
where we'll live the life of kings,
but only for today.
Then you have to go,
and we will be what we have always been:
I in my court kimono,
and you in your workman's garb."

Sam has been to the metropolis, and he knows it isn't for him. He is what he is, a man in workman's garb.

Work? When it's the right job, it's as exalting as robes and a crown.

Mixed Motives

Characters in fiction always want something. Sometimes they want it with all their heart, and at the same time, it is the last thing they want. That happened to Sam Ryder one steamy afternoon:


Sam parked his bike against the back wall of the office, where there was a little shade. He pulled a crumpled towel out of his pocket and mopped his face and neck, reaching under his tee shirt to wipe his belly and chest and the small of his back while he was at it. Damn, he thought. He should just shed the tee shirt and wring it out. Only a few blocks away the sea breeze was like the poster child for island living, but here in the heart of Naha, it was the sauna from hell.

Sam pushed the door open and slouched into the office, beads of sweat pooling on each spike of hair until they were heavy enough to plop onto the floor. His eyes fixed on Yayoi. Dressed in white and pale blue, she was the picture of cool.

“You need this,” she said, getting up to bring a glass and an icy pitcher of jasmine tea to his desk.

“I need a shower.”

“Step out back and I’ll get the hose,” she laughed. Their office had no such amenity as a shower.

Sam was sorely tempted. Damn. How did she stay so crisp looking? Her white lace blouse looked as if she’d taken it freshly ironed and slipped it over her shoulders mere moments ago. There was not a hair on her head out of place. And her face, while slightly pink, looked smooth and dry. Was she immune to the Naha humidity? Damn. She was too perfect. He pictured her turning the hose on him, and him grabbing it and spraying her instead, the two of them laughing as they cavorted like kids. Tempting. Yes.

If she did hose him down, he’d need to go home and pick up some dry clothes. He pictured himself with Yayoi, both of them on his bike, racing up the hills, chasing the breeze. He imagined them pulling up to his place…

His place? The top floor room over Sawami’s father’s bar? The oven-like space with the wilted futon on the floor, last week’s jeans and tee shirts in smelly clumps dumped onto the moldy tatami? That place?

“Tea!” He turned his best puppy dog grin on Yayoi. “Exactly what I was dreaming of.”

Everybody Loves a Water Buffalo (2)

Who is Sam Ryder, and why does he want a water buffalo?

Sam is the hero in my second Okinawa novel, a guy who grew up over a six-stool bar in Naha, went to Shinjuku (in Tokyo), got a job delivering beer to the bars in Kabukicho and then lost the job and bounced back to Naha, where his mantra became, "Everyone needs a job, and today's hero is the guy who provides the jobs."

So what is he going to do with that water buffalo?

If life gives you buffalo milk, make mozzarella!

Everybody Loves a Water Buffalo

In Okinawa, the water buffalo is the image character for some of the smaller islands in the Ryukyu chain. Carts pulled by patient water buffalo and managed by sanshin-playing tour conductors are the main attraction on picturesque Taketomi and Yubu islands.

To my surprise, water buffalo are almost invisible on the main island of Okinawa itself. Once upon a time, they were the muscle behind the rice paddies and the sugar mills, but times have changed and they have been replaced by machines.

In a recent visit to Okinawa, I made inquiries about where to see water buffalo. Guess what? I was told the best place to find out details about raising water buffalo is from the Tama Zoological Garden, located in Tokyo.

I can see the trees of the Tama Zoo from my house.

A New Character, A New Story

Katsuren has been written, published, and offered for sale. I've gotten heart warming comments from readers in the US, Japan and Europe. Now it's time to move on to the next story.

Every story starts with a problem. This story starts with two problems: my character (Sam Ryder) needs a job; Okinawa needs new sources of employment, now that military bases are out of favor. What options does an orphan and high school dropout who grew up in the back room over a six-stool bar have?

More than you might think!

Sam is a guy with a future, though in the scene he's in now, he's about to get beaten up by a bunch of punks who want the leather jacket off his back, the one he bought in Shinjuku with his final paycheck after getting fired from his job delivering beer.

C'mon, Sam... Fight for your future!

The New Cover

I hope you like it as much as I do.

Fear and Trepidation

Katsuren is in its second edition. I am one of those writers who finds it hard to put down the pen, close the book, and declare a manuscript done. There is always something that could be better, and a lot of the readers of the first edition were very generous with feedback about exactly what they thought could be made better. The second edition incorporates my own second thoughts as well as reader feedback.

It's the same story. Same characters, same location, same events, and same ending...

BUT

...the book design is better, the editing is better, and it has a brilliant new cover.

I am waiting for the author's proof copy with fear and trepidation. It's like in the old days, when we were born, and our parents didn't even know if we would be boys or girls until the moment of our birth, never mind what our faces would look like or if we would have the right number of fingers and toes.

I hope the second edition of Katsuren is exactly how I dreamed it would be.

Oh! Oh! Disaster at Katsuren

This world heritage site is the setting for my novel, Katsuren. On February 27, an earthquake of Magnitude 5 on the Japanese scale rattled Okinawa and sent many remnants of ancient fortifications tumbling down, including this section of wall at Katsuren Castle.

(photo copied from The Okinawa Times, Feb 27 online edition)

New Year, New Look

Katsuren is getting a flashier cover and a new internal layout.

A lot of people liked having bunches of white space to break up the pages--and to write notes in, since many readers bought this book as a way to brush up their English. But other readers said they preferred a more traditional look to the pages. Thus, there will be two versions.

Look for the new format and the new cover in March.

From the Land of Sunshine--A Bright Thought

Saturnalia—the ancient Roman festivities that took place in mid-December—may be the earliest verifiable ancestor of our Christmas/New Year festivities. Evergreens and holly probably have more to do with this tradition from frosty Europe than with the events in Mediterranean Bethlehem, as they symbolize faith in the return of the sun’s warmth and the regeneration of all that is green and growing, not to mention edible.

Japan has a tradition of reverence for the sun, too. Just look at the national flag—a red circle on a white background representing the rising sun. One of Japan’s preeminent geographers, Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, wrote in one of his works that this showed a certain ecological wisdom. The American environmentalist Hazel Henderson would agree. Asked to place an economic value on solar energy, she replied, “Should we figure in the value of pre-warming the planet?” Without the sun, we might as well be Pluto.

Japan, too, tries to celebrate Christmas, but the festivities are more like Saturnalia—a way to brighten up a cold season that contains the shortest day and the longest night. Frankly, I like it. I like the idea of taking the given circumstances and making something out of them.

Makiguchi, the Japanese philosopher who gave our ancestors credit for recognizing the worth of solar light and warmth, didn’t advocate worshiping the sun as a god/goddess. Instead, he advocated a philosophy that asked, “Given your circumstances, what are you putting forth? What are you creating? What value are you adding to society?”

I like that thought a lot. Joy, cheer, an appropriate gift, breaking bread together! There are so many ways to put forth creative contributions out of our own particular circumstances.

Happy Holidays to All!

A Real Life Scary Story

Japan is a country of islands, and it is impossible to overestimate the influence of the sea. When a typhoon strikes, the coastal areas shudder. Wherever possible, the fishing boats are hauled up onto high and dry land for the duration.

Last week, a boat with a crew of 8 tried to get back to port before the typhoon, but didn't make it. When it capsized, 5 crew members got themselves off the boat and into a lifeboat. Three were below deck, in the sleeping quarters, when the boat capsized. To make matters worse for them, the refrigerator broke loose and fell on top of the hatch covering the sleeping area.

They were well and truly trapped. They made a promise to each other to drink a toast together when they met again in the afterlife.

With wind and waves raging, the 5 who escaped didn't have a choice: the sea knifed the lifeboat away from the ship in an instant.

Who lived to tell the story? After four days, the missing fishing boat was found. Coast Guard divers knocked on the upturned hull, just in case, and guess what? Their knock was answered.

The three who were trapped were the only ones saved. The boat's name was "Lucky", and for them, it surely was. The toppled refrigerator kept the hatch closed with just enough air inside to keep the men alive until help arrived.

A Dog's Life (2)

What do you think of stories about talking dogs? Yep, my thoughts exactly. With the possible exception of Walt Disney's Goofy, who is not only allowed to talk but also gets to wear white gloves while poor Pluto has to walk around on all fours barefoot and say nothing but "Arf!", dogs haven't got the proper vocal anatomy, so why should they suddenly have the power to talk in stories?

However...

Dogs DO know how to communicate.

When they look at you in that certain way, and make their unique whimpers and groans and barks and grunts, you know they are doing their best to make contact with the human species. And you do your best to figure out what it is they would say, if only they could talk, which of course they can't.

Sometimes you get it right. Sometimes, you just don't know.

What makes J.F.'s dog detective stories fun is precisely that. Randolph does his best to communicate in his doggie way, and sometimes the human catches his drift and sometimes he's way out in left field.

When Randolph gets really desperate, he does what any good dog would do: he tries and tries again. And when he absolutely has to communicate a name or a date, well, he has his methods.

Books I've read on how to write a great book cover this topic. They say your story premise doesn't have to be a hundred percent believable. What they say is, it's your job as the writer to make people feel that just this once, the unbelievable is believable.

Having read two of J.F. Englert's Randolph books (A Dog at Sea will be number three), I can clap my hands in total honesty and say that I believe in Randolph.