tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post85355692464286950..comments2023-09-28T10:59:26.381+01:00Comments on Living, writing and other stuff: Behind Shadow SelvesBill Kirtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07675643113010061969noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-1288893453611676022011-11-14T12:52:29.129+00:002011-11-14T12:52:29.129+00:00Too late, Donnie. Carolyn had already bought the f...Too late, Donnie. Carolyn had already bought the fava beans.Bill Kirtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07675643113010061969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-37629427483868295862011-11-14T12:31:32.637+00:002011-11-14T12:31:32.637+00:00Er... Bill... can we have our kidney back now?Er... Bill... can we have our kidney back now?DrDxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06305040335852356888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-62119397742180872012011-10-29T12:05:32.000+01:002011-10-29T12:05:32.000+01:00Ah Ms Bain, aren't you the person who, as well...Ah Ms Bain, aren't you the person who, as well as being my surgeon, has claimed on other occasions to be my lawyer, my adviser on defamation issues and, if memory serves, my gynaecologist (although that last one may be imagined)?Bill Kirtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07675643113010061969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-28981500563376974982011-10-29T01:45:35.303+01:002011-10-29T01:45:35.303+01:00As your surgeon, I am outraged that you didn't...As your surgeon, I am outraged that you didn't speak to me before you embarked on all this research.Sara Bainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10297131235907250162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-76612925512550815502011-10-19T09:21:47.175+01:002011-10-19T09:21:47.175+01:00Spot on Paul. In fact, if it's the dark aspect...Spot on Paul. In fact, if it's the dark aspects of justice and morality that interest you, I think the 3rd Carston novel, The Darkness, is the one to read. There's a link to its genesis in the first paragraph of this posting and, if you look at that, you'll see that its development was very much from blatant vigilantism to an enquiry into the balance between morality and justice.<br /><br />As for the 'disquieting revelations', well they go with the territory, don't they? And I think they reveal things about us and to us that might not otherwise have come to light.Bill Kirtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07675643113010061969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-91033031672394116152011-10-18T18:58:17.101+01:002011-10-18T18:58:17.101+01:00Bill – Congratulations on the publication of ‘Shad...Bill – Congratulations on the publication of ‘Shadow Selves’; what a temptingly sinister cover! I haven’t made the acquaintance of Jack Carston yet but the blurbs suggest a pretty dark series with a DCI determined to not only discover the truth but also ensure, one way or another, that justice is done...true justice. Which makes him, perhaps, a bit of a maverick, a bit of a vigilante…which makes me wonder, of course, about the – hopefully latent – inclinations of his creator!<br /><br />Yes, I’m quite taken with the Jung quote. Maybe all writers and artists trail their shadows in their work? I’m reminded of a conversation I had back in April ’87 with the late, great children’s/young adults’ writer Robert Westall, twice winner of the Carnegie Medal with ‘The Machine Gunners’ and ‘The Scarecrows’. Bob told me that it alarmed him sometimes, the horrors that surfaced from the depths of the subconscious, and gave as an example “those dreadful dummies in ‘Artist on Aramor’” (one of the short stories in his bizarre collection ‘Rachel and the Angel). <br /><br />Research is certainly a pleasure if we’re that way minded. But trailing our shadow, whilst perhaps an integral part of the hugely enjoyable creative process, may bring disquieting revelations…<br /><br />All best,<br /><br />PaulPaul Beechhttp://uk.linkedin.com/pub/paul-beech/37/b27/371noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-84649403877740337862011-10-17T14:56:15.237+01:002011-10-17T14:56:15.237+01:00I agree with you, Chris. I was really worried that...I agree with you, Chris. I was really worried that I might make a fool of myself but I think getting into observation mode maybe makes it different. Part of it was the separation of the surgery from the patient. That may sound strange but it's how it felt. There's a sort of sheet hung across the patient which leaves only the bits that are being cut and sewn visible. The way I describe it in the book is that the anaesthetist takes Carston to see her part of the process and they're standing ...<br /><br />'... at the head of the table by the tubes, monitors and gauges, which were giving out regular, reassuring little beeps. They could no longer see the incision; instead, the patient’s head was visible. She was an oldish woman with grey hair and Carston was slightly shocked to realize that this was the first time he’d been aware of her as a person. Up to now, there’d been doctors, nurses, equipment and that hole on which their attention had been focused. Suddenly, the object had become someone. Her left arm was held up on a special rest, her head was turned onto its right cheek and her right hand lay across the pillow, near to her mouth as if she’d been sucking her thumb. She looked, and was, frighteningly vulnerable.'Bill Kirtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07675643113010061969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-1319450377936102922011-10-17T14:26:51.403+01:002011-10-17T14:26:51.403+01:00Not sure I could have stood and watched an operati...Not sure I could have stood and watched an operation. I leave all the blood and guts on the printed page. Made a note to myself to fire up the Kindle and hunt the book out.Chris Longmuirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02488093821886798927noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-81302106144174353092011-10-15T17:06:15.248+01:002011-10-15T17:06:15.248+01:00Thanks Janice and Rosemary. I think researching a ...Thanks Janice and Rosemary. I think researching a novel is a separate pleasure from writing it. For The Figurehead it introduced me to wood carving, which I still do, and made me sign on for that magical trip across the North Sea in the gorgeous Christian Radich. But it also takes you into a world that, in a way, doesn't yet exist. You read about a historical moment, for example, get the facts, the sounds, smells and sights, but until your characters are living in it, it's sort of inert. They bring it to life for you. Aren't we lucky to have both sorts of pleasure.Bill Kirtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07675643113010061969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-79297407214670103672011-10-15T08:40:18.060+01:002011-10-15T08:40:18.060+01:00I really enjoyed this novel, Bill, and it's go...I really enjoyed this novel, Bill, and it's good to read about all the background research and influences.Rosemary Gemmellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09311840205603508422noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-387052581086893410.post-42146281444561018952011-10-14T17:37:06.001+01:002011-10-14T17:37:06.001+01:00Oh wow - to say I was facinated by your research f...Oh wow - to say I was facinated by your research for this one is an understatement - gulp!<br /><br />Nice cover too!<br /><br />Wishing you great success with this one too, Bill!Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01831786754054878605noreply@blogger.com