A Review

3 out of 4 stars for Cauldstane by Linda Gillard

This is a book about ghosts and haunting but it is also a story about love, loss and what it means to be a part of something, whether a home or a family. It takes place mostly in the Highlands of Scotland in an old castle that is not in good repair. The main protagonist is a woman, a 'ghost writer'. And the themes are about her and about the ghost who has taken over the lives of the people who live in the castle. Jenny Ryan has come to the castle to ghost write the owner's memoirs, a former traveler who is world renowned. What happens during her time there is the gist of the story. It is a page turner, interesting until the end. I did enjoy it but...for some reason I am only giving it three stars. Why is that? I think possibly it's because it's a slow starter. I can't give every book I enjoy four stars, can I? The ones that I give four stars are those that captivate me and are unusual and strange, like The Invisible LIfe of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab. So, I've given myself away as to my preferences! In any case, if you like a good ghost story you will enjoy this book.

The Art of Writing

So, you want to write...

You sit in front of your computer as blank as the page you're facing. 'What now?' You ask.

It doesn't have to be erudite, witty or funny. It doesn't have to be anything. The most wonderful thing about writing is: it is yours and only yours to create. 'So how do I do it?' you ask for the second time.

Rule number 1

Don't think. Write. Just start punching keys. (or tapping) It can be nonsense, the same word over and over, a nursery rhyme. All you need is the impetus to continue. Because if you let the words pour out you will find that they begin to make sense. You might have an image in your mind that you want to describe, or a conversation that is going on in the background of your brain. It might be that you look out the window and see a bird and that bird leads you to think of something else and something else.

TRY THIS PROMPT:

"I was planning to..."

or this:

The bang brought me up and out of sleep...

Or use these words in a paragraph and see where they lead:

Catastrophic, carousel, stripes, handsome

Do you see how easy it is? When I was in high school my favorite time in English class was when the teacher gave us a short uncompleted sentence and asked us to write for fifteen minutes. Oh, the thrill of it!!!!!

Tune in here for more of this...I will be sitting here waiting for you.

Review

Burning Night was inspired by a woman I met while out walking in the desert. She was fifty years old, living in a utility van, had dyed blue hair, and was a former stripper. I was immediately intrigued. She was in Tucson to participate in a pole dancing competition, something I didn't know existed--but when I googled it I was surprised to find out how popular pole dancing is--and it isn't about stripping anymore. It's about exercise. And after looking at the pictures I definitely know why! Those women are STRONG!

And so I made up a story about a woman who was abused as a child and who took up stripping in order to make ends meet. The story veers off in several directions and there is also a sub-plot--the book this character is writing. I called it Burning Night after a made-up festival on the longest day of the year (think Burning Man) It is psychological, and a woman's desperate search for herself, and a love story, told in the first person.

Here's the blurb:

This is the turning point…

When Collie flees an abusive husband she’s also escaping her sordid past. But when her money is stolen, the only way to earn it back in time for her trip to Alaska, is to do the very thing she hoped she left behind. Burning Night festival is only a month away and she simply has to be there.