Blog

I have to boast a little. ☺️

The English version went to the publisher yesterday. The idea is to market it experimentally to the global market.

I made quite a correction to the Finnish version, without changing the story though. I decided not to publish a 2nd edition of The Flame in Finnish, since it might work as it is, with all its errors and flaws.

The English translation was done by Marike, thank you❣ It might have become the best draft of my writing career so far. 🤭😁

Then comes that thing when your hobby starts getting out of hand and you decide to squeeze even more out of the story.

I managed to entice a professional photographer from work to help make a trailer. So the plan is to make a video clip about The Flame, like for a proper movie.

Since everything happens in my typical way - fast cycle, suddenly and unexpectedly - I naturally couldn't think of filming the trailer in the summer heat. That would have been too easy anyway.

Now this weekend is so nice, when I'm still at work until afternoon and after that we're driving 50 km to the event location. On top of that, I'm wondering just a little whether it'll rain buckets or pour from barrels.😆

The trailer will also feature a certain person who inspired me to write a character like them into the story.

The other actors were found from far away, but close by. A former neighbor girl and my own daughter fit perfectly into the murder story. 🤭

Into these shots and atmospheres.

I know. I've completely lost it and I'm "a little" crazy too. But I wouldn't be me if life was too normal. 😁

Marike managed to create a website, adding new features such as a blog and a guestbook. Of course, this blog needs to be tested to see how it works.

I’ve always loved rainy days. Even now, I’m seeking that same atmosphere I experienced during childhood rainy days—watching the dark sky through the window while feeling the warmth of home.

Wrapping myself in a blanket feels comforting.

Yet today, I’ve felt unusually drained. I realized I had dozed off on the couch and woke up with a stiff neck. My thoughts drift again to unfinished tasks. How can there be so many of them? Should I start making a list, I wonder? Maybe some kind of list would help clear the chaos in my mind.

Let's start with Liekki.

Many people have already finished reading the paperback. I have mixed feelings about the text. A hastily produced book is full of typos, minor inconsistencies, and external imperfections.

"Imperfection"—hmm, that’s actually a good word to describe my current state. Life feels like a curtain that hangs loosely from its rod, sagging and distorting the overall picture.

So, how do you fix that curtain? By adjusting it. The same goes for Liekki—I must revise the text and send an improved version forward. And once I’ve done that, the translation work can begin.

Now I have managed to move one thing forward in my mind. A whole list of other matters awaits in everyday life. To make time for revisions, I must also allow time for myself. Instead of filling my life with endless tasks and thoughts, it’s time to organize everything.

One step at a time.

Tomorrow the mystery writing continues again. I thought I would finish writing the story during summer, but it turned out differently. I didn't open the file at all during the entire summer.

I've been struggling with this story for a long time. The book writing began when a relationship ended. It was maybe somehow my way of processing disappointment and the turmoil I went through in my life five years ago. Some of the story's characters have gotten their inspiration partly from real figures.

Today I opened the story again and read it. I see the text somehow in a completely different way than before. I'm thinking now that this will remain my own therapy book, a personal love-hate edition. Only a handful of people have gotten to know it: the writing group leader and my own family.

Another part of me says I'd like to publish it, why not. The story is fictional and at times even unrealistic, over-the-top and overly entertaining "brains in the coatroom" splash. That's what I am too, at least to those who don't know me.

This September is somehow always mentally tough time for me. Next week is again that weekend when I lost both brothers almost to the day a year apart.

Next week I'm also laying to rest in the grave one such person who made a great impact on me during his life with his wisdom and being.
His charisma was so great that I wrote into this story of mine, years ago already, a fictional side character inspired by his personality.
I want to share this little story snippet from my eternity project with you too.
In honor of Bill's memory.

Becca, Robert shouted in the middle of everything.
Yes, Bob? Rebecca raised her eyebrows and sipped the last drops of coffee from her cup.
Over there on the shore. There's something there. Is something floating there? Robert looked worriedly toward the shore.
Rebecca squinted and tried to see further without her glasses. I don't see anything at all, she thought. "Is Bob's memory starting to slip. Maybe he's seeing hallucinations." Rebecca thought.
Look now! There's something there. I'm going to check, Bob insisted and got up from his chair.

Reluctantly Rebecca put the cup in the dishwasher following Robert outside down the steps to the shore.

The waves lapped as the wind brought them to shore. Both Rebecca and Robert saw the suitcase. The pull handle was out on the wheeled suitcase, but otherwise it was properly closed. Rebecca wondered. "She had seen the suitcase somewhere, but where?"

Robert walked with confident steps closer to the suitcase and opened the zipper. Both Robert and Rebecca were surprised. The suitcase was empty.

"Quietly night arrives.
Heart of night.
The moon burns competing as a torch.
The sea of space drowns.
The final flame.
Quietly night departs.
Taking everything as it goes"
-me-
(Test sample from an upcoming book, working title Flame of Fire. Me as a mystery writer...🙈)