Current mood: blissful


Hi Everyone.

Some years ago, I had the privilege of meeting the late, extraordinary film maker John Cassavetes and was inspired and surprised by his intense love and working relationship with his wife and muse, the magnificent Gena Rowlands. I remember he told me that his movies specifically examined the inner lives of women. "Women, more than anything, more than power or money, want love and will go to extraordinary lengths to get it," he said.
Well, I never forgot his words.
I am a man and I sure go to extraordinary lengths to find love and I felt that somehow Cassavetes had stumbled on something that could help me in my love of storytelling. Men too, are willing to go to extraordinary lengths to find love, but they don't always write about it.
What if I wrote about men who felt the same way?
This single encounter with Cassavetes inspired all my Phantom Lover stories and an encounter with the mystery author Faye Kellerman on Wednesday night when I interviewed her at a question/answer chat session convinced me What If is the basis of every single book out there.
"I take a germ of an idea and I say, what if?" she told the capacity crowd listening to her.
Several months ago I had dinner with my dad and he made the usual comments about, "AJ, you have to keep putting yourself out there. The man of your dreams isn't just going to show up at your door."
I remember driving home depressed and angry over being misunderstood once again by my dad and the question hit me, What If?
What if in this crazy mixed up world the man of your dreams did just show up at your door. Then what do you do?
Rain splashed my car window and Beyond the Reef took gestation. I went home and in my typical way, started writing and didn't stop. I am not going to post an extract here, you can read it on my website or my publisher's site because this book was released at midnight by http://www.extasybooks.com/ and is probably the closest thing to an expose that I have ever written. The protagonist, Tony Kaven is very much me. Unlike my cherished and adored Lopaka from the Phantom Lover series, I'm still looking for my mate, but I know he exists out there, somewhere...and he will find me from out there...Beyond the Reef.

Aloha oe,

A.J.

Currently listening : Call It What You Like By Mark Keali'i Ho'omalu Release date: 2003-04-15