Next

My review of Michael Crichton's Next was published in The Star today. It's always a good feeling to see what you wrote up in print and especially nice when the discovery is made on a lazy Sunday morning, ensconced in a comfy couch sipping your morning cuppa.

Reviewing a book isn't as easy as I thought it would be. To condense a 500 page novel into cohesive thoughts debating its merits and drawbacks, while adhering to a 500 word limit not to mention making the whole endeavour entertainingly readable requires a bit of effort, for this writer at least.

Funny thing is, upon finishing a book or movie, my head is usually bursting with words,ideas, thoughts and views of the item(s) just read or seen, sentences, snippets and soundbites jostling for space in a chaotic mind. And it all happens at the most inopportune of moments, when I'm brushing my teeth, sitting on the toilet or having a shower, activities not exactly conducive to writing. Books and magazine are welcome in my bathroom but I draw the line at placing pen and paper in there.
For one, I'm a wet bathroom kinda guy, you know, the type that covers every square inch of tile with water at the end of a shower( a fact that still drives my Immortal Beloved bonkers!) and a laptop's lifespan would be severely shortened under such damp conditions not to mention the stoutest of paper wilting under conditions resembling a humid Amazonian jungle after one of my scalding hot baths.
And more importantly, I have been known to spend a little additional time in the loo, long after I've finished what I went in there for, if a certain article or chapter has captivated me, sitting on the throne far longer than is practically necessary, until my visibly annoyed Beloved is compelled to stage a coup to topple my reign (switching off the lights and banging on the door being preferred de-throning methods).
So, adding writing to reading in the wash room is a recipe for Marital Disaster.
Therefore, it's a quick dash to the laptop the next time I get a juicy thought or two for a potential review or notebook and pen in pocket when I'm out and about.
Or hope that inspiration strikes me in drier locales....