I had a moment and it wasn't even mine – Jonathan K Benton

familyThe world is full of remarkable talents – being a good person is the single most inspiring thing anyone can be. Occasionally I stumble across someone or something that makes me leap out of my chair and punch the air with excitement.  This happened the other night during The Voice Australia. Several elements combined to give me that fuel-injected moment of elation – that ‘life rocks’ feeling. Harry Healy sang one of my favourite songs of all time and he sang it well. He chose Romeo and Juliet because it was his wedding song. True love – it gets me every time.

But it was not Harry’s performance – as brilliant and polished as it was – that made me leap out of my chair. It was his proud family standing in the green room watching him transfix a nation. It was their moment too. Love, in its many forms, is truly inspirational.

Jonathan K Benton

A confusion of faith and one possible solution to happiness

albert einsteinI have faith in many things. I believe laughter is the best medicine and there’s nothing wrong with a good ol’ cry. I’m certain that life is worth fighting for and that if we all loved our neighbours there’d be a lot less wrong with the world. I believe it’s my paternal duty to try to leave Earth in a better shape for my boys than it is now. I also know that I can positively affect the big picture by concentrating on the small one. Each interaction we have in life, ripples.

I’ve got no idea if the Bible is fact or fiction – some aspects of it I find confusing and contradictory. Other aspects, like the fruitages of the spirit, are truly beautiful. Some theologians suggest the Bible is open to interpretation. Perhaps they’re right – it would be arrogant to think us mere mortals could understand God and all of his infinite wisdom. ‘God is love’. That is what the Bible says and perhaps that’s all we need to know. It makes it easier for me to believe in him anyway.

Someone who understood life a lot better than me and who seemed to have a much deeper understanding of faith than most wrote the following:

“A human being is part of a whole, called by us the ‘Universe’ —a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts, and feelings, as something separated from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

Einstein’s words are a blueprint to happiness. Cut and paste them into your own life and see what happens.

 

Jonathan K Benton.

Then the news came on – Jonathan K Benton

angel despairIt’s hard to blog deep every week. I have to mix it up because most of my creative energy is spent on my new manuscript. Sometimes an idea germinates and I’m driven into a flurry of blogging activity, like what happened here.

I’m sitting in front of the television after a day on the computer. It’s late Saturday night and I’m trying to scrape together something interesting to blog about. I can relate to Oscar Wilde when he said: ‘I was working on the proof of one of my poems all the morning, and took out a comma. In the afternoon I put it back again’.

Then the news came on. It’s the 21st Century and there are wars popping up everywhere. Governments (not countries) are still behaving like playground bullies. Good people are suffering because we cannot sort out our shit. It makes me physically sick. Our children deserve to inherit a safer world. I’ve decided to leave you with three questions. If there are a whole lot more good people than bad in this world (and I believe there are), why does it sometimes feel like there are not? Is it just a case of a few power-drunk bad apples spoiling the bunch? How do we stop them?

My heart goes out to the good citizens of Ukraine and everyone else forced to live in fear.

Jonathan K Benton

A piece on laughter and my two ‘all-time’ favourite jokes – Jonathan K Benton

laughterCatch 22 is one of my favourite books. It’s also one of the funniest books I’ve ever read. Colours and shades, tears and laughter. The saddest stories have the funniest scenes, as the author takes you on an emotional roller coaster.

Laughter saves lives – just ask the Clown Doctors. It pierces bubbles of sadness. It can also lift you up after hard times. Trust me, I know. I love getting the giggles, especially with my brother and sister. We think alike, you see. A simple look can summon uncontrollable laughter.

Laughter brings a sense of perspective to this crazy world. War might not exist if everybody could laugh just a little bit more. This Monty Python skit sums it up perfectly.

Sometimes laughing will be the last thing on your mind, but never forget how to, and try not to take yourself too seriously.

My two favourite jokes.

My cousin told me this ‘knock knock’ joke when I was five years old:

– Knock knock

– Who’s there?

– Bumblebee

– Bumblebee who?

– Bumblebee cold if you don’t pull your pants up.

The next joke was voted the second funniest of all time by a panel of experts. It’s my favourite:

Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson were going camping. They pitched their tent under the stars and went to sleep. Sometime in the middle of the night Holmes woke Watson up and said: “Watson, look up at the stars, and tell me what you see.”

Watson replied: “I see millions and millions of stars.”

Holmes said: “and what do you deduce from that?”

Watson replied: “Well, if there are millions of stars, and if even a few of those have planets, it’s quite likely there are some planets like earth out there. And if there are a few planets like earth out there, there might also be life.”

And Holmes said: “Watson, you idiot, it means that somebody stole our tent.”

***

Let me know your favourite jokes, and please keep them clean.

Jonathan K Benton

The secret to being 'cool', for five minutes and ten seconds

grammy hatI was sitting at the computer thinking about the past – as long as I don’t dwell on it, the past is a great place from which to draw inspiration. I suddenly remembered a song a friend introduced me to a long time ago. I’ve never been cool (although I try my best to convince my boys otherwise). People would question my sanity if I wore Pharrell Williams’s Grammy hat.  Look at me, and I blush. Speak to me, and I jump. I possess very little fashion sense and own a mobile phone so old people often mistake it for a baby’s toy. But while I sat listening to this song, and no matter how uncool I am in reality, I felt damn cool.

Sit back, close your eyes, click on this link and enjoy five minutes and ten seconds of sleepy coolness.

Jonathan K Benton

Love – is it science, sex (just to spice up the title) or something else?

love poemI watched About Time on Valentine’s day. Rachel McAdam’s is the Queen of romantic comedy. It’s not as good as Love Actually, although I liked the time travel thing. The movie got me thinking. It’s logical to assume love is a chemical reaction, a biological process that science can take all the credit for.  Biblically ‘God is love’. If you’re not convinced there’s a divine being, perhaps you’re inclined to believe there’s a chubby little cherub flying around with a bow and arrow. Some people think love is a deep, spiritual connection between two people. I lean towards the latter. Although I love science – I want to own a Bunsen burner because it sounds cool and I like alliteration – I want to believe that the feeling I get when I truly love someone, or something, is more than a bunch of chemicals. Nobody can change my mind on this one – I won’t even allow my brain to question my firm (and so what if it’s fanciful) belief that love is one of the few things in our universe that is truly infinite.

So there

Jonathan K Benton

Lessons Learned – if I could impart one piece of advice to first-time authors this would be it.

chapter oneI am a perfectionist, in terms of my writing. Most authors probably are. This doesn’t mean we think our writing is perfect. It means we’ll never be content with the finished product. I’m constantly looking for ways to improve the craft.

I’m halfway through my second manuscript. Fate – or perhaps chance – has introduced me to a brilliant young woman. She is helping me craft my next draft (very Dr Suess – ‘craft the draft’). Based on the work we’ve been doing, I now think it’s essential to have someone to bounce ideas off through the drafting process. Joelene is somewhat of a connoisseur of young adult literature. She asks the hard questions of my work, like: Why does Laika (a principal character in my next book) behave like this when she’s in that situation? Why does Jack (the main protagonist) say this when previously he’s said that? Is there a reason this character has no friends? What’s your motive for creatures in this world doing that? Why does the main antagonist choose this weapon, when surely that weapon is far more menacing? If I cannot answer Joelene’s questions, I need to revise the text. Each word is chosen for maximum impact. Every action has to have a reason, every scene a purpose. This is why I love writing.

Descriptive writing is one of my strengths – Queensland’s largest paper, The Courier Mail, agrees with me in their fantastic review of A Wicked Kind of Dark (click here to read the full review). I love creating beautiful images and unique phrases. If you want to read a book ‘dripping with descriptive language’ look no further than here. Joelene is ensuring that my weaknesses become strengths in my next novel. Her vast knowledge of the YA market is proving invaluable.

Writing is a deeply personal thing. It is your voice that distinguishes you – nobody else’s. However, I’m discovering the very real benefits of bouncing ideas off someone well-versed in the genre I write. The text is singing. I wish I’d met Joelene earlier!

Ckick here for another useful article I found for authors about to take those first few steps:

Happy writing

 

Jonathan K Benton.

Arthur Benton is in da house – and some post-baby philosophy!

WP_20140130_005He’s arrived, my second child, the once and future king. Arthur weighs 4.2 kilograms and is 56 centimetres tall. These impressive statistics suggest he won’t be called on to play the hobbit in twenty years if they remake the film. Arthur will tower over his 6 foot 2 dad. There’s still time for me to prepare ingenious ways to beat Arthur in sports where height is an advantage. I will design a basketball hoop that possesses an invisible, ball-blocking barrier activated by a remote control (conveniently located in my pocket). Backyard basketball matches will be mine for all eternity!

Life trumps art, every time. Life inspires art. One look at my beautiful family and the metaphors start to flow, the plots thicken. Spending time with loved ones also puts things into perspective. It helps to reset the compass after a bad day.

Peppa Pig (my oldest boy’s favourite show) puts things into perspective too. It should be mandatory for politicians to sit down together and watch an episode of Peppa Pig before making decisions that affect our children’s future. The leaders I admire the most are the ones who don’t lose touch with their inner child. I’m not suggesting turning parliament into a bouncy castle, but please put the miracle of life (in all its wondrous forms) at the centre of every decision.

Enough about politics. Arthur is practicing his smiles on the couch with his mum now. I’m about to practice my similes for my new book, like a sailor tying knots before a boat race (I’ll have to lift my game based on that example!). As Roberto Benigni said in the title of his film: ‘Life is Beautiful’. So is Arthur Benton.

Signing off

Jonathan K Benton – one very proud dad

Names for No. 2 – Jonathan K Benton

baby namesI’m sorry if you thought this blog was about book titles. It’s about names for my second child, estimated time of arrival this week. Wanda and I have thought long and hard on this topic. Wanda loves surprises, so we don’t know if Bubs is a boy or a girl. I don’t like surprises, but nevermind me.

Wanda initially suggested Keanu. I cannot disassociate the name from the actor. I feared my better half was about to propose other names, like Brad (as in Pitt), Vin (as in Diesel) and Chris (as in Hemsworth). I prefer names like Ashen-Shugar (Feist’s Dragon Lord), Aragorn, Thor and Batman – Batman might result in bullying unless Bubs mastered jujitsu and saved Brisbane from an evil lord before starting preschool.

KatnissAfter confirmed conception, the initial flurry of names slowed into a more thoughtful measured approach. We agreed that we would not name Bubs after a fruit, although our firstborn still calls our unborn child Peach. Vegetables were also out of the question, as were names like Cassiopeia and Andromeda. Constellations (even if they originated in Greek mythology) were to remain in the sky. Quentin is a name that both Wanda and I love. Quentin Benton doesn’t work though.  Wanda likes Charlotte, I like Luthien – my desire to name my child  after some magnificent character of fiction would never work. We didn’t want to be accused of choosing a name inspired by a popular 2013 movie either. This eliminated Katniss (Everdeen), Clarke (Kent), Jay (Gatsby), Clary (Fray) and Gollum (Gollum).

In the end, I chose Bubs’s boy name – it is a name steeped in literary greatness without sounding like a comic book. Wanda chose Bubs’s girl name – a beautiful name indeed. I’d love to reveal these choices but it would be unfair to Bubs. He or she should hear it first.

Let me know what your favourite names are – perhaps you’ll convince me there’s a better name for Bubs.

Jonathan K Benton

First experiences must count for something or am I judging a book by its cover: Jonathan K Benton

c 3 chruch 2A friend invited me to the C3 Church Christmas concert in Bridgeman Downs Brisbane.

C3 Bridgeman Downs is based in an impressive complex with a great café and a large air-conditioned hall. I was expecting to listen to a few hymns sung by monks in brown robes followed by a lengthy sermon from an ancient priest carrying a gold sceptre and who glared down at the masses through a pair of steel-rimmed spectacles – such was my Roman Catholic upbringing. This simply was not the case.

People sat on the floor inside the vast hall on picnic rugs and small chairs. The children gathered at the front – the concert was more for them than the older generation, evidenced in jolly Santa being pulled down the aisle by a group of fit youths wearing antler hats. I found myself clapping along with everybody else. Laughs aplenty.

A talented young band provided live music to the equally talented singers and dancers. Great choreography was on show. It was a well-organised event full of positive energy. A brief sermon by an energetic pastor highlighted the symbolism behind the star that sits atop most Xmas trees. Jesus is that star, his light leading us to him (the pastor’s words were far more eloquent than my own).

A good church creates a sense of community – I felt this sense of community at C3 Bridgeman Downs. Representatives of Ronald McDonald House and Foster Care Queensland received generous donations from the church to their respective charities.

Like most religions, The C3 Global movement encourages its members to donate money to the church. The hall and café wouldn’t be possible without these contributions. I believe in freedom of choice. If someone wants to donate money to their church, who are we to judge. To make an analogy: sports clubs wouldn’t survive if people didn’t pay their membership fees … As long as an organisation doesn’t force its members to give money through bullying and threats of divine retribution.

My thoughts – some churches take advantage of the perceived weak to increase the church’s coffers. These churches lure potential members by promising security and well-being to those who possess little of either. Then there are the churches that genuinely care for their members. First impressions, and based on the wonderful evening I experienced, I believe C3 is a genuine community-based church.

Thank you for the lovely evening, C3 Global.

 

Jonathan K Benton

Please note: Before joining any church I highly recommend talking to as many people as possible to make an informed decision. Prayer also helps, one would think!!!