Tag: bell mountain

‘The Underlying Spiritual Theme’ REPRINT

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From June 14, 2015

The other day my fellow blogger, Ajoobacats–she has a whale of a blog, totally dwarfing mine: just tons and tons of readers; I recommend her book reviews to all–honored me with a review of my Bell Mountain, which I am happy to say she liked very much ( http://leeduigon.com/2015/06/12/book-review-bell-mountain-by-lee-duigon/). I don’t think I’ve ever seen her review a fantasy before: but she admits that my book was about as far off her beaten track as she’s ever gone.

I must draw attention to one remark she made: “The underlying spiritual theme may not be in fashion…”

Well, that’s putting it mildly!

In fact, I know I’m out of fashion: it’s what I intended. The whole point of the Bell Mountain series is to “renormalize religion” by showing it to be a basic and indispensable component of the characters’ daily life, culture, and psychology: and more, to proclaim that God is a Person, the Supreme Being, who interacts with individuals, families, and whole nations.

My books have struck a few readers as odd because they have come to expect no trace of religion in any work of fiction, be it a novel, a movie or TV script, or anything else. But the total absence of God or gods in our fiction depicts an extremely weird kind of civilization that has never actually existed except in faculty lounges and some of the least wholesome, darkest corners of politics and business.

But how, asks the ninny, do you manage to fit God or religion into Zombie Apocalypse or Superheroes vs. Climate Change Deniers?

That’s the wrong question. If God is in your life, you may not have a yen to spend much time in Zombie Apocalypse. Not that you can never just veg out and relax by watching some nonsense or other. I love silly old monster movies. It’s only a problem when the nonsense takes over your life.

I believe it has done us harm, as a nation, to spend such vast amounts of time consuming “entertainment” from which the very concept of God has been excluded.

Go ahead, tell me I’m wrong.

This Has Nothing to Do With Anything, Really

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I’ve wanted to post this little video for a long time, and it’s finally available–a brief visit with extinct mammals called Chalicotheres–or “knuckle bears,” if you’re already acquainted with them via Bell Mountain.

Is it a kind of horse? A gorilla? A grounded tree sloth? Or some weird combination of the three? Their fossils have been found in North America, Africa, Europe, and Asia.

Anyway, I thought this might provide a welcome break from nooze. God’s creative work knows no bounds. Let’s appreciate it!

Another Bell Mountain Picture

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Screenshot 2022-09-09 at 09-15-04 AOL Mail - Message View

This drawing is by Kathleen’s sister, Kerolyn, who’s only nine years old. It shows Ellayne and Jack drinking tea with Hesket the Tinker, who turns out to be a very nasty villain. Kathleen and Kerolyn live in Brazil. These are very accomplished kids!

A book for young readers… illustrated by children. Why hasn’t anybody done that before? I’d love to see that for Bell Mountain.

Girls, hang on to those drawings! Who knows? We may be able to put them in the books someday.

‘A Superb Sequel Takes Bell Mountain Readers on a Wild Ride’ (2015)

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The Cellar Beneath the Cellar (The Bell Mountain Series ...

Every now and then I remember that this blog is supposed to get people interested in my books. Here’s a review by Robert Knight of Book 2 in the series, The Cellar Beneath the Cellar.

A Superb Sequel Takes Bell Mountain Readers on a Wild Ride by Robert Knight

How about it, folks? My Bell Mountain series has grown to 13 books, with two more being prepared for publication and another being written. I don’t mean you should skip No. 1, Bell Mountain, and start with No. 2: Bob’s review of Cellar just happened to be handiest.

Fantasies written from a Biblical point of view–that sums ’em up, I guess. It won’t cost you anything to click “Books” on our home page and get acquainted with them. And you’ll find some more reviews in the Archives.

The First ‘Bell Mountain’ Video!

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Katheleen is a creative young girl in Brazil who asked me for permission to make a Bell Mountain video. I had no idea what to expect, no idea at all–but being surprised would be part of the fun.

Well, I was surprised, all right. And delighted! Yo, Steven Spielberg–there’s more than one way to make a movie!

This one’s in Portuguese; but just press “CC” for English subtitles.

Be Here Tomorrow!

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A Montanha do Sino: 9788595930018: Books - Amazon

Why should you be here tomorrow?

Because we’re gonna see history made!

Tomorrow I’ll unveil the first Bell Mountain video anyone has ever made. Made by Katheleen, a talented girl in Brazil–and her approach to the story, well, I think you’ll find it totally unexpected. The dialogue is in Portuguese (hence the Portuguese language cover, above) with English subtitles.

I find it hard to describe my reaction to this video; but delight is a major part of it. Hey, this book is my baby!

Well done, Katheleen–and thank you. (This is just so cool!)

My Next Book

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Battles in the Wars of the Roses | Schoolshistory.org.uk

I’m boning up on the Wars of the Roses because I really want to write the life of King Ozias, King Ryons’ ancestor, the last anointed king of Obann. Ozias, who wrote many of the Sacred Songs and was spiritually sustained by them, was born into a turbulent and dangerous time.

His father, the gentle and easygoing King Flosi II, lost his throne to treason. His mother, Queen Parella, escaped to Lintum Forest with her child, the crown prince. For most of his boyhood Ozias learned the ways of the forest and how to survive there. The usurpers in Obann City sought again and again to murder him, and he and his mother had many narrow escapes.

Quite a few readers have noted the resemblances between Ozias and David. It has always been my intention that they should. Both kings put their trust in God. And attentive readers know it was Ozias, in obedience to the words of a prophet, Batha the Seer, who erected God’s Bell on the summit of Bell Mountain.

Anyway, there’s a lot to this story and when the weather decides to cooperate, I look forward to telling it.

Even if it takes more than one book.

‘Are My Books Biased?’ (2013)

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See the source image

It was going to be my big break. My books were going to be reviewed by a big-name critic I had actually heard of.

Until he decided they were so crawling with subliminal Calvinism, he shouldn’t even mention them.

Are My Books Biased?

These are fantasy novels. They depict an imaginary world. I detest fantasies that remind me I’m only looking at words on paper. For me to load Bell Mountain with sly Calvinist insinuations would be to break my own rules.

Who we are is always going to have a bearing on what we write. Otherwise we wouldn’t be writing in the first place. If I wanted a Greek Orthodox slant to my story, I’d have to work and study hard to acquire it. Much of who we are is what we’re used to.

I don’t think my books are biased against one particular branch of Christianity or another. I try not to be. This blog serves readers of many different denominations–or no denomination. I rather hoped my books would do the same.

‘The Bell Mountain Cookbook’

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Bell Mountain (Bell Mountain, 1) - Kindle edition by Duigon, Lee. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

A man who has been several times to Mars and back told me yesterday, “Lay off the novel-writin’ and write somethin’ that everybody wants. Write the Bell Mountain Cookbook!”

Well, fan my brow, I never thought of that. Probably because I can’t cook. There’s only so much you can say about heating up a pot of soup. But this guy from Mars has all the answers. People turn into such know-it-alls…

“Look, it’s simple,” he said. “Each recipe goes with a favorite character from the book. So you’ve got, like, Jack and Ellayne’s Rabbit Stew, Obst the Hermit’s Berry Cake, Lord Reesh’s Oysters, Roast Duck a la Baroness Vannett–you get the idea. You can probably leave out the whole Abnak cuisine. And that fermented mare’s milk that the Ghols drink. It makes me depressed just to think of it.”

It’s hard to get fictional characters to write things for you, although on Mars they do it all the time. My wife would love to sip the famous golden wine of Durmurot. But where would she get it?

I wonder, though… If I knew what I was talking about, would a Bell Mountain Cookbook attract readers? What do you think?

A Difficult Writing Environment

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Human Hand Writing Word 'Cold' On The Foggy Window. Water Droplets Condensation Background Of Dew On Glass, Humidity And Foggy Close Up View. Outside The House, Bad Raining Weather. Stock Photo, Picture

I don’t want to say it’s a hostile environment, because, after all, the robo-calls can’t get to me out there. But it’s gettin’ cold outside, and I estimate I’ll need at least another month to finish writing The Witch Box. I’ll need another legal pad, too.

This weekend I went back over the last 35 or 40 pages that I’ve written. I caught one howling inconsistency, but I can easily fix that when I type the manuscript.

I’m committed now to writing my way all the way through to the twin climaxes and the end of the story. Then I’ll go back and fill the hole I created when I jumped a few chapters ahead. Because I’m racing the calendar, other assignments will have to take a back seat for a while.

Time to go back out and work! I guess I’ll wear a sweatshirt under my jacket. “Sean from Discover” can’t possibly bother me outside.

See yiz in a bit.