Wandering Hawaiian Volcanic Hotspot - ERUPTION

Eruption on volcanic flank of Kilauea on Big Island

 

Volcanic eruptions in the middle of the Pacific Ocean have been occurring for over 80 million years, forming islands, such as the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain, that move along on tectonic plates only to erode and disappear below the water's surface. Meanwhile, the hotspot that supplies the magna shooting up as lava to form new islands migrates at will. The newest Hawaiian island in the making, originally known as Lo'ihi, began its eruption process about 400,000 years ago.

That is one energetic hotspot!

Back in the 1990's is when we first heard about the discovery of the young volcano flowing just south of the Big Island of Hawaii. Exciting news when we thought we'd be watching the growth in real time. Then the timeline of progress for Lo'ihi was announced: it was expected to reach sea level in 10,000 to 100,000 years. Wait time was long, like it's new name: Kama'ehuakanaloa, "glowing child of Kanaloa", the god of the ocean.

  

For above-sea viewing of volcanic eruptions, though, Hawaiian residents have Kilauea, the volcano on the southern flank of the Big Island. Possibly 600,000 years old, Kilauea erupted steadily from 1983 to 2018, its longest active eruption. In July 2024, Big Island earthquakes beneath Kilauea marking seismic activity were felt on O'ahu, a reminder that Madame Pele (goddess of volcanoes and fire and the creator of the Hawaiian Islands) is still active. 

ERUPTION by
Michael Crichton & James Patterson

From my review of ERUPTION: For decades, volcanoes have fascinated me. Seeing Kilauea up close and walking Devastation Trail on the Big Island of Hawaii were memorable lifetime experiences. I knew Michael Crichton would include plenty of satisfying and well-researched information in his story, not only about Mauna Loa but about Madam Pele. As a kama'aina, I wasn't disappointed.

*****

Cruising through Hawaiian Words: Ono and 'Opihi

Ocean fish around O'ahu that will satisfy your cravings for fresh seafood include 'Opihi, Opakapaka (Pink Snapper), Ono (Wahoo) - Ono means delicious and Wahoo is probably a derivative of O'ahu where these fish are found in abundance; and O'opu kai nohu. 

'Opihi is the one that is sometimes called 'the fish of death'.

'Opihi picking off Maui rocky shore. 
Rule #1 Never turn your back to the ocean.

'Opihi is Hawai'i's version of that snail delicacy: escargot. Pick it off a rock, suck out the meat, move on. Either you like it, or you haven't tried it. I am in the second category - I don't do oysters, either.

Although these fish can be found around the world, three species are endemic to the Hawaiian islands: black foot, yellow foot, and giant 'opihi. It has a thick, cone-shaped shell covered by ridges. There is a pair of tentacles, a mouth, and a muscular foot that allows it to strongly seal its body to a rock to prevent being plucked off by a rough wave - or person wanting to eat it.

Yellow and Black 'opihi "on the rocks"

People have risked their lives trying to pick 'opihi from rocks. It can be dangerous–even referred to as “the fish of death” and “delicacy of death”. Because 'opihi live in rough shore breaks, people get thrashed around by the surf, sometimes resulting in paralysis, drowning, other times getting swept out to sea and never returning.

http://www.wegoholoholo.com/opihi-poke-bowl-limpet/

Rule #2 Never turn your back to the ocean.

*****

Switching Genres: An Interview with Author Laurie Hanan #WriterWednesday

Author Laurie Hanan joins us today to discuss her most recent novel, The Rainbow Connection, a YA novel set in Hawai‘i. Laurie has a successful mystery series, also set in Hawai‘i, featuring mail carrier Louise Golden who gets tangled in mysterious situations she uncovers on her mail route. With four Louise Golden novels published, Laurie took a break to write a young adult novel. 

*****

From a synopsis of The Rainbow Connection

by Laurie Hanan:

With graduation looming, Emmy’s only friend in her new school goes missing. Brett’s run off before. Her mother and even the cops figure she’s done it again. But Emmy is convinced Brett can’t wait to begin college in the fall, and she would never ditch her super-hot boyfriend. Something bad must have happened to her. Emmy is determined to find out what.

***** 

Gail: Thank you, Laurie, for sharing some of your thoughts today on your latest book, The Rainbow Connection. After writing mysteries for so many years, did that discipline allow for an easy transition into writing a young adult story?

 

Laurie Hanan: Mahalo, Gail, for inviting me to your blog!

     I don’t know if  “easy” is a word I’d use for transitioning to the Young Adult genre. It’s been a long time since I was seventeen, and of course teens today live in a totally different world from the one I grew up in. Developing an authentic voice for Emmy’s character took trial and a lot of error before I felt I was even close. My teen years were painful. Imagining my own seventeen-year-old self in the same tough situations Emmy faces, re-experiencing the raw emotions, and sorting through what my thought processes might have been at that age, gave me more than a few sleepless nights. I also paid close attention to my teenage daughter and her friends, taking notes on their mannerisms and quickly jotting down samples of their lingo. 

     But it was a natural and enjoyable transition to take a peripheral character who I love in my Louise Golden series, develop her personality even more, and give her a mystery of her own to solve.
 

*****

 

Her search leads to a secretive religious group. Emmy suspects there is more to the group’s simple lifestyle and ecstatic dance rituals than the peace and harmony they preach.

 

***** 
 

 Gail: Your comments about re-experiencing raw emotions of teen years and sleepless nights reminded me of the Ernest Hemingway quote — 'There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.'

     In The Rainbow Connection, protagonist Emmy’s maturity has developed through an array of responsibilities within the family, at school, and on the job. Can some of her more questionable decisions that draw her into precarious situations, such as the isolated meeting with Byron at a retreat for a secretive religious group, be attributed to the still-developing reasoning of a teenager?

 

Laurie Hanan: Absolutely. Science shows us that a teen’s brain is not fully developed. They tend to act on impulse, misjudge precarious situations, and misread social cues and the emotions of others.

     Emmy is impulsive, prone to exaggeration, at times irrational, and makes choices that are downright dangerous. Being a teen necessarily makes her an unreliable narrator. The reader is given insights into the missing girl only through Emmy’s skewed remembrances of her, adding another layer of questions about her disappearance.

    

Gail: You have taken the characters Emmy and her brother from your mystery series and created a new storyline for them in the YA genre. What, if any, details from their backstories play a role in or contribute to the plotline of The Rainbow Connection? How important is it for a writer to develop a character’s backstory, in a series or a stand-alone novel?

 

Laurie Hanan: I will answer your questions out of order. When writing a series of stand-alone novels, there can be a fine line between including enough backstory to help readers understand the character, and throwing in so much backstory it confuses the reader and bogs down the flow of events in the new mystery. While each of my novels stands alone, reading the series in order does offer a broader view of the characters’ development over the years.

     In my fourth Louise Golden mystery, Stairway to Heaven, seventeen-year-old   Emmy makes some misguided decisions, resulting in her being kidnapped and held for ransom on a small sailboat during a hurricane. Twelve-year-old Jackie is pulled into the rescue efforts and ends up killing a man to save his sister. While these events play no role in the plotline of  The Rainbow Connection, the experiences do bring about dramatic changes in both Emmy and Jackie, and permanently alter the dynamics between brother and sister.  I originally included some of this backstory in The Rainbow Connection, but my editor felt it “belonged in a different book.” I reluctantly agreed. So, I am currently working on a novella-length recreation of the kidnapping and rescue from the perspectives of Emmy and Jackie. I hope this will shed more light on how the traumatic events affected the two kids.

 

Gail: This coming of age story has a missing person at its center, supporting the idea that stories in all genres involve a mystery. Having written mysteries, and now YA, did you develop a specific preference in genre for future works, or will you continue with the YA series while adding to your Louise Golden series?

 

Laurie Hanan: A big part of why I write is to make my readers happy. Louise fans are clamoring for more time with Louise, while Emmy’s new fans are pleading for the next Emmy Hanlin YA novel. My hope is to continue writing more in both series. 

     I’m currently working on another spinoff from the Louise Golden series, a humorous, classic whodunit starring Louise’s eighty-something-year-old stepmother and her geriatric neighborhood watch group.

 

 

Gail: Mahalo for sharing so much personal insight into your writing style and  character development, Laurie. The information about backstory is especially educational. I look forward to reading your YA novella and the humorous geriatric mystery. 

 

Laurie Hanan's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/lauriehanan

 

 

 

Laurie's books are available at Amazon.com in trade and e-book formats: 

https://smile.amazon.com/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1?ie=UTF8&text=Laurie+Hanan&search-alias=books&field-author=Laurie+Hanan&sort=relevancerank
 

 

 

*****

*****

 

 

 

PURPOSE TO LIFE: What Every Soul Needs

The Hawaiian performance, Ulalena, is a Maui Island Cirque du Soleil. With precision, the performers present a dance of visual splendor. The audience has no doubt each actor on stage has purpose. At the end of the day, their reward is not only extended applause, but the knowledge of a job well done. 

Applying this precision to my own life is a commendable goal, more command than able, however. Discipline is not necessarily acquired through routine. Sitting in front of a computer for several hours each day does not guarantee a fully formed manuscript at the end of six months. 

The computer is really the devil in disguise. On the desktop alone is a full selection of solitaire card games, along with an entire folder of photographs meant to be sorted and labeled. Another folder contains countless web articles, saved for off-line reading. The folder icon faces the icon for the power-DVD player. You can see where that’s headed, thanks to Walmart’s $5.00 bin. 

As poem #5 declares in its first line, every soul needs purpose. Purpose offers meaning in a world fraught with confusion and indecision. Using the GPS in your soul to guide you each day can keep the unsettling moments to a minimum. Choose a direction. If you hit a dead end, turning around is only a matter of shifting your heels and adjusting your nose to follow. 

I’m not as coordinated as the Ulalena acrobats, but I seldom tip over!

Ulalena At Maui Theater

  



On stage after performance
with cast member and Jeanne Miller

Purpose to Life 

Every soul needs purpose

A reason to smile

Reward for a task well done. 

 

A life lived aimlessly

Wanders through light and dark

Never understanding ease. 

Knowing why I do

What I do so precisely,

Gives weight to each accomplishment. 

Up down, east west

Left right, high low

Balance leads me to acceptance.

 

 ***  ***  ***  ***  ***

 

THREE YEARS ON DOREEN'S SOFA #FridayReview 3 of 71

Lee Cataluna is Hawaii-born. She is a writer, Honolulu newspaper reporter/columnist, and actress, known for stage plays E Ho'omau!: Pele Searches for a Home (2011), E Ho'omau!: Why Maui Snared the Sun (2011) and Ho'olawe: Give and Take (2001). She is also the author OF Folks You Meet in Longs, a humorous take on local living. 

Three Years on Doreen’s Sofa by Lee Cataluna is not your typical novel about life in Hawai‘i. If you like lots of good laughs, though, give it a read. You may know someone just like Bobby. 

Hawaiian Pidgin English is an inherent part of this author’s vocabulary. The words she uses in dialogue and description are often not pidgin, but her rhythm and cadence suggest local-style with every sentence. Once you catch the beat, it all makes perfect sense. At times, maybe more so than regular English. 

The main character, Bobby, is a resident of Maui. He is a recent parolee after three years one month in prison for “driving one fork lift that wasn’t mine into a car that wasn’t mine while carrying a bunch of cocaine in one fanny pack that was mine …” 

Now Bobby is sleeping, temporarily, on his sister/cousin’s sofa, trying to get his life back on track. His sister/cousin, Doreen, has given him the list of rules to follow while he stays with her. Bobby intends to follow those rules to the letter because he understands his sister/cousin and her three kids are doing him a huge favor by letting him sleep on the living room sofa. 

Only one problem: Bobby’s social skills are lacking. Try as he might, well, things don’t always work out as he’d planned. If you like “slap-your-head-to-make-you-shape-up” kind of humor, you’ll love Three Years on Doreen’s Sofa. 

I sure did. 

 

Next up for review is:

 

Route 66 to the Milky Way by Janet Rendall

 

 

 

N is for NEAL, TOBY NEAL

The theme of my 2014 A-to-Z Blog Challenge is BLUES, PUPUS, and REVIEWS.

Monday & Wednesday - REVIEWS: mini-style book reviews. 

Toby Neal is the author of the Lei Crime series, two spin-offs of the series, and a stand-alone romance novel. In her spare time, she is working on her memoir and developing a new YA mystery series. She and her photographer husband live on Maui. 

Toby’s latest Lei Crime novel includes two major plot lines, the endangerment of endemic Hawaiian birds that leads to murder, and the potential marriage of the series’ protagonist. With such a significant personal plot line, a ‘runaway bride’ scenario, it seemed inevitable that the mystery plot would suffer. It was an unnecessary concern. Neal weaves the tension of plot and subplot (reader’s choice as to which is which) into a seamless story that never hiccups. 

One suspenseful part of the novel involves the hunt for a killer intent on ending the despicable act of poaching endemic birds by delivering a unique brand of vigilante justice. Controlled narrative pace, excellent description, and rare location in a well-developed mystery add up to a five-star read. 

Anyone who has had an opportunity to see the colorful birds of Hawaii will appreciate the emotional attraction of a storyline that deals with the endangerment of endemic birds. History tells of Polynesians who used red and yellow bird feathers to construct capes, ‘Ahu’ula, for Hawaiian royalty. Even then, bird catchers were forbidden to take the life of the birds, including the red-feathered ‘i’iwi and the yellow-feathered Hawaiian honeycreeper. To catch a glimpse of exotic Hawaiian birds, SHATTERED PALMS takes the reader to a site on Maui that many visitors, residents, and even kama’aina have never experienced. That alone is worth the “price of admission.” 

Because of the local expression, “can-can. no can, no can.” my bucket list now includes a visit to the Hosmer’s Grove trail and overlook at Haleakala National Park.

 

 

Check out Shattered Palms at Amazon.com, along with the other Lei Crime novels in the series:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Shattered-Palms-Crime-Toby-Neal-ebook/dp/B00IXCUCKK/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1397631960&sr=1-1&keywords=Shattered+Palms+Toby+Neal

 

 

Where Do Ideas Come From?



Interesting cemetery off a back road on Maui
that could conjure up an anthology of ideas.

The question most asked of writers is: “Where do you get your ideas?” 

Some authors say it is the most difficult interview question because they don’t have a satisfactory answer. During the course of the day, an idea pops up and a kernel of a story sprouts. Whatever triggered that idea is the source, or the WHERE. But the thought may be too fleeting for the conscious mind to grasp, and it is only the residual grain of sand left behind that begins to develop into a pearl. 

Triggers can be a song, a painting, an ocean breeze, the shape of a face, a 140-character tweet, a friend’s facebook post, or even the scent of a grilled cheese sandwich, chicken soup, or a root beer float. 

Once the idea begins to form, it is the fertile mind of a dedicated writer that designs, shapes, and accessorizes the story from opening line to climax and denouement. 

Ideas are a dime-a-dozen. Good ideas are worth a bit more. Maybe a better way to answer the question would be for the writer to tell what they do with the inspiration generated by an idea and how the author molds a seed of an idea into an intriguing story. 

Here is a blog post by author Kaye George giving her take on where ideas come from.

http://cindysamplebooks.com/2012/09/where-do-ideas-come-from/ Kaye George @KGeorgeMystery

Sisters in Crime Interview with Deborah Turrell Atkinson

Today’s Sisters in Crime/Hawaii spotlight shines on author Deborah Turrell Atkinson. Debby lives in Honolulu, Hawaii, with her husband and their two teenage sons. She is a recipient of the University of Hawaii’s Meryl Clark Award for Fiction. Her mystery series, featuring attorney Storm Kayama, portrays an insiders’ view of Hawaii.

Sisters in Crime/Hawaii: Debby, you were the first president of the Hawaii Chapter of Sisters in Crime. When did you decide to open a chapter of the national organization, Sisters in Crime, Inc., in Hawaii?

Deborah Turrell Atkinson: I believe I made the decision late 2005 or early 2006 after talking to my good friend, Beth Wasson, who runs National, and a couple of other friends who started chapters in other states. Judy Clemens comes to mind--she started an Ohio chapter and also served as president of National. We had our first Hawaii SinC meeting in November, 2006.

 

Sisters in Crime/Hawaii: What goals did you set for the Hawaii Chapter and its members?

Deborah Turrell Atkinson: My goals were twofold: First, to follow the National Bylaws, which is actually a requirement of a chapter. This is to "combat discrimination against women in the mystery field, educate publishers and the general public as to inequities in the treatment of female authors, and raise the level of awareness of their contribution to the field. Membership is open to all persons worldwide who have a special interest in mystery writing and in furthering the purposes of Sisters in Crime; Inc."

My second goal was to not only encourage the writing of crime fiction, but to educate the members of SinC about the fields of law enforcement. We had speakers from numerous fields: a firearm expert from HPD, who brought an assortment of guns that we got to handle, an Assistant U.S. attorney, an expert in forensic entomology, the Deputy Scientific Director of the Central Identification Laboratory (who helped identify some of Jeffrey Dahmer's victims, the K-9 corps (and their handlers, of course) from the Honolulu Sheriff's Department, and others. Things were pretty lively at times!

Sisters in Crime/Hawaii: You set a high standard for SinC/Hawaii with a diverse group of excellent speakers. While the first mystery novel has been attributed to Edgar Allan Poe, some credit the true origin of the Mystery genre to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle or Agatha Christie. Sydney Lehua Iaukea's The Queen and I (A Story of Dispossessions and Reconnections in Hawaii,) though historical in nature, contains its own mystery and suspense. Does today’s Mystery/Suspense genre carry a broader definition, one that includes traces or even subplots of romance, science fiction, fantasy, and . . . well, most genres?

Deborah Turrell Atkinson: I'm not sure I'd apply a "broader definition" of mystery today. Too many people in the field will hotly contest the difference between thrillers, mysteries, suspense, romance, sci-fi, and so on. There can be overlap, however. You'll see romance in a thriller, but the main thrust of a thriller must still be that ticking bomb, the kidnapped child, the imminent threat. Or some sci-fi element can exist in a mystery, but the author has to stress the whodunnit rather than the futuristic aspect. Hope I'm making sense. If anything, the field has become more complicated since Arthur Conan Doyle.

Sisters in Crime/Hawaii: Even with the advent of limitless subgenres, I agree that the author has to stress the whodunnit in a mystery. Your latest novel, PLEASING THE DEAD, is set in Maui. What is the story’s main plot line, where did you get the inspiration for your protagonist Storm Kayama, and did you have to suffer through extended on-site research before writing the novel?

Deborah Turrell Atkinson: As you may know, Pleasing the Dead is the fourth book in the Storm Kayama series. The story revolves around the trafficking of young women for prostitution and the Yakuza in Hawaii (Maui in particular). I got the inspiration for that idea when I heard Janet Kamerman, the first woman special agent in charge of the Honolulu Division, FBI, speak about problems facing the islands. This was in 2008, and Agent Kamerman gave us a lot of information about how law enforcement has changed since Sept 11, 2001. When I asked her what unique problems the islands faced, she stressed the trafficking of young women, particularly from China and the Philippines.

My inspiration for Storm Kayama came from a character that developed in one of my first novels--one still in a drawer somewhere. I liked her so much, I decided to make her the protagonist of the next book, which ended up getting published. That was Primitive Secrets.

Sisters in Crime/Hawaii: I am reading Primitive Secrets this week and am enjoying the action as well as the setting, in the town of Hilo on The Big Island. Would you please share some information about your participation in Explore Hawaii Book & Music Tour at Borders in the San Francisco Bay Area?

Deborah Turrell Atkinson: That trip to San Francisco was great! What a privilege to be included, and to have my way paid in a gesture of aloha by HVCB! Joanna Carolan, children's author; Cheryl Tsutsumi, travel and food author; Ken Emerson, slack key guitarist; and I were part of one weekend's entourage. Other authors and musicians participated, too, at different times. 

Sisters in Crime/Hawaii: Just for fun, if Paris is not an option, then where would you most like to spend your time writing and why?

Deborah Turrell Atkinson: Paris would be nice!! Actually, though, when I'm writing, I'm best at my own desk. I've worked in hotel rooms, other people's homes, in coffee shops, where ever, but home is best. I treat writing as a job. I need to get to work everyday at about the same time. Though my kids are now older and out of the house, I still sit down around 9 or ten in the morning and often work through lunch into the afternoon.

Sisters in Crime/Hawaii: Thank you for this enjoyable visit today, Debby, and best of luck with your writing where ever you are.

You can find Deborah Turrell Atkinson at her new website:

http://www.deborahatkinson.com/

and at:

http://www.amazon.com/Pleasing-Dead-Storm-Kayama-ebook/dp/B003XNT9RQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1330064944&sr=1-3