The Storyteller

The Divine Plan - Act 1 Scene 1

Ravi & I have finally finished the stage play script for "The Divine Plan" - yay!!!!  We had a meeting with the production team last Friday and it's all good to go for staging in September 2007.  I've still got some more work to do in terms of writing up press releases, ideas for viral marketing, etc. & Ravi is involved in directing the production but the big job of writing the script is out of the way & I can focus more of my energies on my other literary projects.  To celebrate (& whet your apetite) I have attached a copy of Act 1 Scene 1 of "The Divine Plan."  Let Ravi & I know what you think . . . .

Download the_divine_plan_act1scene1.pdf

Super Historical Friends: Episode One

At last!  Read about how a group of extraordinary men in history came together to form the Super Historical Friends alliance!  Tell me what you think of the first episode of this running serial.

Episode One: Would You Like A Super Alliance With That?....

Download EpisodeOne_WouldYouLikeASuperAllianceWithThat.pdf

The Storyteller is Here!

For the ladies: Pull up that comfy armchair.  Rest your weary feet up on that poof.  Eyeing that bar of milk chocolate precariously balanced on the arm rest (it's yours) & your fingertips coolly caressing a glass of mulled wine, nestle into the cushions & get ready to be transported to different lands, different times, different perspectives, different lives.

For the gentlemen: Pull up that roomy armchair.  Kick your feet up on the poof.  Stuff the chocolate bar in your mouth & balance that six-pack of crown lager on your belly while undoing the top button of your pants.  Let out that gas (preferably through the attic, not the basement).  Now you're ready to be transported to different lands, different times, different perspectives, different lives.

The Storyteller has arrived. 

This blog is for you.  Whenever you feel like escaping reality for as long/short as you wish, then select any of the categories on the left column & immerse yourself in tales from the dramatic to the comedic, from the romantic to the freaky.  If you like to read screenplays or scripts, you have your pick from feature films, short films, television (e.g. an unpublished Seinfeld episode) or stage plays.  Novels, short stories & poetry are also on offer.  If it's overly-dramatic soap operas that pique your interest, then check out the drama unfolding in Amongst the Angst.  If you find kids' adventures engaging, then discover how a small band of 11-year-olds solve mysteries of the supernatural & paranormal in their neighbourhood through the adventures of The Mystery Busters (coming soon).

All material is written by Clare Padua.  To find out more about me, click on the About link.  I welcome all constructive criticism, feedback & comments.  Any suggestions for future stories or plot twists for Amongst the Angst or The Mystery Busters are always considered.

I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it.

The Storyteller camps on the snug green armchair, raises the wide brim of his dusty wizard-hat slightly, cracks his knuckles, inhales deeply.........and begins, Once upon a time.....

Picture originally uploaded by digikuva.

Article: Ambition - Bane or Blessing for Women Who Want It All?

I wrote an article for an American womens magazine last year, exploring the concept of ambition for women who choose to take advantage of today's liberal society and pursue what they want without being labelled a feminist.  Would love your feedback.....

Download ambition_bane_or_blessing_for_women_who_want_it_all_by_clare_padua.pdf

Picture originally uploaded by Spacecake.

Novel: Roberta - The Faerie Tales

I published my first novel titled Roberta: The Faerie Tales in 2005.  If you are after a sugar-coated, Disney-fied fairytale, you have found the wrong book. Seen through the eyes of the magic-wielding, sword-brandishing heroine, Roberta is a tale too chilling for the faint-hearted. Meet the woman whose life spawned the fairytales "Rapunzel," "Cinderella," "Sleeping Beauty," and "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" (but with all the horrifying bits kept in!).  Published by SynergEbooks.

To download the first 3 chapters of Roberta in pdf format, please click her: Download Roberta_The_Faerie_Tales_by_Ladyclare_Padua_Chapters1-3.pdf

You can purchase my novel by clicking here.  Reader reviews are also available. 

You can read a review by Yet Another Book Review Site here.

Soap Opera: Amongst the Angst - Episode #1: Before the smile

Charlotte Kande was a striking beauty. People always noticed her long, healthy, wavy chestnut hair first. Then her piercing azure eyes. Then her delicate aquiline nose and rosebud mouth. Her 12-year-old slender frame had not blossomed into womanly curves yet but you could tell just by looking at her that when womanhood struck, it would be spectacular. Her eyes belied her intelligence, common sense (underrated by society) and sharp wit – a killer combination. So why was Charlotte not taking over the world with her charm and grace?

Because Charlotte Kande was the girl no-one wanted. Her keen awareness of this fact created a heavy cloud of melancholy around her. This rejection started at birth. No explanation was given to her but in her darkest moments as she was passed from one foster parent to another, she would dream up romantic notions of how she was stripped from their loving arms and how they were still attempting to reunite with her despite their imprisonment as political prisoners in a despotic third world country.

Charlotte didn’t live for very long with one family. The reasons were always different: “We really wanted a boy,” or “She’s just too sad and quiet all the time,” or “We’ve finally gotten pregnant so we don’t need to adopt now.” Charlotte never complained. She’d just pack her bag and wait for the child services social worker to ferry her to another family unit.

The family she was currently with had proven to be her longest stay – 2 years. But they had found a use for her. Bruce and Beverley Marlin had found a cheap au pair for their five children, all under the age of 10. Bruce, a truck driver, often remarked, “And the government is actually paying us to have her look after the kids! What a country we live in!” Beverley would respond with a bored sigh. She was always too tired to do anything. She stayed in bed most of the time, watching her soap operas or sleeping. Bruce didn’t mind Beverley’s listlessness. He had Charlotte to look after the kids, work kept him away for long stretches, and there was always his mistress in the next suburb to satisfy his baser needs.

Charlotte's day consisted of preparing the kids for school, cooking breakfast for the family, packing lunches and walking the kids to school. After school, she helped the kids with their homework, cooked dinner, cleaned up the kitchen, bathed the younger kids and then retired to the attic (her assigned room) while the family enjoyed each other’s company in the living room, watching their sitcoms (the only time of the day when Beverley got out of bed). On weekends, Charlotte cleaned the house, took the kids to the park, washed the car, and performed other domestic chores for the household’s upkeep. If Charlotte forgot her duties, Bruce would remind her with a back-handed slap to her face that sometimes produced blood. But generally he left her alone.

Charlotte did not have friends. At school she kept to herself, focusing on what she needed to learn. The other kids left her alone. Her beauty protected her from the jocks and bullies who picked on the dorks and nerds. The nerds respected her because of her good grades. The dorks liked her because she was kind. The rebels gave her space because they admired her natural ability to manipulate the keys of a piano and the strings of a guitar in music class. All this respect for her made her virtually unnoticed in school. Unnoticed by all except for a kid called Andrew. Andrew Payton. He was always staring at her. Even when she confronted him with angry eyes, when most kids would just look away embarrassed or pretend they weren’t even staring at her, he continued to stare, even having the audacity to smile. Little did Charlotte know that simple smile would eventually lead her to a different life – of joy, pain, acceptance, betrayal, murder and amnesia!

How does Andrew Payton change Charlotte’s life? Will her real parents ever reclaim her? How long will Charlotte stay with the Marlin family before they tire of her too? Will Charlotte align with any of the groups in the school social order? These and more questions will be answered (and asked) at the next episode of Amongst the Angst. Stay tuned…

Picture originally uploaded by Armante.

Poetry: hot air

Something was bothering me before (not now because the offender has left the building) but I thought I'd exorcise my negative mojo through poetry.  Can you guess what gets my beef?  Picture originally uploaded by BaldyOne.  I like to call this little poetic tirade . . . .

 

   

hot air

   

calm before the storm.  I know it’s coming.

I struggle to see the picture conveyed by 1.7 million numbers on a bed of formulae-

Aargh!

   

I cringe.  As piercingly as he’s sucked the air, he’s pushed it out hollow.

respite.

Corporatized air calm (again) yet leaden with foul stomach gas, hovering (again)

I don’t smell it (yet) but I know it lives

my mind recalls wise words from boss-woman

“He has always been a sickly man.  He never eats breakfast.  That’s why his breath is so bad.”-

Aargh!

   

a Cough this time – ‘dearie me’ – such effeminate words from the breathing chasm

by way of an apology?  piss weak.

Should I stand up, alligator smile, pitch a packet of tic tacs at the head?

aim for the mouth, plug the hole, trap the fetid breath

Norman Bates smile escapes my lips.  Sold!

heeheehe-

Aargh!

   

thankfully he’s hardly here – always sick . . . .

   

Short Film: Recess

I had originally written this short film script for Tropfest 2007 but decided not to enter it since it's not a comedy (and would therefore have no chance of winning).  While I am working towards securing funding to get this produced, I have attached the script to this blog entry for feedback or constructive criticism.  If you are interested in providing some level of financial support or personal involvement in this project, please send me an email or lodge a comment.

Download Script_Recess_byLadyclarePadua.pdf

Picture originally uploaded by steeev.

Seinfeld Episode: The Trophy Wife

For all you Seinfeld fans out there still suffering from withdrawal symptoms since the powers that be took the show off air, I have written a movie-length episode of Seinfeld titled, "The Trophy Wife."  All the same loveable characters are there - Jerry, Elaine, George, Kramer & Newman.  Click on the link below to download the pdf file.  Let me know if it made you laugh (or yawn).  I welcome any constructive criticism and feedback.  I hope you enjoy it.

Download seinfeld_ep_the_trophy_wife_by_ladyclare_padua.pdf

Picture originally uploaded by bloqseven.

The Storyteller is Here!

For the ladies: Pull up that comfy armchair.  Rest your weary feet up on that poof.  Eyeing that bar of milk chocolate precariously balanced on the arm rest (it's yours) & your fingertips coolly caressing a glass of mulled wine, nestle into the cushions & get ready to be transported to different lands, different times, different perspectives, different lives.

For the gentlemen: Pull up that roomy armchair.  Kick your feet up on the poof.  Stuff the chocolate bar in your mouth & balance that six-pack of crown lager on your belly while undoing the top button of your pants.  Let out that gas (preferably through the attic, not the basement).  Now you're ready to be transported to different lands, different times, different perspectives, different lives.

The Storyteller has arrived. 

This blog is for you.  Whenever you feel like escaping reality for as long/short as you wish, then select any of the categories on the left column & immerse yourself in tales from the dramatic to the comedic, from the romantic to the freaky.  If you like to read screenplays or scripts, you have your pick from feature films, short films, television (e.g. an unpublished Seinfeld episode) or stage plays.  Novels, short stories & poetry are also on offer.  If it's overly-dramatic soap operas that pique your interest, then check out the drama unfolding in Amongst the Angst.  If you find kids' adventures engaging, then discover how a small band of 11-year-olds solve mysteries of the supernatural & paranormal in their neighbourhood through the adventures of The Mystery Busters (coming soon).

All material is written by Clare Padua.  To find out more about me, click on the About link.  I welcome all constructive criticism, feedback & comments.  Any suggestions for future stories or plot twists for Amongst the Angst or The Mystery Busters are always considered.

I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it.

The Storyteller camps on the snug green armchair, raises the wide brim of his dusty wizard-hat slightly, cracks his knuckles, inhales deeply.........and begins, Once upon a time.....

Picture originally uploaded by digikuva.