My first drabble appeared today in Stupefying Stories together with Alicia Hilton’s, as part of a new Pete Wood Challenge. I’ve only recently learned what a drabble is: a piece of flash fiction of exactly 100 words. The constraints are surprisingly liberating. The story is just a moment in time, no space for backstory or…
Category: Ancient History
A Chapter from My Speculative Historical Novel
A chapter from my novel has been published in The Write Launch, Issue #16. I’d be happy to hear your opinions about it, as I always strive to improve my writing. Thank you for reading!
The Pursuit of Happiness
Years ago, while studying for my US citizenship exam, I paused over the words “the pursuit of happiness” in the Declaration of Independence. Because I grew up in Europe during the time of popular uprisings against communist regimes, I was used to words such as freedom and justice and equality in revolutionary speech, so the pursuit of happiness…
Yes, but What Did They Sound Like?
When my friend Cristina speaks, I listen. Cristina is both a scientist and an artist, and throughout the years she guided me in learning about the world of science and the world of art. Years ago, she explained to me how the Inca irrigated their terraces in Machu Picchu and Tipon, and later she exposed me to the…
The Story of God
“In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with God, and the Logos was God.” – John 1:1. There is no story there, things were final from the very beginning, everything else flows from that fixed point in the universe. Unless… there is a story, but it’s not so obvious. In his book,…
The Messenger Was Still Alive
You can live your whole life hearing a story and yet be unsure of its details. Every Romanian knows the name of Zalmoxis, the name appears everywhere, in magazines, on merchandise, around tourist attractions, yet it’s tricky to figure out what exactly this name refers to. Was Zalmoxis an ancient Dacian king? A god? A slave?…
Our Borders: Ageless Youth and Deathless Life (An Epilogue)
Once upon a time, there lived a king and a queen, both young and beautiful, but heartbroken because they couldn’t have children. They had tried everything, they went to doctors and philosophers, astrologers and soothsayers—all for nothing. They had lost hope when, one day, they heard of an old medicine man from a village not far from the castle, so they went to see him….
A Killer Detail: The Art of War
I don’t remember when I bought my copy of The Art of War, but whenever I did, that copy must have been the last one in the store because the front cover is scuffed, yet I bought it anyway. It’s a beautiful book, with dark hardcovers sewn together with red, glossy thread. The words—both in traditional Chinese and English—are printed on cream-colored…
What I Hate About Writing
I’ve rarely found myself on the receiving end of violence, but there have been a few times. One summer day, when I was thirteen, I ventured into the green nursery on the outskirts of my hometown in Romania. The nursery was just outside my apartment window in Galaţi, and it felt safe and familiar, with…
Muhammad and the Universe
A dozen surprising things gathered from Lesley Hazleton’s book The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad and Discovery Channel’s documentary How the Universe Works.