Will iconic images recorded in the grooves of an ancient vase unite the Holy Land or rip it further apart?

THE VASE

A novel by Mark M. DeRobertis

Muhsin Muhabi is a Palestinian potter, descended from a long line of potters. His business is run from the same shop owned by his ancestors since the day his forebears moved to Nazareth. The region's conflict saw the death of his oldest son, and rogue terrorists are in the process of recruiting his youngest in their plot to assassinate the Pope and Israeli prime minister.

Professor Hiram Weiss is an art historian at Nazareth’s Bethel University. He is also a Shin Bet operative on special assignment. With the help of fellow agent, Captain Benny Mathias, he plans to destroy the gang responsible for the death of his wife and only child. He puts a bomb in the ancient vase he takes on loan from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.

Mary Levin, the charming assistant to the director of Shin Bet, has lost a husband and most of her extended family to recurring wars and never-ending terrorism. She dedicates her life to the preservation of Israel, but to whom will she dedicate her heart? The brilliant professor from Bethel University? Or the gallant captain who now leads Kidon?

Harvey Holmes, the Sherlock of Haunted Houses, is a Hollywood TV host whose reality show just flopped. When a Lebanese restaurant owner requests his ghost-hunting services, he believes the opportunity will resurrect his career. All he has to do is exorcise the ghosts that are haunting the restaurant. It happens to be located right across the street from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.




Tuesday, July 13, 2010

"The"

I have found during my writing experiences, that the word "the" finds its way into my manuscript more than I like to see it. Sometimes a sentence will be flooded with it. There is an easy solution. When you find a sentence with too many "the(s) delete the the(s) and see where it still works. Of course, it will often be the case that it will be absolutely necessary to keep the the, and it'll have to stay. But I have found that often it is not necessary, and, even though it is still grammatically correct to use it, it will also be grammatically correct to not use it, and the sentence will read better without it.

I have deleted so many "the(s) in my revisions I'm sure I can go back and find an example, but you get it. Delete the the. If the sentence still works, leave it deleted. If it doesn't work put it back. That's all.
Posted by at
Labels:

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)