BOOK RELEASE READING
28 September 2024
My heart sank when I came to the café for the reading and no one was there. My heart lifted when an old schoolfriend arrived, and it rejoiced when two more people came, one of whom I knew in connection with the story.
It’s not what you picture in your mind when you think of the opening reading for your newly released book, but nonetheless, I can only say that the reading was a success, which for me became particularly apparent in the question time afterwards.
Again my big thanks to the wonderful couple who created and run the Korn Konzept in Berlin-Schöneberg. Thanks for hosting the event. You are my stars! And thanks to the great audience for their praise and for the interested talk afterwards.
I look forward to the next readings, discussions and any other event. I passed the first test, I’m ready for the next.
I taped the reading, but I need a break. It will probably be as late as next weekend before I can post some of it.
There’s a big peace march in Berlin on the 3rd October. You might see there.
My next post might take a few days. If you don’t hear from me, have a good start into October.
Charlie Alice Raya, 28 September 2024
BOOK RELEASE READING
28 September 2024
45 min reading, plus question time afterwards,
in one of my favourite cafés where I worked on this story.
18:15 Uhr – 20:00 Uhr
location: Korn Konzept, Apostel-Paulus-Straße 40, Berlin-Schöneberg
27 September 2024
The end of all wars
book release countdown:
a matter of minutes
until the release of The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
ease
I have to chuckle. When I decided on the countdown themes, I thought it was a splendid idea to finish with ease. Ease is after all a great tool when faced with conflict, frustration, anger. If you can find that thought which adds the hint of a smile to your tensions, then you can grab it, climb out as far as you can and with every bit of distance, you will be better at dealing with what’s hitting you.
But ease eludes me, this morning. There is a bit frustration about how to make this project known. There is the long list of things I should have completed by the end of the day. There is my body reminding me that I promised not to ignore it again. And it’s asking for a break.
Mind you, I am very much looking forward to tomorrow. And I feel privileged that I get this chance to read the story in a location where I worked on it.
If you are in Berlin and have time to come, join me at the reading, tomorrow evening.
Have a pleasant day, Charlie Alice Raya
Evening note: It was strange and good day. After a morning rehearsal, I went out to distribute some more flyers, and I had some nice chats along the way. Back home I was busy with preparations and just now, I’m back from my evening rehearsal in the Korn Konzept, tomorrow’s location for the opening reading. It went really well and that has a nicely relaxing effect on me. Yeah, some ease is definitely present by now.
26 September 2024
The end of all wars
book release countdown:
2 days
until the release of The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
pain
‘We all had the meltdown, confronting each other. For me the rawness of our confrontation was important. None of us insisted that their country is better than the others. None of us tried to downplay our hatred, frustration, pain. That was important for me. And that we can be honest now, that we want to know what’s inside of us and that we want to deal with it, that helps me to give trust a try.’
© Charlie Alice Raya, The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
I wanted to write something about dealing with pain, how sweating it out in a workout or writing a story can be tools, but then I reread the quote above and thought: Nah, don’t add, let it stand.
I will, though, recommend a story I’ve been working on for some days: planet fifty-three, we need trust.
Only two days to go until the release and I’m in a sort of strangely relaxed mood, pottering about on the various project websites to spruce them up for the big day. I come fully alive when I rehearse the reading, and I discovered that a relaxing yoga practice at night helps me to sleep better. Unfortunately, I had to let go of my morning writing, the to-do list is just too long. But maybe, I get enough done today to grand myself some writing on book 3, shaping, tomorrow. Now, it’s breakfast time for me. Have a great day.
25 September 2024
The end of all wars
book release countdown:
3 days
until the release of The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
challenge
A good challenge could be a great alternative to conflicts and wars, be it between two people, between groups or nations.
About two moons after Thrim-Asa-Kahi’s arrival, enforcers from the capital were sighted in the region, and it became known that they were searching for the missing peacock.
“Have you run away?” their parents asked, suspiciously.
“No. I was enchanted by spring, and it called me to the lands of my people.”
“What will you do now?”
Thrim-Asa-Kahi smiled. “With the help of my people, I could issue a challenge.”
“Why do you need our help and what challenge?” their parents asked as more curious people gathered around them.
“The challenge I propose is suicide unless you decide to tell everyone on the planet about it. Because if the challenge is known by everyone, then the peacocks in the capital will have no choice but to accept it.”
© Charlie Alice Raya, The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
24 September 2024
The end of all wars
book release countdown:
4 days
until the release of The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
honesty
I wonder whether there would be any wars if we were honest – with ourselves, about our histories, about each other, about what drives us.
The honesty I am thinking about is not so much about not telling lies but about assessing what it is we are thinking, doing, proclaiming – and whether that would hold if we were honest. Or would we be able to see how ridiculous it is to lash out, to engage in conflicts and wars? Why? Because all violence only ever causes damage, and never brings a solid and rational solution.
And then I am reminded of a passage in The roots of war. Our brains are wonderful and have amazing potentials, but —
Sometimes we met people who said: ‘You, your stories, your narratives, they don’t convince me.’
The first time someone said this to me, I blamed myself for having failed to make a strong enough argument. But later that night, one of us put their hand on my shoulder and said: ‘Mon ami, you expect too much of the human brain. The brain goes on the defensive whenever an idea deviates from what is familiar. This defensiveness makes it near impossible for a person to simply listen to an argument. Mon ami, the brain is used to certain tracks of reasoning, and with our stories and narratives we ask the brain to go places where it’s never been. We ask it to disentangle itself when it doesn’t even know that it is in a mess. The brain needs time to build new tracks in order to make new arguments, new ideas and new stories possible. The bueno news is that the brain is always in action, and it feeds on stories for inspiration. And now, mon ami, give your brain a little rest. It’s a wonderfully squishy thing, but it needs a bit of pause every now and again, or it will find itself on squishy ground.’
I admit, it was the image of the squishy brain which is so incredibly flexible but at the same time doesn’t just overwrite what it thinks it knows that helped me a lot.
© Charlie Alice Raya, The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
I love the squishy brain, and it fascinates me how much it can be expanded by simply going on thinking expeditions. Mind you, the look into the mirror might get a few cracks, but I think, mindful honesty has much to offer.
23 September 2024
The end of all wars
book release countdown:
5 days
until the release of The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
strength
Creating strength in the core, cultivating stability … These words from my yoga practice this morning reminded me of:
‘… a strong and healthy body calms the mind, makes us feel safe and secure in ourselves. And if we are centred in ourselves, why would we attack anyone or feel attacked by someone?’
‘This is interesting: bodily strength facilitates war because strength is needed, and it prevents war because a strong body balances the mind.’
© Charlie Alice Raya, The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
Strength is a funny thing. It makes us bold and reckless. It gives us stability. It allows us to meet stress with a satisfying workout. It can even give us a little spring in our steps.
22 September 2024
The end of all wars
book release countdown:
6 days
until the release of The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
unearth
Doing my morning writing for book 3/1, shaping, I’m once again puzzled why we hold each other back. Though, in book 3/1 it’s actually the opposite:
Kim let out a long sigh. ‘What was your strangest moment?’
Alice chuckled. ‘I was late for the sit-in, and when I tiptoed down the stairs to the atrium, I had this strange moment of amazement — about us, about how much creative energy we unleashed today, and that, even after such a day, we still come together and keep exploring. And I love that the international teams now have their own stage. Over the last two weeks, I often thought that we were in reach of a vast deal of potentials we weren’t using. And when I found a spot on the stairs, listening and watching, I had this tingly feeling — like someone who had just discovered that they are in love.’
© Charlie Alice Raya, book 3/1, shaping, arrivals & shaping
If you start to think about it, it is puzzling that humans compete with each other, especially considering the mess we are in.
At a time when pretty much everything could do with a rethink, the only thing that makes sense is to unearth every bit of potential we have, put our heads together, be rational and pragmatic, and get to work.
Instead we waste our time with competitions, with taunting, with keeping each other out, with insisting on narratives that have caused more damage than delivered benefits.
And those in (so-called) power seem only intent on polishing and protecting their appearances, on bathing in privilege, on beating their chests and on sticking to their worn-out tracks which still lead to nowhere.
True power is in creation. And truly powerful people will empower and with that unearth everything we, as the people of this planet, have to offer and are capable of.
In The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war, a group of thinkers takes a closer look at the narratives that made their people and their planet sick. At some point, they begin to invent stories in which they test new narratives. One of those stories is The story of empowerment, which is retold in the book.
The next morning, deep in thoughts, the wanderer reached a river. Tall fir trees grew along the shore and a large rock overhang the water. The ponderer sat down on the rock, crossed their legs and closed their eyes.
“What purpose do I serve?” they whispered.
“What purpose do I serve?” they asked the wind.
“What purpose do I serve?” they began to chant.
When they stopped, eyes still closed, they said: “I labelled my skills as superior. I protect the superiority of my skills by determining how my skills are to be practised, by ensuring that no one can present skills superior to mine and by restricting the number of acceptable skills. This way I keep people focused on those skills that make me and my fellow peacocks appear superior to everyone else.”
The thinker shot to their feet, eyes wide open, and spat into the river. “Pah! What a despicable purpose! Worse, no purpose at all. Just the gold-lacing of my self-image. Worse, it’s cowardice and stupidity. I deprive my planet of most of its potential only to appear superior. There is little that can be called less inferior than that!”
Angry, the aroused turned away from the river and resumed their journey home, their mind busy with reflecting on everything that had brought them to this point.
The weather seemed to share their mood, constantly changing the colours of the clouds, teasing the senses with warm and cold winds, with sunshine and rain.
© Charlie Alice Raya, The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
I do feel a bit heavy this morning. Heavy and puzzled. It’s not just my thoughts, it’s also lack of sleep.
Yesterday, my plan worked well during the day, but I failed to wrap up at nine. It was past eleven when I finally closed the laptop – hence the tiredness, and I skipped the evening yoga.
But the day was good. I registered all new books with the German VLB (Verzeichnis Lieferbarer Bücher). I made my final selection for the reading and rehearsed it (parts of it are actually fun despite the subject), and I added some more updates to the websites, plus I had a nice Skype chat with friends from Kent, which was my excuse for not wrapping up at nine.
Anyway, on a light note. Here in Berlin, the sun is shining on a mild September day. Have a great day!
21 September 2024
The end of all wars
book release countdown:
7 days
until the release of The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
anchors
With the release of the first book of this series only seven days away, I find myself once again thinking about anchors.
I can sense that I could easily get lost in the excitement about the release, about the very first reading, about the same sensation the thinkers in the story experience when they leave their hiding place to return to a world steeped in wars:
We loved the fact that we were finally on the move, that we would finally discover whether our ideas had a chance to penetrate the minds of our fellow humans.
© Charlie Alice Raya, The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war
There is one anchor which has seen me through difficult times before, one that always allows me to find both calm and inspiration: writing the easy town books, my main work.
And so I decided, despite the long to-do list, to dedicate my mornings to working on book 3/1, shaping, again. And after today’s start, I can already say that this kind of normality has a calming and reassuring influence on me.
Discipline is something I am not particularly fond of because in my case, any repetitiveness has a stifling effect on me. But for the next seven days, I want to be disciplined about a few more anchors: to start and end the day with a short yoga practice (20-30min), to go on a fast-paced Nordic Walking round in the afternoon (30-40min) and to be very strict about wrapping the day before nine in the evening. I’ll let you know, how it goes.
I think, it’s great to have anchors in friends, friends who can call us back when wander off into some seventh dimension or when we simply get something wrong. Whether their input is right or not, with a good friend it should be possible to trust that something worthwhile thinking about got their radar ringing, and it might be good to listen.
In The end of all wars, planet one, the group of thinkers eventually create the kind of bond which allows them to be anchored in each other, in their case because they want to explore together and they have the same goals.
In the easy town story, some of the main characters are well anchored, some with people from in- and outside of the town project. And it shows when they stumble, when they are faced with crises. Some of those least anchored break.
When I anchored the easy town characters, I didn’t reflect on what I was doing, but today, I wonder if the warmongers and exploiters on our planet have any anchors at all. Do they have people who hold them to account, who hold up the mirror and say: look, this is what you are doing? Do you really think that destruction is a way forward? What could you possibly gain? Do they have people who care enough about them to give them the telling they need to get off the path of madness?
There are more thoughts on this and some of them flow into the chapter of book 3, shaping, that is my anchor, today. And it’s interesting. I had this little gap and a lot of notes what to fill it with, and today, this smile appeared in my mind and it said: now, you know what that gap is for.
Anchors keep an idea, a person, a project safe from madness, from dogmatism, from self-righteousness, from fantasising, from becoming a damaging force. And anchor can gently nudge us when we are stuck, when we are wrong, when we need help to grow.
I can’t imagine that we would do even a hundredth of the harm we inflict upon each other and the planet if we were anchored in each other.
NEWS
18 September 2024
book release & reading
The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war, will be published on Saturday, 28 September 2024.
The first reading will take place in the Berlin café Korn Konzept, a lovely place where I occasionally worked on this and other stories.
The reading will take about 45 min, and I’m happy to answer questions afterwards.
The book will be released as e-book. It will be possible to buy a copy on this website and at the reading.
book release
Saturday, 28 September 2024
18:15 Uhr – 20:00 Uhr
location: Korn Konzept, Apostel-Paulus-Straße 40, Berlin-Schöneberg
NEWS
15 September 2024
Readings available
As the first book of the collection The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war, is about to be published, I am looking for locations in Berlin who would like to become part of the book release events.
NEWS
11 September 2024
Today was a strangely random day. I zigzagged quite a bit between my websites and did a first draft for the flyer for planet one, the end of all wars.
Tomorrow, I’ll start with some more updates for the websites, and in the afternoon, I hope to speak with some people about ideas for the book release of planet one.
NEWS
9 September 2024
It’s done! The end of all wars, planet one, the roots of war, is completed.
There are still a few things to be considered before I can announce a publication date, but it can’t be that long now.
My next step is to give the author’s notes & references their last polish, and then I’ll make a start at a bulk of emails which have been piling up in my mind and want to get out there.
NEWs
7 September 2024
As we Berliners face another extremely hot September day, I decided to deviate from my plan for today (completing planet one), at least for some hours, and treat myself to adding some more planets to the list of planets who ended all wars. By now, the testimonies of 52 planets are introduced.
I had a light lunch (cucumber and tomato) and now I’m having an ice cream for desert. Afterwards I’ll transcribe my notes for planet 8, the big clean-up, and maybe, if I still like it, I might publish it later on this website.
Bloody rivers in my veins! The big clean-up is such a funny story. I’ve only reached page three, and I have no idea what’s coming next. It’s some weeks ago that I wrote this story. I hope it’s good enough for publication. It’s one of those stories that make me laugh and wonder, and it puts me in a positively daring mood that says: Bloody rivers in my veins! Let’s do this!
It’s done (insert big smile). It’s a first draft but already worthwhile reading. Besides I hope, it will make some consider to contribute to a full version of the story.
And here is another new addition: two snippets on logic which didn’t make it into the final version of The roots of war.