Dear Bentari Project Blog: Happy Birthday!

You are a year old already. Like a dear child, you have been good for me. You have occupied me through many-a-busy day with care-giving duties that I have performed with no other feeling save love for you. You have called me in the night, and I have answered without thought of sleep. You have grown. You have matured. And with your growth, our novel about the early adventures of an African boy has slowly been galvanizing into a solid shape.

You came to be, young blog, as the result of a happy coincidence. The warm Chinook wind blew you my way and I plucked you from the summer sky—my restless mind.

You were born when I was out of work and learned that being unemployed can amount to so much more work than I had ever imagined. I went to a meeting about running a small business. That’s where I met Raja Afrika, and Raja, it turns out, builds websites[1]. I bought two!

Just imagine—having written a book about Africa—then meeting a man named Afrika who can build my book’s website. Then, imagine finding (on-line) a new friend in Winnipeg, 2 time zones away, who builds books[2] at a cost an unemployed writer can afford. And, yet again, imagine finding artwork on-line[3] that tells my book’s complete story in pictures. Imagine that the artwork is stunningly beautiful—and that you can see it wrapped around the cover of your book and that it calls to you irresistibly like a siren from the sea. Where do you think the artist of that picture would live? Africa—yes! And, with your book-builder-friend’s help, imagine that you are able to obtain the rights to that artwork for your book’s cover.

Well, my imagination might be tested to dream it up, but the world had no problem making it come to pass.

These, Bentari Project Blog, are a few of the exciting events that did happen during your 1st year. But the most exciting part of the year has been adding pages to you! (Well, getting hired back by the company was just a bit of a thrill, too!)

With Love, Tim

Image: draft of the cover, adapted from artwork by Amine Errahli

[1] See: http://yoga.worldlightasp.com/ Raja Afrika, lives it up in Oregon, Massachusetts and La Palma

[2] See: http://kuriostudio.blogspot.com/2009/11/custom-book-design-personal-heirloom.html Alix Reynolds is tops

[3] See: http://aminovish.carbonmade.com/ Amine Errahli, gentleman of Casablanca