Uncategorized | Blue Star Visions

Jun 28

Becoming Jane a movie based on Jane Austen’s life

By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Movie review, Uncategorized | No Comments

Becoming Jane

Becoming Jane is a delightful movie, especially for those who love Jane Austen’s books (Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility). In the movie you see that Jane Austen’s characters and ideas stem from her life experiences. Jane’s life was filled with loving family and some heartache.

The movie covers Jane’s (Ann Hathaway) young adult years. Her father is a minister who encourages her learning and ideas. Her family lives a modest life on a farm with the children sharing the chores. Jane has a close relationship with Cassandra, her sister who is engaged.

Jane is full of life: She’s intelligent, an independent thinker and loves to write stories. She receives an offer of marriage from Mr. Wisley, a wealthy man who could help her family live comfortably. However, Jane doesn’t want to be forced into marriage, even to help her family. She declares she wants “affection” in a marriage.

Jane does a reading of her latest manuscript for her family. Thomas Lefory (Jame McAvoy) attends and makes a poor impression by not taking interest in her story. Gradually they come to know one another and fall in love. Unfortunately, Tom is a young Irish man without money. He and his family are dependent on his rich uncle.

It’s an enjoyable movie made by BBC in Ireland. It’s well-acted and has a great plot drawn from the book Becoming Jane and the letters Jane wrote. Some of the situations, witty dialogue and characters remind the viewer of Austen’s books.

After seeing the movie, I was curious about how close it represented Jane Austen’s life. It turns out the movie is a blend of fact and fiction. Jane was born in 1775 in Hampshire, England. She was the youngest child in seven siblings. In the movie her relationship with her sister Cassandra and her parents is the main focus with regards to her family life. As in the movie, Jane received a marriage proposal from a wealthy man that she accepted, then turned down the next day.

She did know Thomas Lefory when he was on break from his legal studies in England. She enjoyed his company at dances while he was in Hampshire, but there is no evidence that they fell in love and wanted to marry.

Jane’s life was fairly private. Her sister destroyed many of Jane’s letters after she died, so there is much that isn’t known about her.

During her life, Jane wrote many short pieces and six novels. All were published with the author being anonymous. Jane Austen’s name didn’t come out until after she died of Addison’s disease at forty-two years old. At that time, women weren’t supposed to be authors, since they weren’t thought of as independent thinkers, and the idea of novels was a new concept.

Jane Austen is considered a romance writer, yet she never had a serious romance or married. Over the years people have wondered how she could write about experiences she never had. However, she did attended many dances, received a marriage proposal and witnessed the heartache her sister suffered when her fiancé died of a fever in the West Indies. From her writing, it’s apparent that these experiences and her keen insight into human nature were enough for her to become an extraordinary writer.

Though Jane Austen had only modest success during her life, she became popular in the 20^th century. Today she’s considered one of the top one hundred English writers.

Here is a movie trailer

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Mar 10

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Review of the movie Ex Machina
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Movie review, Uncategorized | No Comments

Ex Machina

If you’re a Sci-fi fan, you won’t want to miss Ex Machina, a 2015 movie that’s available on Netflix right now. In this story, a computer coder Caleb (Domhnall Glesson) spends a week at his employer’s extraordinary mountain home to evaluate the intelligence and consciousness of a lovely AI robot Ava (Alicia Vikander). It’s a thought-provoking, eerie movie that brings up many questions about AIs (AI stands for Artificial Intelligence).

The story opens with Caleb being congratulated at work after he wins a contest to go to the remote home of his employer, Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac). He’s flown in by helicopter, dropped off in the middle of nowhere and told which direction to walk. He heads through the woods and finally reaches a house that could pass for a fortress. He knocks on the door, his photo is taken, and then he’s issued an ID tag. The door opens and he walks down the hallway until he comes to the kitchen, where outside the patio window he sees Nathan working out.

This opening scene gives the viewer the uncomfortable feeling that something isn’t quite right and we’re a little on edge, as is Caleb.

Caleb has to sign an agreement never to disclose what he is about to see. He wants to have a lawyer look at the agreement, but Nathan tells him he can either sign it or spend the week just hanging out. Caleb wants to see Nathan’s project, so he signs. The room he’s given is more of a windowless cell than a guest room. When he asks Nathan about it, Nathan explains his home is a research center that has high security.

As the viewer, we feel we’re trapped in this cell with Caleb. He is trying to figure out what’s going on, but Nathan only lets him know what he wants him to know.

Caleb finally gets to meet Ava, the AI robot. Her body reveals she is a robot, but her face is that of a beautiful woman. As Caleb meets with her, he begins to see her as a conscious being and is attracted to her, especially when she puts on clothes so she looks human. After interviewing Ava several times, the difference between a human and a machine begins to break down in Caleb’s mind. He even wonders if he is a machine.

The world inside the house is filmed in muted colors while outside colors are bright with a river, rocks and trees. Ava has never been outside and can only see it through the glass in her room. To Nathan she’s just one machine in a series of machines that keep evolving. But to Caleb, who has formed an emotional attachment to her, she is a being with consciousness. He wants to help her escape from Nathan.

The title Ex Machina is a play on the Greek phrase Deus Ex Machina—“God from a machine.” A machine refers to the machine that held a god over the stage in Greek drama. In the title, Deus (meaning God or deity) is left out. The movie examines the theme of humanity as it relates to God. Ava reminds of us the name Eve, for the first two humans, Adam and Eve.

Writer and director Alex Garland also uses mirrors and reflections as a device. Ava and Caleb only see each other through glass. What is real and what is a reflection?

Caleb begins to see that Nathan is manipulating him. He didn’t win a contest at all. Nathan picked him and created an AI female he would find sexually attractive. Ava also has the ability to be seductive, and she tempts Caleb as Eve tempted Adam.

Other sci-fi movies exist with AIs that are so intelligent they become dangerous to the men who invented them. 2001 One Space Odyssey was probably the first with HAL, the computer that ran the ship, eventually taking it over. Other well-known movies with AIs include the Terminator and Matrix series.

This movie is different in that the AI looks like a beautiful, innocent woman who is trapped in a glass room and serves only as part of Nathan’s research. She will be destroyed when he’s through with her for the development of a new, improved model.

The question the movie asks isn’t only: Can AIs destroy us as they become more and more advanced? (and more intelligent than us), but If AIs have consciousness, should they have rights? Or, should they be kept as slaves for their owner’s use, subject to being destroyed when their owner gets a new model? We think nothing of replacing our computer with a newer, faster, more powerful one, but what if that computer looks like a person, complete with intelligence and consciousness?

In this movie, the line between man and machine is blurred. To Caleb, Ava becomes real and his belief in Nathan (as a God-like figure who created this amazing AI) is shaken.

Ex Machina is a brilliant movie with good acting and excellent photography that will leave you thinking long after the movie is over.

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Aug 27

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Pre-Order Give Away of Star Rider and the Golden Threads and Book Launch Party
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Uncategorized | No Comments

Star Rider and the Golden Threads

I will be having a book launch party for my new book: Star Rider and the Golden Threads on Sunday, September 16th at 1:30 p.m. in the party room at Powers Ridge Apts., 1371 Lake Dr. W., Chanhassen, MN. This event will include a reading and talk about the book. Refreshments will be served. All are welcome!

This book is the second of is my science fiction Star Rider Series. It is now available as a paperback at Amazon. It will be available as an e-book on September 1^st.

I’m running a Star Rider and the Golden Threads Pre-order Giveaway!

Enter to win a paperback copy of Star Rider and the Golden Threads, a book lamp, galaxy postcards, and a galaxy metal bookmark.

There are several ways you can enter!

Here is a link to the giveaway: Giveaway

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Sep 20

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Book Review of Dream Yourself Awake
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Uncategorized | No Comments

Dream Yourself Awake; One Woman’s Journey to Uncover Her Divine Purpose through Dreams by Darlene Montgomery

Years ago Montgomery realized her dreams related to her waking life and revealed recurring themes and lessons. The images and feelings she began to see formed a map that led to her purpose as Soul. Montgomery states, “Dreams tell a story about Soul’s everlasting wish to journey back home to God.” (p. 18)

The basic premise of the book is that if you have a yearning to know your purpose in life, Spirit will let Soul see its greater destiny and clear away illusions. The law of growth drives Soul on.

Each chapter begins with an insightful quote. Then Montgomery shares a dream, waking dream or inner experience and gives her interpretation of it as she sheds light on the spiritual side of what she’s experiencing.

In the sixth chapter, The Messengers of Life, she quotes from Marianne Williamson: “Ultimately, it is not our credentials but our commitment to a higher purpose that creates our effectiveness in the world.” (p. 28)

In this chapter Montgomery explains that Divine Spirit guides us to experiences that remind us of agreements we made before we were born into this life. Messengers in life may come to us as teachers, friends, movies and books. The people around us show us qualities inside ourselves and help us figure out our life’s mission.

Montgomery also shares what she learned about her career as a writer. In one dream, Montgomery meets Oprah Winfrey. She realized Oprah’s dream appearance intended to awaken her “to my own potential as a voice of change in the world” (p. 11) In the same chapter she says, “To write a book is to open a door literally into another world. Every work of art leaves an impression, which shapes the thoughts of others and more importantly their dreams.” (p. 13)

In Dream Yourself Awake, Montgomery takes the reader on an intimate journey. Through Montgomery’s experience, we see our own fears, failings and limiting ideas. We also see our ability to grow, learn, overcome these limitations and move into a place of love, abundance and gratitude. We see how we are divine sparks of God and how our dreams are here to teach us, give us truth and help us deal with challenges. When we pay attention, dreams will tell us about our higher goals and we can wake up, as Montgomery did. We can become strong spiritual beings, aware that we are children of God, knowing we are powerful, loving beings.

While writing this blog post, I had a waking dream experience at the end of my yoga class. The instructor said she had a quote to share and I knew it was related to this post. The quote is from the inspiring author, Marianne Williamson:

“Relationships are our primary teacher. They are the context in which we either grow into God consciousness, or deny ourselves and others the opportunity to do so.”

Have you had dreams, waking dreams or inner experience that helped you wake up to a higher truth about yourself on your journey home to God? I’d love to hear about your experiences!
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Sep 07

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Readings on Where Rivers Converge
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Uncategorized | No Comments

COME IN AND LISTEN ON SATURDAY THE 10TH

If you live in the area, I think you’d enjoy hearing local authors reading their contributions to the newly published anthology Where Rivers Converge

Saturday, September 10 1:00-3:00pm Waconia Library (WC Magazine Reading Room) Live Read of Carver County area Library Writer’s Group will feature picks from their first anthology edition “Where Rivers Converge”. Come support your favorite authors.

Waconia Library 217 S. Vine St. 952-442-4714

Authors will also probably have some of their other books on display as well.

I’ll be reading my fiction piece, “Interrupted Honeymoon”.

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Nov 16

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Alex & Emma: A Movie Review
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Uncategorized | 14 Comments

Alex & Emma

Alex & Emma is an enchanting romantic comedy. The description on the back cover of the DVD says it well: “Publish or perish! Alex has just 30 days to finish his romance novel and collect his writing fee—money he owes to loan sharks threatening his life. So stressed-out Alex hires Emma to be his stenographer and discovers she’s opinionated, direct, a cause of exasperation . . . and a source of inspiration.”

The description leaves out that Alex (Luke Wilson) has writer’s block, hasn’t even started the novel and is living in a dumpy apartment. The loan sharks hang him outside his second-story window by his legs and burn his laptop on the gas stove to encourage him to get the money he owes them.

Without a laptop, Alex is forced to hire a stenographer, luring her in with a false ad that he works at a law office.

Emma (Kate Hudson) shows up at the door and immediately realizes this isn’t a law office and is about to leave when anxiety-ridden Alex faints. She drags him back into his apartment by his feet—what decent person would just leave him collapsed in the hallway? she reasons. When he awakens, Alex shows her his hardcover, published novel to convince her that he really is a writer in need of her services as a stenographer.

Emma picks up the book, looks at his photo on the back cover, then immediately turns to the last page to see if she likes the ending. Alex is dismayed that anyone would read the end first. Emma explains she doesn’t want to waste time reading a book if it doesn’t have a good ending—thus the fun begins.

The fun affair between Alex and Emma takes place both in the contemporary world and in the 1920s world of the novel Alex is writing with Emma’s not-always-wanted input.

As Alex writes, we learn about his past struggles to find happiness and love. In the end we wonder if Alex will make the same mistakes with Emma that he made in the past or if he is willing to move forward?

For a writer, the book is especially enjoyable. The movie gives an insight into Alex’s writing process and his struggles against his own insecurities that blocks his creative flow. The viewer sees how the world of the book is shaped, the changes made to the characters and plot, and the struggles an author goes through to find the best ending.

For a fun evening, see Alex & Emma. It’s full of wit, imagination and will make you laugh and feel good about the absurdities and complexities of life.

If you’re a writer, have you ever had writer’s block? If so, how did you get over it? Is Alex’s process of writing a novel similar to yours or different? In what ways? Do you work well under pressure and deadlines or does that make it worse?

By Heidi Skarie, author of Star Rider on the Razor’s Edge. Visit my website at www.heidiskaie.com and sign up for my newsletter and to receive a free short story.

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Apr 16

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Guided in Dreams
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Book Review, Uncategorized, Writing | 70 Comments

Recently I was drawn to read Paulji A Memoir by Patti Simpson. I had read it in 1985 when it was first published, but felt the urge to read it again. I’m glad I did because in the thirty years since then my consciousness and experiences have changed me and how I relate to the book.

In the beginning of the book Patti describes her life as unremarkable. She was happily married, the mother of four, and a regular churchgoer.

One night while Patti seemed to be asleep the words of a book run through her head as if she were a tape recorder. “It had been a most exciting and well-written mystery story, and as it unfolded, word by word, it left me fascinated. I didn’t know where this mystery story was coming from: in a sense, it seemed to be from me. In the morning I couldn’t remember a word of it, but I had. . . a knowingness . . . that someday I would write a book.” p. 10. Paulji A Memoir might have been the book she knew she would write someday.

The experience Patti describes in this passage struck me as very similar to an experience I had in which I had a series of six dreams that was like watching a movie. Only, unlike Patti, I remembered the dreams and recorded them. I ended up with ninety pages in my dream journal. Like Patti at the time I wasn’t an author, but the series of dreams inspired me to write the story I saw in the dream and led to writing Star Rider on the Razor’s Edge.

In Paulji a Memoir, Patti had another nocturnal experience several years later in 1968. This time she went to bed but instead of falling asleep, she remained in full awareness. In the morning she felt fully refreshed. She was aware that what she’d heard in this state was crystal clear, but she couldn’t remember what she’d learned when she awoke. This went on for many nights. Patti knew she was hearing the explanation of life, of existence and the truth of being.

On the twenty-first day Patti awoke knowing there was a book she needed to find. She went to a corner market and as she looked at a rack her hand shot out and she grabbed a book. It was In My Soul I am Free about Paul Twitchell written by Brad Steiger. This book turned out to be the beginning of an amazing spiritual journey she had as a student of Paul Twitchell that continued over the next three years until his passing in 1971. Patti grew to be a dedicated student and worked closely with Paul Twitchell, helping him bring the works of Eckankar to the world. During this time she came to know the private side of Paul Twitchell and his wife Gail.

The book is a wonderful story of Patti’s memories of this remarkable spiritual leader. The stories she tells are inspiring, humorous at times and uplifting. It’s well worth the read.

One of the stories was that a couple of years after Patti was taught on the inner for twenty-one nights, Paul Twitchell wrote and published the first chapter of the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad. When Patti read it, she recognized it as the words of wisdom she’d heard during those nights.

I read the Shariyat-Ki-Sugmad in 1971 and for me it was the same experience of recognizing the truth that Patti had, though I read it in the outer form.

How many of us are guided inwardly in some way? We might have an amazing dream, be directed to buy a book, call a phone number, or have a lucid dream. Others of us might be given a book by a friend or be inwardly nudged to go to an event.

The more I hear people’s stories, the more I realize we are all guided in our search for truth.

Have you had a remarkable experience on your journey to find the greater meaning of life? If so write your experience in the comment section of this blog post. I always love hearing about people’s experiences.

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Jan 30

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Interview with Iva Kenaz, author of The Witch Within
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Book Review, Uncategorized | 5 Comments

I just finished reading The Witch Within and greatly enjoyed the main character’s journey both physically and spiritually. The following is an interview with the author.

Iva Kenaz author.

What inspired you to become a writer?

I’ve been fascinated with storytelling since childhood. I wrote many simple hand-written books and in my teenage years I wrote a three-part novel about past lives. I often had repetitive dreams and visions in which I experienced stories from another person’s point of view and felt compelled to note them down. I keep returning to these dreams for inspiration. Writing is something very magical and sacred to me. I believe that it’s a divine communication between the author and the worlds beyond.

What is The Witch Within about and what is the major theme?

The Witch Within is set in 16th century Bohemia and is about a sixteen-year-old gifted healer, Talitha who has been charged with witchcraft.

Talitha escapes to the abandoned Cursed Lands and seeks the ancient cave of her ancestors where her grandmother lived. In the mystical woods, she starts to remember her ancestral lore of healing and magical symbolism and receives guidance on how to survive from the local spirits. But then she is captured by two men who were sent to bring her back to the local justice. One is a brute, but the other one is fatally attracted to her.

After Talitha manages to escape them, she finds her ancestral cave, but also another one at the highest peak of the forest where a group of refugee women have established a camp. By facing both the dark and bright side of her kin, Talitha learns that what she thought was her curse, may yet become her gift.

The major theme is survival, both in physical, emotional and spiritual sense. It’s about overcoming one’s fears and limitations and becoming empowered using primordial inner wisdom.

The Witch Within

What kind of research did you do for the book? What made you pick the 16th century in South Bohemia?

The story is inspired by repetitive dreams and visions I used to have and partly by a book called The Secret History of Czech Lands (by A.Cesal,O.Dvorak and V.Matl) that focuses on the long-gone mysteries of my home country.

During the 16^th century the witch-hunts became more serious all over Europe but I decided on that period mainly symbolically, as the story is made up and thus remains a fantasy.

I was also inspired by the beautiful magnetic countryside of South Bohemia, particularly mountain Kleť, which could translate to Cursed or Mountain of Curses. In the middle ages many landscapes of South Bohemia were feared and some of them even drowned under lakes and ponds. People considered them cursed and haunted, however, those places had rich pagan history and concealed the wisdom of Celtic, Slavic and Germanic tribes.

How does Talitha, the main character, grow and change in your book from her experiences?

Talitha starts off as a gifted healer but she has a very low-self esteem and feels guilty about the death of her brother. She believes that her choice of herbs caused his death. It’s only once she manages to heal one of her captors that she realizes she is truly able to save lives.

Eventually, she also becomes initiated in the magical and healing power of runes and a part of her soul that used to be conscious of such ancestral mysteries begins to re-unite with her present self.

Her spirit is also greatly tested by the shadow side of magic but in the end Talitha learns to understand that the witch within her might not be a curse but an actual virtue.

What writing project are you working on now?

I’ve been working on a stand-alone sequel to The Witch Within that focuses on Talitha’s granddaughter, Berkana, and delves deeper into the mysteries of the natural spirit, runes and sacred geometry.

Iva Kenaz’s Bio.

I’m an indie author and a devoted student and practitioner of Sacred Geometry, Astrology, Tarot, Runes and Channeling. My novels are mainly visionary/metaphysical and are greatly influenced by spirituality, symbolism and philosophy.
In June 2014 I published my first novel The Witch Within and later that year also a personal confession titled My Melancholic Diary. I studied screenwriting at a film university in Prague, FAMU and MA Creative Writing at London South Bank University. Currently, I’ve been working on a stand-alone sequel to The Witch Within as well as doing a research for my non-fiction book about archetypes in storytelling.

Here is Iva Kenzaz’s website.

http://www.ivakenaz.com/
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Aug 24

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Samurai Garden by Gail Tsukiyama
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Book Review, Uncategorized | One Comment

The Seine River

While in Paris my husband and I stayed in a small but delightful apartment in the center of the city near the Seine River, so we could watch the boats and browse the souvenirs and artwork sold by street vendors. A short walk brought us to Île de la Cité where historical Notre Dame Cathedral is located. I was happy to be in the magical City of Light that I’d heard about since I was young.

At the apartment I saw Samurai Garden by Gail Tsukiyama on the bookshelf. I’d read one of Tsukiyama’s other books and enjoyed it, so I decided to read this one.

Samurai Garden

The story is about Stephen Chan, a young Chinese man, who contracted tuberculosis while in college. His parents send him to recover and live at their beach house on the ocean in Tarumi, Japan. The caretaker, Matsu, shows the inner strength of a samurai as he takes care of Stephen, the house and lovingly tends the beautiful garden.

The story is set in 1937, the turbulent time period when the Japanese Imperial Army invades China. The quiet world of Tarumi, where Stephen paints and swims as he regains his health, seems removed from the terrible events in China. Yet the war hangs over Stephen as the armies head south to his family home in Hong Kong, reflecting problems within his own family.

Over time Stephen befriends Matsu who eventually takes him to visit his beloved Sachi, who is a leper.

Many years earlier when Sachi first became ill, to be a leper was considered a disease that brought shame on your family. In those days, it was considered more honorable to commit suicide than to live with leprosy. Sachi was unable to kill herself like the other lepers of her village. Matsu found her in the woods and helped her build a home in the newly formed leper colony. Over the years he continued to visit and help her.

As the story unfolds, Stephen learns Sachi’s story. Before she became ill, she was a beautiful, vain young woman. The tragedy of the disease taught her that beauty comes from within. She also learned that sometimes it is harder to live with adversity than to die.

Japanese Garden in Portland, Oregon

While reading the story, I wondered what it would be like to have a serious illness. For both Sachi and Stephen, it was isolating; they had live apart from their families so the disease wouldn’t spread to them. I also thought of Sachi’s fate. What would it be like to be a beautiful young woman who contracted a disease that eats away your face? How would it feel to be shunned by your family and fiancé, who are afraid of contracting the disease?

The story has a quiet beauty to it as it moves slowly and gracefully, sweeping us into its tale and revealing the characters’ mysteries. It was well worth the read.

Japanese Garden

Everything we go through in life, especially the challenges, teaches us something. Have you ever had a serious illness or felt isolated? What did you learn from the experience?

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May 02

0

Tour of International Space Station
By heidi.skarie@gmail.com | Uncategorized | 3 Comments

I write science fiction and am always interested in what it would be like to be in space. While researching for my Star Rider series I came across this youtube video. It’s a cool film showing the inside of the international space station. I especially enjoyed seeing what it was like to be in a place without gravity.

For example, they don’t have chairs because they never need to sit down. The video shows all the station’s modules and tells how they work, eat, sleep and go the bathroom. They also show what earth looks like from the station. This is a cool video worth seeing if you like space.

Here is the Commander of the International Space Station, Sunita Williams of NASA who recorded an extensive tour of the orbital laboratory.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/doN4t5NKW-k

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