last updated: 9 December 2024
background, tips, insights and titbits
book 3/1, shaping
Writing book 3, shaping
titbits
One of the final chapters of book 3, shaping, was one of the first chapters I ever wrote for the easy town books, back in 2016.
All in all book 3 was mapped out and written in 2016, in winter 2021/22, in winter 2022/23, and in 2024.
From 2016 onwards, book 3 got the most notes of all easy town books with over six hundred pages by 2021.
In January 2022, I began to write book 3 for real, and I started with the last part of the book. My reasons: the last part starts in January, and I knew that this part had the most defiance and encouragement potential. I needed both. And it worked. It still does and I can only recommend to read those chapters whenever a boost is needed.
When got my cancer diagnosis, I pushed myself to start writing again even though I was still recovering from years of overwork, but I wanted and sort of needed to take a first draft of the book with me to the hospital. I did. I edited way into the night before the operation. And I remember it as a relaxing, reassuring evening.
I didn’t read much in hospital, but just having the book there, the first relatively complete draft, was my rock.
Book 3 was supposed to be published in a single book. When I realised that I was running out of time and might not be able to publish the whole book before Christmas, I decided to split the book into three parts. Today, I can’t believe, I hadn’t thought of that before. The splits make perfect sense and each part of book 3 has its very own flavour.
The Christmas date was important because I wanted to share the Christmas chapter in book 3/2 this year and not postpone its availability for another year.
But, to be honest, I also didn’t want to read it again in spring or over Easter. There comes a point in editing where you need to close a chapter.
Incidentally, I wrote the first draft of the Christmas chapter over Easter in 2023. And, yes, that was strange. In winter 2023, I spent three days in Prague for a little additional Christmas chapter research, and as a treat.
Book 3/1, shaping, starts approximately ninety minutes before the end of book 2/2, travelling.
Can I read book 3, shaping,
without having read book 1, beginning & 2, travelling?
Yes.
Book 3, shaping, is actually quite a good starting point for anyone who has yet to decide whether they want to get into this story or not.
In the first chapter, Mudiwa and Rose, do a live coverage of the day’s events and with this, they provide an introduction into what has happened so far. Other parts of this chapter paint a slightly different picture, but then, that’s how it is: a story for the public and the stories of the individuals.
There is a catch, though. Once you get into the story, there is a slight chance that you might want to read the previous books, too. I can even see someone read book 2 next, curse, read book 1, and then travel back to book 3 via a second read of book 2.
Here my recommendations for different kinds of readers:
Impatient, frustrated with the state of the world, in need of some serious boosts: book 3. All of it! And book 4/1.
Curious, undecided, sceptical: book 3/1, or the Romania chapter of book 2/2
Town planners, architects: book 3, book 1, book 2
Activists for the future: book 3, book 4/1, book 1, book 2
Billionaires: book 3/1 & book 4/1
Musicians: book 3/2, book 3/1
Politicians: book 3/1
Environmentalists: book 2, book 3, book 1
Film-makers: book 2/1, book 3/1
Thugs: book 2/1, book 3/1
A traveller, interested in people from around the world, politics, adventures, sex topics and some big questions along the way: book 2
Main interest in the sex talk: book 2
A lover of adventures: book 2, book 5, book 10
Storytellers: book 2/2, book 3/1
Lovers of love stories: probably best to start with book 1, unless you are impatient, then book 3 is the less cruel starting point
doctors, nurses, health managers: book 1, book 3/1, 3/3
Business & economics students & consultants: book 1, book 3
A thorough reader: book 1, book 2, book 3
How many movies are in book 3/1, shaping?
titbits
Jack has his first shoot for his new movie A table full of strangers in book 3/1. He is on set and in a scene. His movies The Idiot, The Lover and The Invention of Evil are mentioned, and he remembers a movie where the director refocused from gender differences to differences in talents, plus he thinks about some details of the movie he shot in the previous summer Breaking the Cycle.
Both the Invention of Evil and Breaking the Cycle are part of book 2/1, travelling.
In the Halloween chapter, Alice outlines the story for a movie she would like to see happen: Making Berlin.
None of these movies have been shot, yet, and only exist as rough outlines. If you are intrigued, get in touch: contact@charlie-alice-raya.org
On top of that The Lord of the Rings gets a mention, like in all books so far.
To answer the question: There are seven invented movies in book 3/1, shaping, and one obligatory nod to the Lord of the Rings.
Two real TV series also get a nod: Breaking Bad and Doctor Who.
Topic highlights in book 3/1
- towns – a case for towns with a purpose
- buildings – a case for imagination
- humans – a case for empowerment
- nature – a case for coexisting
- teams – a case for cooperative clashes
- international teams – a case for anchors
- friendship – a case for being friends
- politics – a case for rethinking and reshaping pretty much everything
- businesses – a case for rethinking the global economy, business practises and testing new business models
- tourism – a case for rethinking tourism
- love – a case of missed conversations
- gender – a case for the beauty of diversity
- gender – a case for bridging divides
- gender – a case to find ways out of domestic violence
- film making – a case of busting sexism and racism
- theatre – a case for waking up
- Halloween – the best monster ever
- towns – a case for composing & shaping towns
- the world – a case for taking action for our future
- the others – a case for curiosity
- shaping – a case for developing ideas together and indulging in the thinking processes
- crafts – a case for using our own minds, our own hands, our own power to create
- crafts – a case for unearthing creativity
Animals in book 3/1, shaping
titbits
Animals in book 3/1, shaping
A horse, ants, bees, ducks; monsters at Halloween, including a firebird, one of those multi-headed monsters, an octopus, basilisks, a lion, a frog, a butterfly; also an eagle or potentially two, plus more horses and seahorses.
Caller’s countries in chapter 4, 15 October
titbits
Tam Zhu, Yunnan province, China, politician, Netherlands, doctor, Papua New Guinea, influencer Singapore, magnate Azerbaijan, Sydney, businessman, artist, Lagos, Nigeria, consultant, Argentina, journalist Aotearoa New Zealand, MP, Bristol, lobbyist, philanthropist, Portugal, Japan, town planner, French businessman, I’ll scream, sell a dream, Canada, activists group, US senator Sherlyn Shepherd, Prince Al-Masudi, Otaon, businesswoman, South Africa, business tycoon, UK, Newcastle, MP, complaint, Seattle, US, Prince Harun, life, Sweden, faking it, Berlin, anonymous billionaire, conservative & carbon capture, Greece, Earl, Kent, Ireland, Lebanon, Chile, Turkey, Indonesia, Poland, Bulgaria, Scotland, Glasgow, Panama, Greenland, Monte Carlo, Estonia, Mongolia, Democratic Republic of the Congo and more unnamed locations.
pre-order
Pre-order all three parts of book 3, shaping, and receive your copy of the e-books on the days of the publications.
Book 3/1, shaping, arrivals & shaping, centres around shaping the plans for the town while here and there inner and public conflicts emerge.
Book 3/2, shaping, entanglements & silences, dives deeper into the personal struggles of some of the main characters.
Book 3/3, shaping, where do we go from here & decisions, deals with a multitude of crises, personal and for the town project. Defiance and an unexpected ally eventually win the day – sort of.
