THE GENESIS OF THE HOUSE ON BLACK LAKE
The genesis of House on Black Lake Lake did not come in a dream, as did Stephanie Mayers, Twilight, although many dreams conbributed to its execution. The beginning of my story began with an actual experience not unlike that of Alexandra's. I was a newly separated mother invited to holiday at the summer home of friends. On the night of our arrival, my son and I were rowed out to stay in a decaying house on an island in the middle of the lake. The remainder of my stay was steeped in drama and mystery, and when I returned I told the story again and again, until one night years later I told the story to a man who would encourage me to set the story to paper.
In a seaside bar in Venice Beach, California the elderly poet, who was a muse to younger writers, told me to go home and describe how it felt to be rowed across the lake to the house on the island. The story would  take its own shape once I started, he told me. When I returned to my home in the San Francisco Bay Area, I fell while watering a plant and landed in bed or on crutches for over a month. I felt terribly sorry for myself, and began to write The House on Black Lake. As the old man advised, the story did take on its own life, in a way I could not have possibly imagined. None of the scenes were designed by me - they all came unbidden. As example, I dreamt that a handsome French looking man approached me in an antique store, and as I admired a French armoire he said," just because it says its French it doesn't mean it actually is" - then he said the name Labat's. There are endless stories and anecdotes for nearly all of the scenes in the book. They are all interwoven with experiences, and yet separate, with a life of their own.Â
What has surprised me most about setting out to write this book, is that it has rewritten the script of my own life. The journeys I have taken to bring truth to the book have enriched my life with incredible experiences, and many new friends who are still in my life.   Goethe's quote about boldness having power and magic is true - if you have something inside that aches to be brought to life - begin it now!
A.