It is not the age that gives us the writing edge, but our experiences in life. You can check out the full piece here.
~📖☀️❤️
So… it has been a hot minute since I have updated this space with new pieces that I have posted on Medium or other Medium spaces. Therefore, I thought I would just make a post to recommend you follow @theoshwriter on Instagram to get the fastest updates on what I’m putting out into the web-verse.
In other areas, I am still plugging away on my book and have even taken on a new writing project with a bit shorter term deadlines, so stay tuned.
Finally, progress is happening with my book coaching study as well, so I just may find the last quarter of the year setting me up nicely for a newly invented me in 2023!
For the meantime, though, I’ll try to be a bit more consistent here with sharing what is going out from my fingertips to your eyes.
~📖☀️❤️
It is always important to consider why we must be the one to share the stories that we have in our heads. You can check out the full piece here.
~📖☀️❤️
Hot off the press from my writing session yesterday!
I wanted to see if I could write a believable and engaging fight scene as I develop the character of KyungSun. [X] has yet to be named, so if you have suggestions for a good tough-guy Korean name, 💪🏽😅 let me know.
What do you think?
Feel free to write me here in comments or on Instagram or email! I look forward to hearing from you.
~ OSH 📖☀️❤️
——-
“Oi, sae-gi, you son of a b*tch, now that we have you without Lee-seongsaengnim’s protection, let’s see what you can do!” [X] was one of Lee’s other minions, who felt jilted by KyungSun having joined the faction and clearly becoming Lee’s favorite. [X] had been a loyal follower of Lee’s for years and was touted to be grooming for leadership in the gang – that was until his position had been thwarted.
“You think you can waltz in here, show off some taekwondo moves, kiss Lee’s ass and then everyone is going to follow, don’t you? Well, you’re going to have to get through me as I’m the one you will be groveling to when Lee is gone.”
Seeing a glint of metal flicker in the night light, KyungSun knew that he was going to have to do more than prove himself. For the past few months he had been deflecting the various rumors that [X] was challenging him to a fight in Dosan National Park to try to put him in his place. Even Lee-nim had heard the threats and told KyungSun to ignore [X] as he was a fool, but when [X] had whispered that he knew about his secret rendezvouses when they last met at Lee Construction, he knew that he was going to have to take a definitive action to prevent the fool from endangering not only what he and Lee had been working on, but also ChoHee and her family.
“Why don’t you just accept that you lack in every way, [X] ? You’d be a lot happier if you would just know your place. You’ve failed to prove yourself to Lee, that’s on you, not me!”
“If it hadn’t been for you and your distraction of Lee’s attention, then I could have succeeded in getting the Suga Corporation contract.”
“Don’t kid yourself! You have no vision for Lee Construction as a major player in the reconstruction of the country. Your contribution capability is to shovel the manure needed to make the soil fertile.”
“How dare you, you shi-bol-nom!” With that, [X] pulled the knife from his back pant waistline and signaled for KyungSun to approach with his empty hand.
KyungSun preferred not to use weapons. His training focused on disarming and neutralizing any violent threats. Knowing that this was an important fight for his life, position and safety, he closed his eyes visualizing where [X] was standing and inhaled. As he slowly exhaled, he opened his eyes and locked on to [X] ignoring the knife being wielded and zig zagged through the air to distract and scare.
Waiting for the pre-engagement dance to begin, KyungSun simply stood breathing slowly in and out without ever losing focus on [X] ’s throat, which was his target. In contrast, [X] rotated his knife like a baton, weaving it back and forth as he stepped closer and closer to the distance needed for him to do the damage he desperately wanted to apply. Once the gap was closed, the dance began. Watching [X] ’s shoulders, KyungSun moved in the opposite direction to evade any potential knife swings.
With the impatience expected to be shown, [X] took a wild swing to force KyungSun to engage. Instead, KyungSun simply slid to the side until he was on [X] ’s right and then with swift movements, twisted to his left keeping his right arm taut so that contact with [X] ’s knife arm caused him to drop the weapon from the strength of the impact.
Now both weaponless, KyungSun wasted no time to then give a quick kick with his left foot to send [X] back to his starting point and groaning more from surprise than pain since KyungSun had not put his full energy into it. He half-hoped that he could convince [X] to give up with a couple of pushes. That was quickly pushed aside when [X] came charging toward him with a second knife raised up next to his chin with nothing but animalistic rage in his eyes.
Immediately regaining his stance, KyungSun steadied himself calmly waiting until just the right moment as [X] ever so slightly pulled back the knife to cock it for stabbing, and then KyungSun very swiftly stepped to his left, and roundhouse kicked [X] in the back so that his forward momentum caused him to fall dropping the knife and face-planting into the ground with the wind knocked out of him.
KyungSun could see that [X] was defeated for now. Without a word, he picked up the knives and his jacket. Covering the weapons from anyone who might pass and see them in his hand, he walked away into the darkness knowing that it would likely not be the last fight he and [X] would have. At least for now, he had proven that he was not to be underestimated.
Here is another section of my novel that I managed to get written. It will likely be a small part of the full story, but is also key to the core of the narrative.
What do you think?
Feel free to write me here in comments or on Instagram or email! I look forward to hearing from you.
~ OSH 📖☀️❤️
——-
KyungSun had long learned to stay alert to signs from the universe. Often the signs came through the shaman he and his family had regularly visited over the years. Heeding the advice of shamans had gone somewhat out of fashion, but she had predicted KyungSun’s rise in the Myeongdeong gang and given him warnings when those in the Dongdaemon gang had planned attacks to try to remove him from leadership. Therefore, KyungSun had little reason to not trust her foretelling.
Although this visit was no different, the words of the shaman seemed so far-fetched that KyungSun’s faith was somewhat weakened.
“A blue-eyed monkey will put out the fire that keeps you from peace.”
KyungSun knew that the shaman spoke in parables or mysteries, like when she had told him that the beautiful feathers of a rooster would temporarily distract him from his goals with grave consequences. He had indeed paid a high price for his brief romantic interlude with ChoHee. Not only had he been distracted by love, he had left himself open to attacks by the Myeongdong faction on his mentor Lee-nim. The midnight battles between the gangs had nearly cost them both their lives.
Looking back, he knew he had no regrets for the few months of pure unadulterated love that he shared with ChoHee and the short weeks he had been able to spend with his daughter.
“You cannot afford to live in the past Park-shi”, the shaman spoke bringing him back to the present. “Until the blue-eyed monkey provides you with what you seek, you must continue to stay focused on keeping your gang together for the sake of the country.”
“Yes, mudang, I understand. Kamsahamnida.” KyungSun bowed with reverence, and passed over an envelope with his regular generous donation for her services. With a smile in return, the shaman put the envelope inside her wonsam, or outer coat.
Filled with skepticism, KyungSun headed back to his car pondering more questions than answers: How was a monkey going to put out a fire, and what kind of monkey had blue eyes? Even if he considered the parable aspect, only foreigners had blue eyes and those whom he knew were merely distant business partners with no possible connection to him or his business and family.
Feeling a bit disappointed with his visit, which was unusual, KyungSun drove back to his office pushing aside the words of the shaman for another time.
——
Somewhere in another neighborhood of Seoul
ChoHee was in a rush trying to pick up an outfit for her father’s birthday celebration that would not make her mother frown as much – there was no avoiding it altogether. Although she probably should have ordered a new hanbok made, she struggled to find the balance of being the required stern modern executive woman and showing a softer side as a mother, wife and daughter.
When the brief affair and incident on which no one ever spoke of passed, ChoHee locked away her feminine energies in a box leaving out just enough that was required for her to be taken seriously and fulfill familial obligations. She had almost forgotten that soft naive young woman that she had been, but the yellow hanbok in the store window reminded her of the night when Lee-nim and KyungSun had first visited her family home.
With that memory on her mind, ChoHee passed by a sign for a fortuneteller. Although her mother was a frequent visitor and believer in the sajus, she had hardened her heart to such mystical fantasies and focused only on what she could control. However, in this soft nostalgia, she glanced at her watch and decided she could spare a few minutes. At the very least, she would have something to talk about with her mother that wouldn’t carry an air of disapproval or disappointment.
Double-checking that the stall was advertising saju fortune telling and not one of the others that she knew her mother would not take seriously, ChoHee stepped into the stall. She bowed her head in greeting, saying “annyonghasaeyo”. The saju nodded his head back and motioned without words for her to take a seat in front of him.
With a scan of her face, the fortune teller spoke, “you have come with a question, yes?”
“Oh! Um, well, not really…um, …” she adjusted her seating position uncomfortably.
“I can see, you want to know if your suffering will ever end.”
“Uh…well, I guess so, yes. I mean, I don’t really think I’m actually suffering…” she tried to reason with him, but she stopped when he put his pointer finger to his lips as a way of signaling she did not need to speak so much.
“Your birth information.”
“July 4, 1969 at 3:45am.”
The fortune teller closed his eyes and nodded. Seemingly from nowhere, he pulled out a large book and deftly moved his fingers to find the page he was looking for.
“Mmhm…” he muttered and put his fingers in motion again to find another page. With each, “mmhm…” and searching fingers, ChoHee found herself more and more curious what he was discovering on the pages.
“Hmph,” the fortune teller exclaimed and just as the book appeared, it disappeared into nowhere. He closed his eyes again, took in a deep breath, held it for what seemed too long, and then slowly let out a gasping sigh.
Opening his eyes and looking directly into ChoHee’s, he spoke,
“You have been suffering for many years now. It is your destiny to suffer, but it will lessen when the blue-eyed monkey finds you. Then, you will be able to enjoy true love again. Also, you will continue to have success in your profession for the cosmos create balance for your suffering. The country will owe you a great sense of gratitude, though you may not ever benefit from it. A trip over the waters will be required of you for the health of someone close to you.”
Seeing ChoHee’s confusion and skepticism, the saju smiled. “Don’t worry, I only foresee that your suffering days may not be so long now.”
Slowly nodding her head and wondering what exactly her mother was going to make of the fortune-teller’s words, if she decided to share them, ChoHee tried to smile back as she got up from her chair.
“How much do I owe you?”
“120,000 won (90USD)”
Surprised by the amount, but not in the mood to negotiate and aware that he must have known who she was and that she could afford such a steep price, ChoHee took out four bills and placed them on the table.
“gomabseubnida. annyeonghi gaseyo.” ChoHee used the polite form to thank him and take her leave.
Just as when she entered, he smiled and nodded wordlessly in return.
I’ve been a bit absent-minded, literally, these days with limits on my writing time and space. However, I did manage to get this one written. You can check out the full piece here.
~📖☀️❤️
So, I have planned some time to do more with my writing persona, pages, and the like. Therefore, along with my new Medium post, I’ve redone my Instagram post look. Can you tell which one I am? 😀
What do you think? Let me know in the comments, or better yet visit my IG account and comment there!
📖☀️❤️
