Storytelling for Week 10: The Godfather

“Is he in?”

The men nodded and I breathed a sigh of relief. It is not easy to catch the Godfather on one of his days in the office.

I was patted down to make sure I was not carrying any weapons and escorted through a dark hallway. The bodyguards stepped away and motioned for me to open the door. This was it. This was the big moment. This was the meeting that I had arranged for what seemed like my entire career. A moment with the Godfather was a moment that could make or break you as a person, much less a journalist.

I took a deep breath and swung the door open. The swivel chair behind the oak desk turned slowly – maybe the word is majestically? The large, older man gave me a look I could not describe. It was one that read my soul but also seemed unamused at being disturbed.

“How can I help you?” The Italian accent floated across the room.

“Well, yes … um, thank you for getting me in to see you. I was just wondering … if you would be so kind as to tell me … I mean …” I was embarrassed at how I was handling myself.

“I do not have all day. Please get it out.”

“Of course. Yes, I need to know what you know about Sita.” There. I had spit out a question that had ravaged my mind for weeks.

The Godfather chuckled slowly. “They always want to know. Most of the time they are much too afraid to publish what I tell them.”

“I promise I will publish this!” I said, way too eager for my own liking.

“Now, kid. Do not get ahead of yourself. You have not even heard what I have to say yet.”

I leaned back in my chair, cheeks red from embarrassment.

“Sita was running an establishment behind Ram’s back. She had a gambling business going. Although, no one understands why she had it. It did not seem that her and Ram were losing money. If they were, it was certainly covered up really well. Anyway, since Ram was away at all of these battles, he never realized what Sita was doing. Until the one day that he decided to surprise her at home two days early. He found Sita hiding money behind a brick. They got into a huge fight. I do not know if Sita was the one who left or if Ram forced her to leave. Whatever happened resulted in Sita out of the home and Ram covering up a huge scandal. I mean, what would the papers have to say about such a story?”

The real question is if you are going to publish it.”

I sat stunned in my chair. Who would have known that Sita was leading one of the biggest gambling rings? Also why had the story not been told? I felt like several reporters would have a great day publishing this. I was going to publish it.

Little did I know what obstacles I was about to face in getting this story to the press.

Godfather

AUTHOR’S NOTE: This is coming from a retelling of Sita. It makes it difficult to do that retell of a retelling. So, I decided to go with an idea I had earlier about the Washerman in the original story and how he reminded me of the Godfather. I kept similar plot structure in the story, but spun it so the Godfather was a good guy and gave the reporter her needed information. If I were to continue, I would introduce the Washerman and his men as they attempt to keep the true story of Sita from getting out into the public. I really do not want to give important parts of the book away. I will say that what happened to Sita was not related to her running a gambling operation behind Ram’s back. That just came to me since I was already writing about the Godfather. I highly recommend that everyone watches the Godfather and reads this book. That would be a really fun time. The original story comes from Samhita Arni’s The Missing Queen (2014).

Reading Diary B [Arni's The Missing Queen]

I finished reading Samhita Arni's The Missing Queen.

I am so sad that it is over. This has been one of the most fun books to read for a class that I have had so far in my three years of college. However, I do not want to say too much in case someone else decides to read the story. I hope someone else decides to read this story!

I am going to say that it never failed to surprise me. Also, the ending was stunning. I could hardly believe that turn of events.

When I think of retelling a story, I think of this style. It makes such a difference if the author can magically take the basic structure and flesh it out in a new direction.

I highly recommend this story and I definitely plan on looking for Samhita Arni's other books.

The Missing Queen

Reading Diary A [Arni's The Missing Queen]

I read from Samhita Arni's The Missing Queen.

Once again, this was an interesting read. It never stops moving and the plot is always changing. I think this makes what could be a boring story turn into something fascinating that is able to keep readers on the edge of their seat the entire time.

I had to laugh. When she thought she finally saw Sita, I eagerly clicked to the next page and my computer took forever to load. It was quite annoying.

I do not really want to say too much because I want to encourage everyone to read it for themselves. In fact, I might just buy the actual book and send it around to all of my friends so they can read it for themselves.

Random Picture of India

Storytelling for Week 9: The Interview

Aruna choked on her coffee.

Did that reporter really just ask Ram himself about what happened to Sita?

Whoa.

Aruna remembered wondering why Sita disappeared. However, she would never have the guts to ask Ram what happened.

The mood had instantly shifted in the interview. Ram's eyes widened and Aruna thought she saw a hint of panic. Interesting. Was he hiding something?

"Actually, well ... I do have something to say. Something I have been wanting to say for a long time now," Ram started to say.

Now, Aruna saw Lakshmana's eyes widen in horror. He begin to signal people behind the camera.

Ram continued. "Sita was the love of my life and it broke my heart when she left. I thought we were going to be together forever. And now, she has been gone for so long!" Aruna thought she saw tears in his eyes.

Lakshmana cleared his throat rather loudly and shot a death glare at Ram, who did not seem to notice. The reporter had a tissue from her purse and handed it to him. Was it just the one question that had needed to be asked in order to get answers that everyone had wondered about for years now?

Aruna was beginning to be greatly amused by Lakshmana's attempts to derail Ram while remaining as regal as he could in his stretched-out general's uniform. His face was beginning to turn bright red from all of the fake coughing he was doing.

"It really started one day when we had a fight. It was not even a big fight. It was something so little. I think Sita had wanted a pet. For some reason, in my foolishness, I thought it would be too much responsibility for her. After all, she had gotten herself kidnapped by Ravana years ago," Ram said as he shook his head.

Lakshmana had moved in on Ram. None of his not-so-subtle attempts were working to stop Ram from telling this massive secret. "Sir, um, I think we better consider what is best for your well-being," Lakshmana said forcefully. The reporter glanced at the people behind the camera. Aruna assumed that the producer was angry, because a look of fear crossed over the reporter's face.

"No! I want to say it. You know I have been wanting to say this for a very long time!" Ram turned toward the cameras. "Sita has disappeared because

Suddenly, Aruna's television screen went fuzzy. The show had gone off air because Ram was about to answer the question that had been on everyone's mind for years.

Aruna's TV

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Wow. That was so hard. I had such a difficult time with this week's Storytelling post because I had already been reading a retelling of a story. So, I had to retell the retelling in a way that was unique. It definitely took a few tries to get it to where I wanted the story to go.

In the original story, the reporter asks about Sita, who had disappeared years ago. She asked Ram, the name for Rama in this story, about it while on live television. Originally, Ram took a few political moves and dodged the reporter's question. The reporter then is followed by the powerful guy called The Washerman who oversees all of the media sources in their town. For my story, I wanted to re-imagine the scenario, but make Ram want to answer the question. This retelling is a political thriller, so what if Ram was being forced to ignore Sita's disappearance? I did not have Ram give away the answer to Sita's whereabouts since I have not read that far in the book yet! I suggest checking back in next week to see what happens! The original story came from Samhita Arni's The Missing Queen (2014).

Reading Diary B [Arni's The Missing Queen]

I read from Samhita Arni's The Missing Queen.

I was still eagerly turning pages for this part of the reading. This is one of the best retellings of the story I have ever read.

The part where she is sent to the prison reminded me so much of The Count of Monte Cristo. He was wrongfully sent to prison. The prisoner in the cell next to him educates him on everything he knows while they prepare to break out. Although it is slightly different in this story, she is still imprisoned for just asking the wrong questions. 

I think adding The Washerman as the all-seeing overlord of the network was a great move. That reminds me of The Godfather. I am just really enjoying how the author tied all of these story lines together into this story. Also, I am constantly intrigued because the story moves so quickly and in ways that the reader would not expect. 

Can't wait for next week's readings!

The Godfather/ aka what I imagine the Washerman as ...

Reading Diary A [Arni's The Missing Queen]

I read from Samhita Arni's The Missing Queen.

Wow. This was so fascinating I just wanted to read it all day! It reminds me a lot of what I what trying to make my Storybook out to be.

The way that the story opens with the reporter interviewing the older Queen Kaikeyi. She brings up the disappearance of Sita, which apparently no one knows the story behind. It makes me wonder how I would feel if the I was one of their citizens. Would I notice if the country leader's wife had gone missing?

I think one of my favorite parts about what I have read so far is the way that the author re-imagines characters into modern times and imagines how the years might have affected them. Lakshmana was my favorite one of these, The way he was described as being stately but having the belly in his general uniform matched perfectly to what I had in my head.

I am so excited to read more of this book!

I highly recommend!

Reading Plan

There are SO MANY OPTIONS. It is kind of hard to figure out what I want to do. However, I am going to do a rough plan. I have to have some kind of plan here, but enough freedom to be flexible with my options. I don't really consider myself Type A or Type B. I consider myself Type A-.

[cue the confusion]

I like to have a plan and be super strict about my perfectionism with some things. However, with other things, I am content to let it slide.

Now that we have that cleared up, here is my tentative reading schedule:

Week 9: Sita Sings the Blues (film)

Week 10 - 11: Arni. The Missing Queen. (modern political thriller)

Week 12 - 14: Maybe Ryder's Twenty-two Goblins? It looks pretty interesting. I'll leave it here. Once I get to these weeks, maybe I will re-adjust my reading schedule.

Looking forward to the next few weeks!

P.S. I know some of you were interested in seeing a picture of my puppy. Here she is posing for her glamour shots. However, she's not too happy that I'm reading Indian Epics and not paying attention to her.

Lovely Lola (personal image)

Reflections: Looking Forward

What would I do differently for the rest of the semester? I think I am doing well so far, so I do not think there will be a lot that I am going to change.

It took awhile for me to get on track, but I think I am okay now. I know how to keep myself on top of things because I know the trouble spots. If I am not on schedule during those times, I find myself getting behind.

If I change things, it might be to write my posts in the mornings. I am a little bit more clear-minded in the mornings. This is before the stress of the day gets to me.

College

Reflections: Looking Back

So far, this class has been very interesting. I have learned things I never thought that I would have before I started college. I took this class because I wanted to gain new experiences and learn about a culture that I knew very little about. I think I have accomplished this so far. At least, I sure hope so. If I have not, at least I have read some interesting stories!

The last time I read something like these epics was when I read about the adventures of Marco Polo. It was fascinating and a little bit strange. However, all of these stories have really stayed with me. I have thought more about the Mahabharata and the Ramayana than the book I am reading just for fun.

I am pretty happy with my Storybook so far. It is definitely coming out like how it was pictured in my head. I hope others are enjoying it as much as I enjoy creating it. I have been looking at other news sites to figure out placement of text, photos, and other elements such as block quotes. It has really taught me to look at the details.

what it looks like when I think about my Storybook

It took me a little while to get a good schedule figured out for this class. I had to unexpectedly take a lot more hours at work. So, for a time, I was struggling to balance full-time classes and essentially a full-time job. I ended up sitting down with a calendar and blocking certain times for this class and enough time that I could get decently ahead of schedule if I needed to in some weeks. I think it is working much better. I am at least not stressing out so much.

I am looking forward to the rest of the semester!

Storytelling for Week 7: The Newsroom

"I want that report on my desk at 4 o'clock SHARP!"

Arya cringed. Her boss was notorious for being one of the most demanding newspaper editors in the country. However, that voice grated on her nerves every time a command rang out.

Still, she should feel lucky. Not everyone gets to work under such famous leadership. Oh well.

Arya typed away at her computer and kept her head down. She wanted to get this report on the overgrowth of deer population finished and be the best thing she had ever written.

*DING*

News alert tones went off on multiple phones in the newsroom. Arya's heart leapt into her mouth. Breaking news! she thought excitedly. She needed something good. Something big enough to keep her boss from breathing down her neck.

Arya scrambled to pick up her phone with eager anticipation. She stared at the text on her phone.

"Mountain has moved"

What? Possibilities. So many possibilities.

Her boss was standing in front of her desk. "Go!"

Arya took off.

~*~*~*~

As Arya pulled up in her car, a crowd was beginning to form. Of course. Krishna! It all made sense now. The rain had been pouring the past few days. She had not really thought a lot about it but now she saw the nearby town was flooding.

Now it all made sense.

Arya realized that in the good of Krishna's heart, he was providing a way out for the villagers. While he stood there hoisting the mountain over his head, villagers were already gathering underneath to take shelter from the rain that had not let up for even a few minutes.

She stood in awe for a few moments.

Snapping out of it, she realized she needed to work. She moved to people gathering in the crowd. Noticing one gentleman, she approached.

"Sir! Can you explain to me what you saw?"

He turned towards her. "For sure, ma'am. Krishna was going by and he realized that we were trying to evacuate our homes. He looked at the flood waters and saw that we were about to lose everything. But then ... wow ... just wow. He walked over to the mountain and hoisted it up over his head like that. Then he yelled at us to get underneath.

There are just some people in this world that inspire me to be a better person. Krishna is one of those people."

Arya nodded in agreement.

Krishna holding the mountain

Author's Note: I enjoyed the reading this week. In the original story, there is about one paragraph dedicated to this time of Krishna holding up the mountain. Not only did he hold up this mountain, he held it up for an entire week! To me, that deserved a lot more than just a few words on one page. In order to really illustrate the dedication and amazing feat that Krishna pulled off for this village, I decided to show it from someone else’s perspective. This way, the reader can really admire this feat with those in the crowds. The original story is found in Cradle Tales of Hinduism by Sister Nivedita (1907).

Reading Diary A + B {Nivedita's Krishna}

I read Sister Nivedita's Cradle Tales of Hinduism.

First of all, when two massive tests this week in another class, I found myself studying for those but looking at my copy of the Mahabharata and wishing I was writing up a new post or working on my Storybook. Oh well, I am back here now.

I really liked this retelling of Krishna's story. The writing was clear and to the point but kept the story interesting the whole way through. I do not think of that as an easy task when dealing with stories like the old Indian epics.

I like how Krishna's story kind of provides the backbone for the entire story. It seemed like I was seeing the Mahabharata from someone else's point of view. This let the reader think about it in a different way and see things they might not have seen before. For instance, I now better understand why Dritarashta's wife kept a blindfold on for her life. She was supporting her husband.

Krishna