Will you believe it, I have written a few words today! Or translated them, to be precise.
My main goal right now is still to finish a Danish novella soon (c 20,00 words – hope to have a first draft of sorts before Christmas), but plan B is to translate parts of my Danish debut, “Anna Märklin´s Family Chronicles” on days when I am not up to writing new scenes.
It even feels like a good plan, seeing that “Anna Märklin” is still # 24 on Saxo´s bestseller list. If it sells in Denmark, it may also do so abroad.
And here for the promised teaser. Please tell me if this makes sense at all.
Anna kept her eyes on Karin´s spice rack. It hung precisely at her eye level which meant around one hundred and sixty centimetres above the floor. Tiny glass cylinders with basil, cardamom, curry, dill, marjoram, oregano, paprika, thyme, all written in flourishing letters. If you discounted the tall salt and pepper mills in beechwood, Karin´s modest collection of spices were lined up in alphabetical order with uniform army green forage cap screw tops. Anna didn´t know how long she had been breathing through her mouth. She forced herself not to look at the floor.
djskrimiblog 
Oh, that is great! I can guess what’s on the floor! You completely reeled me in!
I can certainly imagine what’s one the floor, too! I’m wondering…is Anna standing there in shock or is she tied up and unable to move?
Cathryn: I expected you to smell the …. on the floor 😉
Kelly: I am glad it works. And I know this short paragraph isn´t exactly self-explanatory, but as long as it catches your attention…
I also wondered if this description made sense: “… spices were lined up in alphabetical order with uniform army green forage cap screw tops” – linguistically, it works extremely well in Danish, but if it sounds silly or confusing, I´d better drop it in English.
It seems a bit wordy to me, but it does set an image in my mind.
Kelly: I agree – in Danish it is fewer words (and a fine pun). I´ll have to fix it at some point.
I’m a visual person and appreciate descriptive details as long as they are not too long. I can’t imagine what’s on the floor. Not the spices as the vials are not broken…
I cannot imagine being able to translate something into another language so well.
Harvee: well, there is no need to keep it secret as the next few lines would reveal that it was a body anyway 🙂
Patti: thank you. It is not necessarily as easy as writing in English in the first place so I have learnt that even with your own work it takes lots of time and effort.
I figured it was a body on the floor since she’s trying so hard not to look at it. This is a good teaser that has me wondering about the rest of the story. I really admire you for sticking to your writing despite health issues. I know from my own experience how difficult that is. I bow to you, my friend.
Barbara: what a kind comment, thank you. And the novel does reasonably well in Denmark (have got two very positive reviews so far).