|
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS |
|
I want to thank my wife, Anchee Min, for suggesting in 1999 that I might be interested in the life of Robert Hart. She also edited the first rough draft of the novel back in early 2001 when it had about three hundred pages. After that, over the years, it grew into almost eight hundred and was eventually split into two manuscripts, so there is a sequel brewing in the background. |
Anchee's novels have been translated into about thirty languages around the world. Her first, a memoir, Red Azalea, won the Carl Sandburg Literary Award in 1993 and was named a New York Times Notable Book of the Year in 1994. Becoming Madame Mao was a national and international best seller along with her last two novels, Empress Orchid and The Last Empress. The Empress in her last two novels is the Empress Robert Hart meets in chapter one of My Splendid Concubine. Since 1999, I have been the first person to edit the rough drafts of her novels. |
| Dodie Katague for his in-depth comments through the entire manuscript of My Splendid Concubine as it was approaching seven hundred pages. He examined the manuscript with the eye of a seasoned lawyer and challenged me to improve as a writer. Dodie is the high-tech crimes prosecutor for Contra Costa County and recently has been involved in the grade changing scandal at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, California. | While Dodie was proof reading My Splendid Concubine and its sequel, he was writing his novel, Cloyne Court, and I had the privilege of making comments on his work. Although Cloyne Court hasn't been published yet, I plan to be one of Dodie's first customers. I had a good time reading Cloyne Court, a coming of age story that takes place at and around the University at Berkeley, California. I liked Cloyne Court a lot and would like to see it published soon, so I can buy a copy or maybe two or three and mail some as gifts to friends. |
|
Mary Winifred Evans, the author of The Show Must Go On. Mary proofed and made comments for all of My Splendid Concubine and continues to do so for the sequel. |
The Show Must Go On is a novel about vaudeville and Mary Evans' mother and father. Her manuscript is currently going through revisions, and I have had the privilege of proof reading and making comments. It is a heart warming story that at times is heart breaking. You will have to read it to see what I mean. Unfortunately you will have to wait until Mary is satisfied with her work. |
| Janet Barnes. I took her class, Create a Web Page for Your Club or Business, at the Acalanes Adult Education Center to learn HTML code so I could program this Website. If you live in the San Francisco area, East Bay, I recommend her class. |
Visit http://www.acalanes.k12.ca.us/adulted to discover more. Janet Barnes is teaching several computer related classes this spring and summer for 2008. |
| I want to thank Carrol Clark, Neil Murphy, Tim Mosied, and Toby Kahan for their comments, continued support and encouragement. | Although Marshall Kahan is no longer with us, I'm going to thank him anyway. I knew Marshall for the thirty years I was a classroom teacher in the rough and tumble public schools. Like me, he was a former United States Marine. We literally hiked and climbed many mountains together over the years through the hot summers and a couple of times in blizzards. I'm sure Marshall hasn't forgotten the one blizzard where we were attempting to reach the top of Mt. San Antonio in the San Gabriel Mountains at 10,000 feet. After a long and arduous climb as we approached the summit, we had to turn back. The cold was too much for both of us. His support for my writing never dimmed. I miss his sense of humor. The world isn't as bright as it once was. I'm sure if he were alive today, he would have been the first one to buy a copy of My Splendid Concubine. |
My Splendid Concubine Home Page
background images taken from paintings by Xu Xiao-dong, Zhouzhuang, China