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It's a Philip K. Dick World! “Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.” —Philip K. Dick Government intrusion into our personal lives is increasing, the economy is shot and the media focus on hate and violence. Philip K. Dick's fifth and last wife, Tessa Dick, talks about her husband. I have my own books and stories, as well.
Friday, May 25, 2012
The Darkening of the Light, cover art
Nick Buchanan's wonderful art work is always awesome. Here's his cover my my latest novel, The Darkening of the Light.
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Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Abandoned owls, revelation and insanity
An interesting post on Word and Film urges Harry Potter fans to stop abandoning their pet owls now that the movies have come to an end.
http://www.wordandfilm.com/2012/05/harry-potter-fans-stop-abandoning-your-pet-owls/
The same post goes on to point us to a "three-part Opinion piece in the New York Times (here's part one) exploring the difference between spiritual revelation and mental illness."
What, exactly is the difference between revelation and insanity? Are children mentally ill when they see monsters in the closet or under the bed? Are religious people insane when they talk to an invisible God? Are creative artists crazy, or perhaps childlike?
Was Philip K. Dick mentally ill when he encountered information from a parallel universe?
I don't understand why the New York Times piece refers to the "golden fish". Phil always called it the "pink light". In any case, it is interesting that a university professor finds the subject worthy of exploration.
Here's a snippet:
Professor Simon Critchley seems blissfully unaware of the fact that Phil studied philosophy at the University of California, or that he continued studying philosophy on his own after leaving the university.
A word of advice: If you click the links, read at your own peril. These things might expand your mind.
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http://www.wordandfilm.com/2012/05/harry-potter-fans-stop-abandoning-your-pet-owls/
The same post goes on to point us to a "three-part Opinion piece in the New York Times (here's part one) exploring the difference between spiritual revelation and mental illness."
What, exactly is the difference between revelation and insanity? Are children mentally ill when they see monsters in the closet or under the bed? Are religious people insane when they talk to an invisible God? Are creative artists crazy, or perhaps childlike?
Was Philip K. Dick mentally ill when he encountered information from a parallel universe?
I don't understand why the New York Times piece refers to the "golden fish". Phil always called it the "pink light". In any case, it is interesting that a university professor finds the subject worthy of exploration.
Here's a snippet:
Skimming through and across multiple encyclopedia entries, Dick found links and correspondences of ideas everywhere. He also stumbled into the primary texts of a number of philosophers and theologians — notably the pre-Socratics, Plato, Meister Eckhart, Spinoza, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Marx, Whitehead, Heidegger and Hans Jonas. His interpretations are sometimes quite bizarre but often compelling.http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/philip-k-dick-sci-fi-philosopher-part-1/
Professor Simon Critchley seems blissfully unaware of the fact that Phil studied philosophy at the University of California, or that he continued studying philosophy on his own after leaving the university.
A word of advice: If you click the links, read at your own peril. These things might expand your mind.
~~~
Friday, May 18, 2012
My books are now available in Europe and the UK on Amazon!
My books are now available On Amazon Europe and Amazon UK!
That includes my latest novel, The Darkening of the Light, in which we follow Edna Stax down the rabbit hole of alternate worlds.
Yippee!
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That includes my latest novel, The Darkening of the Light, in which we follow Edna Stax down the rabbit hole of alternate worlds.
Yippee!
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Monday, May 7, 2012
Excerpt, The Darkening of the Light
If you like my other books, you're sure to love my latest novel, The Darkening of the Light.
Here's an excerpt:
“Clear!”
the doctor shouted, and then came the shock.
Again he shouted, “Clear!” and again the shock came. And yet a third time, the charm, “Clear!” and
then the shock, as if Dr. Frankenstein were bringing the monster to life. The dead parts began to live, and the sinus
rhythm settled into a regular pattern on the monitor, and the beeping became
more regular and less frantic.
Clearly
the light had begun to darken, yet she lived.
Unable to move, but seeing and hearing all those around her, she lay in the
hospital bed while her faithful suitor sat in the chair and talked to her, or
Mother sat reading aloud from the newspaper, even reading the want ads, but
never the obituaries, for the thought of death must never enter this room.
~~~
Available on Amazon HERE
or on Kindle HERE
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Cover art by Nick Buchanan
Monday, March 5, 2012
Allegro's Mushroom now available in paperback
now available in paperback!
https://www.createspace.com/3807595
My analysis of a book that fascinated my husband Philip K. Dick.
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https://www.createspace.com/3807595
My analysis of a book that fascinated my husband Philip K. Dick.
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Thursday, January 19, 2012
Allegro's Mushroom -- book excerpt
From my work in progress:
My husband Philip K. Dick became obsessed with John M. Allegro’s book The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross, which was first published in 1970, then disappeared amid a storm of controversy and was finally reissued in 2009, more than 20 years after Allegro’s death at age 65 in 1988. The thesis of Allegro’s book is that Christianity had its origin in a cult of mushroom eaters who told the fictional story of Jesus to disguise their recipes for vision-inducing drugs. He goes on to assert that early Christianity was simply one of many fertility cults.
Allegro was part of the original team that worked on the Dead Sea scrolls, until his refusal to fall in line with the orthodox interpretation of the scrolls led the team leader to publicly attack his work and eventually replace him. Any scholar who disagreed with the official “truth” was ridiculed or ignored by the small team of scholars (usually numbering half a dozen) who jealously guarded their treasure. For example, the team agreed that the scrolls had been written, and then hidden in caves, by a small Jewish sect known as Essenes, even though more recent scholarship tends to support the idea that the scrolls belonged to observant Jews. The scrolls might even have been secretly removed from Jerusalem shortly before the Romans captured Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple (Golb, pages 143 and 145-146).
Since only a handful of scholars had access to the scrolls, and they refused to allow other scholars to see them – or even to look at photographs of them – the orthodox interpretation faced few serious challenges until the Huntington Library began making microfilm copies of the scrolls available to all qualified scholars in 1991.
Norman Golb asserts that Allegro wrote The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross as a reaction to, and revenge for, being pushed out of the scrolls team (page 126, footnote). It certainly does attack Christianity, as Golb noted, and the primary members of the team were Catholic priests.
When Allegro published his book in 1970, he was immediately attacked by traditional scholars – not only the Dead Sea scrolls team – for his startling thesis that Christianity had its origins in a fertility cult that used hallucinogenic mushrooms. However, more recent scholarship and a number of primary texts and images from early Christianity tend to support Allegro’s theory about Amanita muscaria. However, his book contains errors and wild speculations that make it easy to find fault with his thesis. He seems to find what he is looking for, regardless of whether it actually exists.
The Amanita muscaria is a mushroom with white spots on the bright red cap, sitting atop a white stem. Numerous scholars have pointed out its resemblance to the red-and-white costume worn by Santa Claus. Like most red fruits, this mushroom is poisonous. It also causes hallucinations, plus wild frenzy followed by lethargy. It is also a purge, causing severe diarrhea. Allegro speculated that fertility cults used this mushroom to produce enthusiasm, in the sense of being filled with the divine spirit. He further speculated that Jesus Christ was simply a symbolic character who personified the mushroom. This proposition, of course, ignores the biblical prohibition against sorcery, which at the time meant pharmacy, the use of psychoactive drugs. Yet Allegro insists upon finding secret codes in the Bible that boil down to recipes for hallucinogenic potions.
I am going to be very tough on Allegro’s thesis, but The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross does have a great deal of value as an exploration of ancient religious ideas. I simply cannot agree that every snake is a penis and every womb is the volva (immature mushroom), or that a mushroom is a hermaphroditic creature consisting of a penis to be worshipped as God the Father while penetrating its own womb.
My husband Philip K. Dick became obsessed with John M. Allegro’s book The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross, which was first published in 1970, then disappeared amid a storm of controversy and was finally reissued in 2009, more than 20 years after Allegro’s death at age 65 in 1988. The thesis of Allegro’s book is that Christianity had its origin in a cult of mushroom eaters who told the fictional story of Jesus to disguise their recipes for vision-inducing drugs. He goes on to assert that early Christianity was simply one of many fertility cults.
Allegro was part of the original team that worked on the Dead Sea scrolls, until his refusal to fall in line with the orthodox interpretation of the scrolls led the team leader to publicly attack his work and eventually replace him. Any scholar who disagreed with the official “truth” was ridiculed or ignored by the small team of scholars (usually numbering half a dozen) who jealously guarded their treasure. For example, the team agreed that the scrolls had been written, and then hidden in caves, by a small Jewish sect known as Essenes, even though more recent scholarship tends to support the idea that the scrolls belonged to observant Jews. The scrolls might even have been secretly removed from Jerusalem shortly before the Romans captured Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple (Golb, pages 143 and 145-146).
Since only a handful of scholars had access to the scrolls, and they refused to allow other scholars to see them – or even to look at photographs of them – the orthodox interpretation faced few serious challenges until the Huntington Library began making microfilm copies of the scrolls available to all qualified scholars in 1991.
Norman Golb asserts that Allegro wrote The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross as a reaction to, and revenge for, being pushed out of the scrolls team (page 126, footnote). It certainly does attack Christianity, as Golb noted, and the primary members of the team were Catholic priests.
When Allegro published his book in 1970, he was immediately attacked by traditional scholars – not only the Dead Sea scrolls team – for his startling thesis that Christianity had its origins in a fertility cult that used hallucinogenic mushrooms. However, more recent scholarship and a number of primary texts and images from early Christianity tend to support Allegro’s theory about Amanita muscaria. However, his book contains errors and wild speculations that make it easy to find fault with his thesis. He seems to find what he is looking for, regardless of whether it actually exists.
The Amanita muscaria is a mushroom with white spots on the bright red cap, sitting atop a white stem. Numerous scholars have pointed out its resemblance to the red-and-white costume worn by Santa Claus. Like most red fruits, this mushroom is poisonous. It also causes hallucinations, plus wild frenzy followed by lethargy. It is also a purge, causing severe diarrhea. Allegro speculated that fertility cults used this mushroom to produce enthusiasm, in the sense of being filled with the divine spirit. He further speculated that Jesus Christ was simply a symbolic character who personified the mushroom. This proposition, of course, ignores the biblical prohibition against sorcery, which at the time meant pharmacy, the use of psychoactive drugs. Yet Allegro insists upon finding secret codes in the Bible that boil down to recipes for hallucinogenic potions.
I am going to be very tough on Allegro’s thesis, but The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross does have a great deal of value as an exploration of ancient religious ideas. I simply cannot agree that every snake is a penis and every womb is the volva (immature mushroom), or that a mushroom is a hermaphroditic creature consisting of a penis to be worshipped as God the Father while penetrating its own womb.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
and all I got was this lousy post card
Well, it's actually a letter, but the sentiment is the same.
I never saw a penny of the consultant fee that Jason Koornick promised me for my participation in his PKD biopic, even though the movie has been out for ten years.
That money could pay my bills for two or three months, but when I ask Jason about it, he ignores me.
So all I got was this lousy letter:
I never saw a penny of the consultant fee that Jason Koornick promised me for my participation in his PKD biopic, even though the movie has been out for ten years.
That money could pay my bills for two or three months, but when I ask Jason about it, he ignores me.
So all I got was this lousy letter:
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