BOOKS
I love reading almost as much as I love writing. I rarely read a book in one sitting, because I like pauses between chapters. Sometimes they last a cigarette, sometimes a week. I like reading books that haven’t been read by many people. I feel special when I do it.
There are some books that deserve to be mentioned. Maybe you’ll like them as well, maybe you won’t like them at all, but that’s life. Here they are in no particular order …
Childhood’s End – Arthur C. Clarke
Catcher in the Rye – J. D. Salinger
On Writing – Stephen King
The Test – Sylvain Neuvel
Sea of Rust – C. Robert Cargill
How to Stop Time – Matt Haig
American Psycho – Bret Easton Ellis
The Murderbot Diaries (series) – Martha Wells
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
The Ocean at the End of the Lane – Neil Gaiman
Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck
Replay – Ken Grimwood
A Dirty Job – Christopher Moore
MOVIES
Movies are fun! Usually they take less brain power, compared to reading a book. That being said, I’m still waiting for a movie that would surpass its written predecessor.
There are a lot of great movies out there. Here are some that touched me the most …
Stargate
Amelie
Garden State
Pulp Fiction
Love Actually
Life of Brian
Fight Club
No Country for Old Men
Cidade de Deus
American History X
Full Metal Jacket
Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Amores Perros
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Mulholland Drive
MUSIC
In the last years music is my loyal companion when it comes to writing. I tried writing in silence, writing in pubs and other crowded places, but nothing compares to writing while listening to music.
Here are some of my favorite tunes that get my brain cells going and my imagination flowing …
Drum and Bass mixes (no lyrics, just beat that puts me in a special writing mood)
System of a Down – Toxicity
Interstellar OST
Amelie OST
Kurt Vile – Pretty Pimpin
The Smashing Pumpkins – Bullet with Butterfly Wings
Big Black Delta – Hugging and Kissing
The National – About Today
Daft Punk – Instant Crush
Hozier – Movement
Kid Cudi – Pursuit of Happiness
Angus & Julia Stone – Chateau
PLACES
I like to travel, but I don’t like flying. That doesn’t mean I never flew. But lately I’m trying to avoid it and travel by ground transportation.
Of course I have some favorite places on our beautiful planet. Here we go …
Arles – France
Aiuges-Mortes – France
Montpellier – France
Vinales – Cuba
Santa Clara – Cuba
Pune – India
Siena – Italy
San Gimigniano – Italy
Taormina – Italy
Marrakesh – Morocco
Amsterdam – Netherlands
Barcelona – Spain
(I conclude my list with the place I always come back to)
Ljubljana – Slovenia
BIO: Jaka Tomc started writing at the age of four. He tried to write his first novel soon after but was too occupied with other kids’ activities. He loved writing essays and stories in school. However, it took him many years to gain courage to write and publish his first novel. In his first interview he said that he’s going to sell more books in Slovenia than Dan Brown. The challenge remains. His sixth book was translated to English and published under the title 720 Heartbeats. It won a Breakthrough Fiction Award in Thriller/Suspense category. Jaka believes that his next book will be his best work.
