Nonetheless, it wasn't until architect Fred Van Brandenburg's return to Spain to New Zealand in 2004, and his exploration of Park Güell in Barcelona—a masterpiece created by Gaudí during his naturalist phase, drawing inspiration from organic forms in nature—that Fred experienced a revelation profoundly shaped by Gaudí's influence. Van Brandenburg -…

“I am tired of all these Bible stories. Reading the devotionals and doing these prayers all the time is too much for me!?” said the young Alexander. “You will sit down and read the Bible Story; you will listen and pray before you go to bed!” said the dedicated dad with a stern voice. Alexander folded his arms and sighed. “I don’t want to.” He unfol…

Read the article as a blog post while listening: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2023/04/10/true-stories-with-unfathomable-depth-rich-cultural-variations-and-extensive-contexts-will-develop-creativity-in-young-children/ See the stunning short video clips of the movies The Shawshank Redemption, and Esacpe from Alcatraz - as an introduction to this a…

Tool# 14: I share my dog's name - a brown-coloured dachshund named Jason (1997). It all happened at a hardware store in Alberton. Suddenly he was gone without a trace. Location: The Johannesburg area in South Africa. The introduction will whet your appetite to hear more. Read the full blog post here: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2022/12/17/get-t…

“Five minutes before landing.” “Three minutes before landing,” said the leader of the mission. All eyes were fixated on the large black-and-white screen. “Houston, we have a problem!” “What! What is the problem?” “Listen to the alarm. We think it is the onboard computer.” Margaret Hamilton moved closer to the screen. She had her large, heavy laptop…

The senior pastor of the Gateway Church in New Zealand loved to talk about C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien getting together at a nearby pub to discuss their writing. I attended his church for several years - around 2015. He delivered great messages to his congregation. ‘The Eagle and Child Pub,’ which I am referring to, is famous in the UK. See the p…

EXCERPT: At last, he gets him. They are both bloodied, exhausted to death. The tomahawk slices through some of his fingers. The assailant looks at his hand in disbelief. He is missing a couple of them, blood starts to trickle from the exposed flesh. It colours the white snow ruby-red. The white bone of Fitzgerald is visible, But only for a few seco…

“He never gave me a name,” whispers the rejected monster as he prepares to die. His facial expressions are gruesome – the stitches crisscrossed over his face, neck and head. It tells a story of science that has gone wrong, horribly wrong. The pain in his eyes is excruciating to watch. He flinches and repeats those painful words, “He never gave me a…

What if I told you ... would you believe it? How could you? How many times do we hear in the Rooms about lives that are second to none, lives worth celebrating, when, at one time, all was lost? Do we believe them? Have we ever heard the converse? Of course not. Rarely have we seen a person fail ... So why are we so stubborn, why don't we believe? W…

LUCKY SEVEN. Today marks seven years of continuous, uninterrupted sobriety. On Father’s Day 2015, I wrote a letter to God petitioning Him, begging Him to save me. I needed an angel, in a bad way. My Higher Power didn’t send me one angel, He sent me a program of angels in the earthly form of a group of drunks just trying to stay sober and stay alive…

EXCERPT: The three men walked past the scanner. They look like three ducks – marching in a row. Black and white. "Beep, beep, beep," sounds the piezo speaker of the surveillance camera. The three black and white-bearded ducks marched through the door. They are undetected. They seamlessly move past the door – no squeak from the High-Tec face recogni…

The Judgment of Paris: Discordia throws the golden apple into the banquet (to which she was not invited), and the rest, as they say is history. Unprecedented carnage, an Odyssey, the fall of Troy, death of Gods and Mortals alike, a stolen bride, and of course, the death of Paris himself. All because of one bad apple. Like the Waylon Jennings song g…

A true story. Read about the tenacity and sheer determination of the US Navy Diver, Carl Brashear. A movie was created in his honour: 'Men of Honour.' Actor Cuba Gooding (Junior). Here is the introduction: "Swoosh" The rusted cable and long pipe flashed briefly as it hurtled towards the experienced US Navy diver. "Watch out!" he shouted as he looke…

A unique article - with creative writing. Based on the true events. A friend of mine goes to his bedroom and brings a crystal radio back. It is mounted in a light blue soap container. It is 50-years old. He tells his story as a teenager - it revolves around a dormitory at school. I look at crystal radio sets. I include several short interesting sec…

Read the blog post while listening to this podcast: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2022/05/20/pneumatic-words-destroy-reinforced-concrete/ Overview: The power of placebos and the effect it has on people are explored. In short, it has a massive impact on people's recovery and healing. The medication – a placebo in this instance – provides improveme…

In this podcast, I refer to the work of Peter Draws (YouTube) and the sketch work of Liz Steel. Then, I discuss my own first doodle. You can read the text of the podcast in a blog post at Five House Publishing: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2022/04/25/william-draws/ Excerpt: Have you seen Peter Draws on YouTube? It is quite an experience. He is a…

Read the text - as a blog post - while listening to the podcast. https://fivehousepublishing.com/2022/04/18/champollions-jfcs-death-french-decipherer-of-the-rosetta-stone-underlines-one-of-the-age-old-killers-sex-money-power-and-fame-which-one-could-it-be/ Quick sketch – from the author’s notebook: Ramses (left) and a variant of the name Ramses (ca…

Please note that if you open the blog post and listen to the podcast it is exactly the same text. Go to fivehousepublishing.com and go to blog posts to listen and to read. Here is the link: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2022/03/25/introducing-the-arduino-uno-a-pioneering-digital-framework-to-prepare-students-for-21-st-century-problem-solving-five…

Excerpt: For Electronics Students. Link to the article/essay: https://www.thebalancesmb.com/e-waste-and-the-importance-of-electronics-recycling-2877783 Title: E-Waste and the Importance of Electronics Recycling BY RICK LEBLANC Updated on June 25, 2019 With new cheap devices, society has reaped tremendous benefits. This explosive growth in the elect…

Read the full story and article in a blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/12/23/bathtub-pilots-saved-miraculously-by-instruction-manual/ Excerpt: The bathtub plane flew like a giant concrete brick, shaking and vibrating violently through the air. Two babies took off from the bathroom floor without wings – the bath flight baffled aeronaut…

Read the full article here: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/12/05/advice-to-beginner-bloggers-and-prospective-writers/ Excerpt: Answers to the questions and comments from blog readers. Five House Publishing. I have received many questions from visitors to my website. The questions range from, How do I write good blog posts? I want to start blo…

Read the article as a blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/07/07/hickory-dickory-fig-tree-i-ask-of-you-can-you-hear-me/ Excerpt: From fun to research. This fun rhyme – based on the well-known Hickory, Dickory, Dock – endeavours to get the reader's attention to the animals and the tree talking. Playfully it wants to draw the reader in. Bu…

Link to the article as a blog post - Five House Publishing: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/06/26/tree-to-tree-from-the-lush-canopy-underhanded-and-ciphered-a-message-to-thee/ EXCERPT: Trees: Survival of the Friendliest – not Survival of the Fittest "Survival of the fittest" often brings to mind a notion that physical strength and power are cr…

Excerpt: "The coroner will be here soon," said Doctor Jonathan Reeves. Her long-time best friend Joanna Cowley takes a tissue and dab extra-dry tears away below her eyes. The tissue is dry, bone dry. "Oh, I will miss her. I loved her so much. She was such a caring and loving friend," sobbed Joanna. "We will all miss her and her millions of readers.…

Introduction - Excerpt. Weeks earlier. A tiny reed protrudes out of the water – hardly visible – slowly moving from ship to ship. His eyes are wide open; his brain is making notes. He breathes slowly and carefully through the curved reed. As Takeo’s body moves slowly through the transparent sapphire coloured water in the harbour, he sinks downwards…

Read the story online as a blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/12/02/silver-chopsticks-miraculously-save-dong-hyuns-life/Excerpt: The grey and blue coloured nutrient-rich placenta swirled around in the large glass bowl before it fell into a small hole with a soft thud. The bloodied mass pulled the severed umbilical cord into the hollow …

The Revolving Ballerina. A Short Story by William Van Zyl (Oct 2021). Read the story and article online: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/10/03/out-foxed/ My shortest story of fiction to date – 'a one-pager.' Only 395 words were used. The whole story is on one page. My inspiration – the world's shortest stories – is flash fiction. A short story…

Out-foxed (dramatised). A short story by William Van Zyl (Oct 2021). Excerpt: At 11:16 am, it was all over. On July 15, 2016 – at 11:17 am – John Parrish ran over his robber-friend, Jack Leonard, and grabbed his bag full of money. They had just robbed the Atlantic Bank in London. Four million and two hundred thousand British Pounds in total were co…

Read the story online (blog post): https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/11/08/ancient-leviathan-finally-rolls-over-5000-fathoms-under-the-sea-and-reveals-its-secrets/ *See the many images relating to this story in the blog post. Also, see the cool sketch by the author of the dragon - ink and watercolour. Excerpt of the short story: Introduction The…

After writing this personal poem - 'I come from …' you will not believe how good I felt afterwards! Also, my creativity soared. The expression of my feelings and thoughts - at the same time delving into the great memories from the past - had released some feel-good hormones. As I saw the text in front of me - documented past experiences - my self-w…

Read the short story as a blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/product/millions-ripped-out-by-surgeons-skeletons-laid-scattered-on-the-floor/ Excerpt: "$ 500 million worth of artwork ripped out by surgeons – heart of the famous museum removed," read the tabloids in the city of Paris, France. Images of the empty frames flashed around the world…

My shortest story of fiction to date – 'a one-pager.' I have two very intriguing short stories. Read the article and short stories online as a blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/10/03/out-foxed/ Out-foxed. Excerpt - At 11:16 am, it was all over. On July 15, 2016 – at 11:17 am – John Parrish ran over his robber-friend, Jack Leonard, and…

Read the story and article as a blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/07/19/rat-a-strophics-and-cat-o-matics/ Excerpt: “Rat-a-strophic,” laughed the freight plane dispatcher. “Or, maybe Cat-o-matics,” chuckled the second dispatcher. “They are going to get a rude awakening,” said the experienced military veteran. The tailgate of the aeropl…

Read the story and article as a blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/08/30/taped-mummy-saved-by-a-silver-ww2-pocket-knife-rescued-from-the-wall-of-death/ Excerpt: On November 3, 1977 – in the middle of the night – a taped mummy hung limply from a wall. The tape that held the head up was slowly pulling away from the wall. The eyes, mouth,…

Read the full story as a blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/09/02/cufflinks-hiding-a-secret-crack-missing-artwork-case-wide-open/ Excerpt: Two golden cufflinks – containing thumbnails of a famous self-portrait – had a secret. The small town of Znojelmo in the Czech Republic was the place of interest. The mystery had everyone guessing. …

Introduction:Have you ever wondered what is the shortest poem ever written?After a search, here is a result. The shortest poem in the English language, by the late great Muhammad Ali, is simply "Me, We". I think he meant we are nothing without our connection to other people. Relationships define us. Ali was well known for his wit. Me, We * By Moham…

Introduction: The wet blade made a long continuous ‘slit’ sound as he sliced through the skin and flesh. The tummy opened. The well-skilled calloused hand reached inside the warm body to remove the intestines. It was still warm. He stopped. The eyes of the fisherman widened. ‘What! What is in here?’ Carefully, the brown tanned and sun-spotted hand …

Introduction: The dagger is lodged deep in the chest of the rather ugly looking man. The older man is lying on the ground in a pool of blood. The painting of a beautiful young man lays beside him – almost unrecognisable – it is slashed and torn. Gray is dead. The readers of the novella Dorian Gray are stunned at the end of the story. An unexpected …

Are scorpions guarding Mount Sinai? The significant connections and references from substantial mountains in the scriptures will stun you. It aligns and points, just like the Pyramids of Egypt, a conspicuous configuration of ancient design. A pattern - The Orion Correlation Theory. The pyramids on the ground represent the constellation of Orion's B…

By William Van Zyl – a short story (only 2450 words). Unexpected and exciting twists and turns involving cellular memory. Don't miss the cool sketches from the author's sketchbook! EXCERPT: At 11:16 on Wednesday, June 19, 2016, several deafening pistol shots rang from a carpark in a Pretoria mall in South Africa. There was bone-chilling shouting. A…

When the foam opened, green and white parcels of paper stared at Howard Kirby. He pushed his hand into the foam cushion; he could feel more packets! Kirby pulled a couple out. The green and white paper packets were wrapped in separate packages – transparent plastic neatly divided several stacks. Some notes – marking the packets – were written on th…

Fantasy Prophecy is a fascinating and compelling technique for Writing Fiction and Non-fiction. When writers use this technique successfully – just like Herman Melville in Moby Dick and Shakespeare in Macbeth – it advances their stories to a new level. The two famous authors display their accomplished writing skills by applying this technique very …

Harrison – not Harrison Ford – is trapped. It is day three. Off the East coast of Africa, in a remote part of the ocean, 32 km from land, the Nigerian man is praying. “God, I am done praying. I am giving it over to You. Let it be as it is in Heaven. You have never failed me in the past, I know You will not fail me now.” After hours and hours of pra…

Have you ever been rowing in a rowboat without a rudder? You paddle hard; however, you have no control over your direction. A proper rudder – with well-chosen oars – will make your work easy! You won’t believe how simple it is to set goals and achieve them. It is just like rowing in a rowboat! The most important thing is making small marginal chang…

I have been pondering: what would the shortest academic paper in the world look like? After a search here are some examples: See the blog post. What would your shortest academic writing look like? APA style (American Psychology Association). What subject matter would you choose? In this article, I am going to endeavour to write my most concise and …

Link to the blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/2021/03/20/leaving-your-comfort-zone-requires-courage-a-brave-move-will-make-you-more-efficient-a-lesson-from-the-little-prince-famous-novel-by-french-writer-antoine-de-saint-exupery-1943/ See the many images and sketches on the blog post! The famous novel by Saint-Ex – a children's book writte…

The engine of the Japanese fighter plane screams as it dives almost vertical out of the clear blue sky. The giant frigate battleship enlarges at an alarming rate from inside the cockpit. The unfriendly surface of the ocean races towards the pilot. Death-defying. The sun flashes off the wings of the plane as if giving a final signal. Desperately, th…

The vibration of a quartz crystal: 2 to the power of 15 = 15 32,768. Isn’t that just stunning? I mean in one second you have to count from 1 to 32,768 – it is humanly impossible. It is this vibration that has me in awe in this article. Wait for it. That same 32,768-quartz-crystal makes a clock tick at one beat per second! But how? It all started wh…

When Jean Valjean, the central character in Victor Hugo's Les Misérables, was in prison, he was known by the number 24601. Blog post: https://fivehousepublishing.com/product/wear-forgiveness-as-a-stellar-crown-like-jean-valjean-forever-remembered-in-the-night-sky-valjean-24601/ Excerpt: Have you ever seen the Minor Planet Jean Valjean 24601? Probab…

‘Artesian Well Theory.’ The pressure in your aquifer could destroy you, or it could catapult you into a path of growth and development. If you process the situation right, you will ultimately experience victory. It will require resilience and a paradigm shift which will result in an artesian well. Read the full article on the blog: https://fivehous…