Welcome
Welcome or welcome back to Ooter's Place, the online home of author Karl El-Koura. Primarily a writer of fiction, Karl works in a wide variety of genres, from science fiction and horror to mainstream and detective fiction, as well as in lengths ranging from short stories to novels. Almost all of his work can be classified as theological fiction—a Christian deeply interested in the "big" questions, Karl's stories explore issues of theology and spirituality even when he doesn’t consciously intend them to do so. For those who care to know, Karl is a Greek Orthodox Christian.
On this website you can check out his published books, read some of his short fiction, view his bibliography, or catch up with the latest news and articles on his blog. So stay awhile, have a look around, and feel free to contact Karl with any questions, comments, or feedback you may have. Thanks for stopping by!
Featured Book
The Lost Stories: A Series of Cosmic Adventures
Biblically Inspired Science Fiction Humor
Featured Short Story
The Talent
After that, I knew I’d never need to carry a gun for the rest of my life. When I discovered my talent—when I realized what I was capable of—I went from an eight-year-old scared of just about everything to fearing nothing and no one.
Featured Recommendation
Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol
Except for the Bible, there isn't a book I've read as many times as Dickens's A Christmas Carol. Again except for those found in the Bible, there isn't a story I'm more familiar with than that of the mean-spirited, miserly Ebenezer Scrooge, who repents one year during the holidays and ever after knows "how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge." And I've not only read A Christmas Carol, I've watched countless movie and theatre adaptations of the book. Some are great, some merely good, others are best forgotten; some are faithful to a fault, some are updated retellings (I love Bill Murray's Scrooged), others twist and play with the central idea (none better than Blackadder's Christmas Carol, about Ebenezer Blackadder who, at the beginning of the movie, is the kindliest man in England).
Latest news
Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol
(posted on 15 November 2011)
Christmas will be here sooner than I expect. I know that, but I haven't started Christmas shopping yet; my Christmas tree and all the lights and other decorations are still in storage; Christmas parties are starting to fill up my schedule but I haven't given them much thought. But I did read a book I try to read every year around this time—Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol, the subject of my latest recommendation. I hope you get a chance this Christmas to pick up this wonderful little book and allow its story to haunt you and infect you with its laughter and good-humour.
Confused Expressions #13: Proof Versus Evidence
(posted on 24 October 2011)
I'd be hard-pressed to find an expression more commonly misused by otherwise careful writers and speakers than the expressions I'm sometimes faced with when an agnostic or atheist friend discovers that I'm Christian. "But how can you believe in Christianity when there isn't any proof for it?" they'll say or write. Or, "Well, I believe in science, because it has a lot of proof going for it."
The Lost Stories: Now Available!
(posted on 16 September 2011)
The Lost Stories: A Series of Cosmic Adventures is now available for the Kindle on Amazon.com
