Those of you who have been hanging around here for a while prob’ly remember the birth of this novel. I posted a proposed first chapter on the site a year or so ago, and I invited comments to see if there was anything positive in the proposal. As a result, I got a lot of positive feedback and …
Those of you who have been hanging around here for a while prob’ly remember the birth of this novel. I posted a proposed first chapter on the site a year or so ago, and I invited comments to see if there was anything positive in the proposal. As a result, I got a lot of positive feedback and encouragement to go on and finish the novel. And, that’s what I did.
The War on Bird Street is now complete. I used some of the suggestions I got from posting the first chapter on this site and I changed a lot of the story as it progressed. But, true to my original plan, it is the story of…….. Well, I won’t tell you that – I’ll just post the Pitch for the novel and let you decide what it’s about. And, if i may say so myself, it’s pretty dadgum good!
And, after you’ve finished reading the Pitch and left a comment here on this site, (be honest with your comments – I’ve been married 30-somethin’ years so I’m no stranger to rejection), then, if you’re still interested in knowing more of the story, you can find the first chapter posted on my website www.clarkliterary.com along with some of my other writing. If you visit the site, please leave me a ‘Howdy’ in on the Guest Page.
And, if you’re an Agent and are lookin’ for a good YA novel written from a GUY’s POV, This might be somethin’ you’re lookin’ for.
Oh yeah, and if you have something you want to share, you know, a good story, the first chapter of your novel, or just about anything you want the WORLD to read and give you feedback on, (I’m not gonna post your whole novel!) just send it to me at email@example.com and I’ll talk to the others who think they’re in charge around here and see what we can do for y’a. Tell your mama and your grandmama and your daddy, and your writing friends too – and remember, don’t send me anything that will make my old Granny blush! We don’t do anything in “Shades of Grey.”
So – here’s the Pitch for The War on Bird Street…
The War on Bird Street
Chuck is the ninth grader, the fat kid from a father absent family, and the whipping boy for the jocks at his school. Believing he is too weak to stand up against the bullies who torment him, he learns that eating means comfort, overweight kids from poor families will always be victims, and tough guys are always the enemy.
Brody is the Special Forces soldier, just returned from Iraq with a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Refusing to accept help for the horrific nightmares and flashbacks of the war, he isolates himself and attempts to deal with paralyzing after effects of the war where he learned that asking for help is a sign of weakness. And a weak man can get you killed.
Each afraid to confront his own adversary, they sit alone, defeated by their weaknesses, suffocating in the loneliness and nightmares of their worst fears. But when Brody moves into the abandoned house on Bird Street, next door to Chuck, the two wounded warriors eventually forge an unlikely friendship and find the strength to stand up together and face their enemies head on – pushing back barriers that once paralyzed them.
THE WAR ON BIRD STREET is a story of torture and suffering at the hands of real and imagined adversaries, and finding that a person who looks and acts like the enemy is the messenger who inspires commitment, healing and the courage to leave the past behind and stand up to win over adversity.
OK – there it is……….whadda y’a think? I’m entering it in the Amazon.com Breakout Novel Award contest this year. Last year I entered my novel, Dance of the Bull Rider, and advanced to the quarter-finals. If you’ve never entered this contest, you’re missing a lot of fun and HUGE prizes.