A few have asked me about my book, which is in the editing phase. So I'll try to give you a synopsis without being too long-winded or reveal spoilers. I will also touch on on what may have sparked my recent creativity, and why I write dystopian fiction.
I've been writing for a long time. I don't remember exactly when I started my creative scribbling, but it began with poetry. I remember writing poems on scraps of paper while waiting for the "D" train at the West 4th Street, Washington Square subway station in NYC. I wrote a lot, but I didn't keep any of it from those early years. I have my reasons. I didn't begin writing fiction full-time until I reached my, ah, more mature years. Along the way, I've had health issues, which left me with severe fatigue much of my adult life. So most of the time I worked at various careers, and then collapsed onto the sofa after dinner with scant leftover energy to write. For years I constructed full novels in my head, but didn't start writing them down until 2000.
I've had my ups and downs with writing. I've had periods of time where I literally only stopped writing to eat, sleep and use the restroom. Then there were other times where I stared at a blank word doc and nothing came out - for a year or more. Early on, I was driven to publish and received great feedback from editors. I was acquired by an agent. I published a short story. Then, I began to doubt whether my writing was ready for publication. I began to question the publishing industry. There are other factors as well that led me to fire my agent, switch genres and delve deep into what made a good fiction writer. I started writing again, in a different genre, and I plan to self e-publish my novels.
I've had some losses in 2011. First my beloved dog, then a family member. Then I learned of the death of two people who were very important in my life, though I hadn't seen them in years. I believe that this grief not only caused me to do some deep introspection, but it ignited my creativity.
One of my favorite hobbies is to read the news (I read news from all points of view and from all over the globe) then study political and social trends - and compare them to history. Then I imagine what the future might hold. I believe that history repeats itself, and our current road is fraught with danger. This is why I write dystopian fiction.
They say that writers should write what we know, and write what we want to know about. I've had some amazingly diverse careers and life experiences. Working in the field of international banking, among other things, and growing up in the New York City area has given me wonderful opportunities to broaden my horizons.
I've known people from many ethnic backgrounds and religious faiths, from Irish to Japanese, from Brazilian to French, from Pakistani to Polish to Puerto Rican. From Armenian to Italian....and on and on. I've known people who were very poor, and people who were unbelievably rich. I've been acquainted with apolitical people, to the uber-political - from Communist to Anarchist, and everything in between.
I've known writers, musicians, actors, dancers, singers, rock stars, aid workers, hippies, witches, photographers, politicians, missionaries, cowboys, famous religious figures, real gypsies, former prostitutes, con-artists, drug addicts, Olympic ice-skaters, herbalists, bank CEO's, fashion designers, members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) - and probably many others I've forgotten right now.
So I fictionalize a few of my own experiences, and my characters are created from a mishmash of people I've known. Some of those people I've loved dearly. Others, not so much. Some I wish I'd never met. They say that we are the sum of our experiences. I don't know if that is completely true, but my own wildly diverse life has had a lot to do with who I am today, and what I write.
Which brings me to my novel. The working title is Fade To Grey. It's the first in a multi-book series.
The setting: A soft dystopian world where most people are very happy with the way the global government runs things. They feel safe from terrorism, and they don't seem to mind constant surveillance. They are used to their insular society, one which maintains a great divide between those who run the world government/economy - and everybody else. Artists are considered servants and entertainers. Most people are "guided" into specific careers, even those at the top. Although the people are strictly controlled, behind the scenes the government is lax and overconfident. Since there's been virtually no dissent for a long time, most of the surveillance cameras are broken and unmanned, the checkpoints are hit and miss, and people fall through the cracks of society more often than the government will admit.
Sound familiar? It should. It's happened before, and it will happen again. Perhaps it's happening now.
History repeats. The grand circle game. Time after time.
The Story: We'll start with the father, Colin. He's part of a family banking dynasty, and he has also been a US Senator for 6 years. The talk among people in the know is that he's likely to become the next President. He's married to a woman who neither shares his arrogant personality nor his values. His wife Simone has strong moral convictions, and plenty of secrets.
The protagonist-hero of the novel is Daniel, their 21 year-old son. Although Daniel is one of the top echelon's most eligible bachelors, he's an artsy misfit. Daniel is nothing like his friends who like to play golf, polo, and engage in gossip about each other, and chitchat about the latest celebs. He likes to write music, he plays ice hockey, and jazz piano. Like his mother, he actually cares about people who dwell outside their utopian world.
Daniel's dad Colin has arranged for Daniel to marry a woman whom Daniel cares little for to further Colin's standing in his ruthless climb up the ladder. Colin also expects Daniel to work at the family bank after he graduates from college. Or even if he doesn't graduate.
Daniel has other ideas. After getting into trouble at several exclusive private schools, Daniel makes a deal with his father. He wants to study jazz piano at a state-run arts school for exceptional students of the lowest class. This is a place that no self-respecting elite would consider setting foot in, let alone attend. Daniel promises his father that if he is allowed to study music in his senior year, he'll go through with the arranged marriage and work at the bank. So Colin relents. He's a politician after all. He crafts it to his advantage - he lets the world know that he's encouraged his son to attend a school for underprivileged artists, because Colin cares about all his constituents, and he is truly a man of the people.
Colin didn't anticipate Daniel meeting and falling in love with a dirt poor writer/journalist. A shame that Colin didn't expect Daniel to become good friends with a couple of art students and other artsy freedom-loving folks - who aren't exactly content with their lot in life.
Will Daniel return to his utopian world and do what's expected of him, or will he work against his father to fan the tiny spark of resistance cropping up in the arts community?
Well, that's all I'm able to disclose right now. My muse is warning me to keep quiet. You never know who is reading. Or listening. Or watching.
. I really liked it, except for the idea of cutting out cheese. How would I live without cheese? I was casein intolerant, but I stubbornly clung to eating cheese, even after giving up gluten. (BTW, I eventually did give up almost all dairy products.) Then I stumbled onto 
