by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
So, here I am a middle age CIS white male…writing five thrillers which, at their heart, are about different forms of a mother’s love. This did not happen intentionally. But as my storytelling ability has improved, I have come to realize how important it is for each of these five novels to have, well, a point. So, as such, the first novel’s point is about a woman wanting to protect her only child — a teenage son. The other four novels have a similar theme — at least on a macro level.
The question remains if I can pull this off given who — or what type — of person I am.
But the emotional heart of these five novels is, in general, the love a woman feels for another woman’s daughter. That’s the thing that ties all five novels together. My aim is to wrap things all up in the fifth novel in a way that gives everyone a satisfying conclusion.
At least, that’s the goal.
It’s going to require a lot — A LOT — of work. But I’m pleased that I’ve pretty much figured out what each of individual novels is “about.” I definitely know what the first novel is about and I definitely know what the second novel is about. The other three novels drift closer into Stieg Larsson territory in the sense that they’re a lot more traditional thrillers. Though the third novel is something of an homage to The Shawshank Redemption — in a way.
This homage wasn’t intentional, but as I’ve become more comfortable about what the novel is about that homage becomes more clear. But I have so much work to do. I need to start speeding things up some. I can’t keep writing about writing and not actually…write.
