Pre-text

This novel will not be my first attempt at writing. It will be my third literary effort.

I wrote a long novel two years ago called The Permanent State about a girl at boarding school who has a relationship with her teacher. She is one of three sisters, surviving a divorce and the pressures of performing at school. She takes solace in her music (Bach) and visits to a psychologist. This piece of writing remains firmly on my shelf - a first attempt at writing a novel. It was an amazing experience which kept me up nights and which taught me a great deal about storytelling.

The second novel (or rather novella, to use a more accurate term) was called The Peopled Spaces and is now called Victory Avenue. It is about a girl who does not know why she cannot progress in life but, due to dual narratives, the reader becomes aware that it is her mother's fault as she is emotionally absent from the girl's life. Sylvie's brother dies, an event which acts as a catalyst for secrets to be confronted and truth to come out.

This writing, which has come about over the last two years, has confronted issues important to me. The themes have been pertinent, maybe not in my own life, but in the lives of those of my acquaintances. I believe it is important to care a great deal about the ideas coming through in the writing. The next project will feature some questions of importance to me about faith.