Control: Crimes of Youth and Passion
I, Daniel Trump, aka Dalton Lewis, am nearing the end of the writing process of crafting the horror novel Crimes of Youth and Passion.
I spent 25 days in November writing the first draft for National Novel Writing Month. I wrote a 50,000 word manuscript. That’s an excellent accomplishment of which I am proud. I read up on college students and watched a lot of college football in preparation for the novel — which is a horror story about a bunch of college football players.
In the novel the narrator is Octavius Macmillan, the weakside linebacker for the Jericho State Raptors. He’s a hardworking, cynical football player who believes the worst in everyone, is brilliant, and plays ball with brilliant instincts — even though he doesn’t think he has the physical gifts to play pro ball in a few years.
He has a pretty good life as a college football player until his friend Klay shows symptoms of mental illness and begins to complain of impossible problems — things that aren’t possible. As Octavius continues to live through the next few weeks, though, impossible problems — things that can’t happen — begin to happen to him, too. He finds himself face to face with impossible problems and the reality that someone is using powers…someone nefarious, someone who is against him.
There are other characters, too. Yara is a reporter covering the team — who is ambitious and wants to do political reporting when she graduates from college. She writes a novel about characters who have been replaced by someone — a novel that no one likes. She is bitterly disgusted to write a failed novel and lashes out, trying to figure out how to write better.
Roswell is a genius football player who can play any position — except the lines. He runs the defense for Jericho State. He’s kind, polite, well-meaning, and abolutely obsessed with drinking liquor. He balances his genius with the liquor that makes real life tolerable — that makes the world tolerable. He can’t handle reality without liquor — except for class and games, when he is sober.
Yvette is a quiet girl who doesn’t fit in with the other girls like Yara or Tammy. Yvette takes life seriously. She believes in pragmatism and doing the right thing and standing up for one’s self. She values first responders and cops and the military for protecting people. She is fiercely protective of her little sister and her rich parents — and would do anything for them, no matter what.
Darius is Octavius’s roommate and best friend. He’s from the troubled areas of life — he had a hard upbringing and fights desperately to make it, in life and in football. He wants to go pro in the spring as a three-technique defensive tackle and may have the talent to do it — if he can stay healthy and survive the season without any major catastrophes…but then this is a horror novel, so he may be in trouble…
I worked hard to create a diverse and colorful group of characters. I really care about them and want the best for them. I’m proud of this book and want everyone to give it a chance later this month when it is finished. I really think that I have gotten better at creating flawed, wonderful characters.
Thanks, and take care, friends.
