About the Chapter
As a sample of what UNBOUND has to offer, I'd like to share the first chapter, "To All Good Things", with you.
The following will help to set up the story:
Lily and Will
Lily Godwin is an enigmatic young woman in her late twenties who has been the caretaker of Will, her sister's son, for the past seven years. The story opens with the pair enjoying a lakeside vacation, far from their home in San Francisco. Even though the main story is Lily's, Will's coming-of-age ordeal is equally as poignant: his parents have been in prison during this time for not only drug smuggling, but his abuse as well. Now released from serving their time, they are expecting him to rejoin them soon. Time is waning all too quickly from both Lily and Will's perspectives; they are both keenly aware that this will be their last vacation together...
"Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not rejoice in evils but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." -I Corinthians 13: 4-7
The story examines (among many other things) what happens when the above qualities are tested, broken, tormented, and severed, and the consequences of holding on, or letting go. This is only one facet, however; there are many others. For now, let's just say that it's a "loves story" and proceed in that direction. Although this tempting and idyllic train of thought will relentlessly drag us from the tranquil lake through an increasingly hostile environment in realms "far away, so close", past vivid scenes of fantasy, dream, memory, and reality, through morphing shades of mystery, occultism, tenderness, suspense, nightmarish violence, everlasting love, metaphysics, murder, compassion, vengeance, the super-natural, and... Well, much more would be telling!
You might well ask, "What exactly does love have to do with all of that?"
Lily Godwin is wondering about that herself, these days, and will be trying to figure it out...
Her life, her singular existence, depends upon it.
Things you should know:
- While Love is only a small facet of the story, it is in fact the entire jewel.
- Even with all the info I share, you'll only know a quarter of the story's premise, if that. I've been very careful and cagey about what I've revealed over the years! But I'll be sharing a little more now that the story's been "let out into the World".
- When asked what the novel's about (again), I used to sigh and say that the story was "about everything." I even threw in a scene at a kitchen sink to prove it. It's *very* hard to categorize, genrify, or even describe UNBOUND. Simply put, the story is about too much to simply say what it's about! You'll just have to read it, experience it, and feel it for yourself!
- While the manuscript is in final draft state and is as perfect as I could craft it, it still hasn't benefitted from an editor's touch; read at your (presumed) peril! I'm expecting to go over it again when an editor makes his marks...
- The transition from Word to this template has deleted the punctuation and formatting, so the excerpt texts will appear quite different from the manuscript, especially the paragraph indents. For these reasons this excerpt will differ cosmetically from the novel, should it see print as I hope. The Story, though, shall remain the same...
What happens next?
- Lily and Will watch a beautiful sunset together and have an Understanding
- Lily gets to practice her inconsiderable driving "skills" to no good end
- The two companions encounter a very old man clothed in monk's garb, which wouldn't in itself be so remarkable were it not for his being out on the highway, hitchhiking
- The three spend a troubled and steamy night at a Motel. Lily and Will need to have another Understanding, not as nice as the first. Brother Al throws Tarot. After a rough night (and morning) they finally head home to San Francisco, but it seems that Lily might be a little late for work now. That is very much not a good thing, especially for this particularly mournful Monday...
There you have it! From UNBOUND Book One: Earth, Part One: Migration, comes Chapter 1.1: To All Good Things.
I hope that you enjoy reading it, and I thank you for taking the time. I pray that Lily's story will reward you with Something you need :-)