On the offchance that someone might be interested, I’m doling out my book Within the Box one chapter at a time on Substack, with new chapters dropping every Wednesday. I’m hoping it’s entertaining and also that it’s less imposing than agreeing to read a whole book. Also that if someone starts reading and thinks “hey, this is actually good!”, they could draw other people in. And I’d be ridiculously happy to get feedback on a chapter by chapter basis!
First two chapters (miniature intro chapters) are up as a single post.
You need to think about how you’re pitching this book. Your post here gives no clue as to what sort of book this is. I’ve read the first chapter, and I still don’t know.
Write a blurb.
Look up similar books and look at theirs. Write one for yours. Use that both as your hook and as a way of signalling to readers that it might be their sort of thing.
That said, having read the first chapter I have one criticism of the text itself, which is that I don’t get much if any internal thought process from the pov character. They have an argument on the phone with their parents (and why over the phone? You lose your chance to describe their body language). But you don’t get a sense of what the character’s feeling. Are they resigned? Frustrated? Do they actually have issues with being flaky and doing drugs which they’re not admitting to themselves?
Thanks for the feedback! There’s considerably more internal thought-process stuff yet to come, but you’re right, not much in these early bits.
Is this fiction? Non-fiction? What is it about?
Nonfiction, autobiographica.
In 1982 I was 23 and I hadn’t successfully launched in academia, employment, or even socially. My parents were concerned and figured since I smoked pot and did some LSD, I needed help. They wanted to believe drugs were the problem.
I held a different opinion: I identified as a “heterosexual sissy” and I told my parents I wanted to become a social activist. My parents were worried about that too.
We compromised: I would go into a high-end rehab facility that promised to address any issues holding people back from attaining their goals.
Supposedly, it was a“voluntary” facility. I considered that I had social skills to sharpen before I could have a social impact or lead a movement—I wanted to talk about my gender identity as a social issue, like gay rights—so I agreed.
Right from the start, the facility staff treated my ‘effeminacy’ and my questioning of their authority as problems to fix. For a voluntary clinic, they were awfully heavy-handed. As for me, I might have been marginalized but I was no doormat. We were headed for a collision and a showdown.
WITHIN THE BOX is a case study for “blame the victim” responses to the effects of marginalization --it’s also a contribution to LGBTQIA history, detailing the synthesis of new gender identities in the 1980s that are now a part of our social landscape.
Three preface days (Nine Days Before, Eight Days Before, Six Days Before) have been posted, and longer posts for Day One, Day Two, and Day Three.