Done, for the umpteenth time...

A Place of Safety-Derry is through its latest proofing and wound up at 360 pages, of which about 344 are text. The rest is title page, info, Table of Contents and about the author. I'm going to put my list of other books below my bio, this time, and make it clear I've written an array of novels. Most gay-oriented but some straight. Many with intense sexual content that fits the erotica category, but not all. I've written what I've written, and each one of those books got me one step closer to this point.

I doubt anyone who's actually grown up in Derry will think I've done a good job with the book. Some events I took a bit of creative license with, and excused that by saying it's all Brendan's experience. His interpretations of what's been happening. Some he glosses over; others, where he's more deeply involved, he details as someone caught in chaos and confusion.

This is not an historical novel, even though it's based in history. It's Brendan's story as he tries to navigate his way through a deteriorating situation, like he's on the Titanic and not one of those designated to get in a lifeboat. Some people managed to survive, despite that. I deliberately refused to go with the usual tropes of a friend being killed to teach him some important fact of life, or someone in his family crippled to give him a visual reminder of where his anger stems from.

Even during the slaughter of Bloody Sunday, he's a step removed from those being shot and killed. He knows them well enough to recognize them, but not like they were friends. And he only sees a couple of people shot. It was too out of control and all over the place, and he's hurt and in shock, so he can't take it all in. It's not until he meets with Joanna a couple months after and takes her to the circle fort that he can open up and make decisions about leaving.

I will say half of this book's structure was not consciously set up, but it works well. Brendan did a good job of keeping me in line.