Tayari's Blog: 175 Words of My New Book
Posted by TayariJones on February 6, 2006 09:09 AM
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Writing
Okay, folks. I am working on a new novel. I am working HARD on it. I think I had forgotten just how difficult it is to get a project going. In this, novel writing is the opposite of romance. With love, the fun part is when you first meet, when you are just buzzing around, high on the whole potential of it all. And when it ends, it's because you have run the damn thing into the ground.
Writing a novel another matter all together. The rush comes at the end, when the project is almost over, when you can't wait to finish it although you know how much you'll miss it when it's gone. It's a strange thrilling masochism-- running at full tilt toward what you know will break your heart, but you're just dying to get there. The ugly part, all the heavy-lifting, is in the beginning, when you are unsure if you are going in the right direction, unsure if it will "stick." And this is where I am now. So, with no further ado, dear Readers, I am going to let you read the first 175 words.
To quote Eddie Murphy in Boomerang (yes, I am just THAT black): Be gentle.
The Bigamist's Daughters by Tayari Jones
Dana Witherspoon’s father, James, was a married man. He had been that way since before she was born, when he met her mother, Gwendolyn, at Davidson’s downtown. Gwen worked in the gift-wrap department upstairs where James took the electric carving knife he had bought for his wife to celebrate their ninth wedding anniversary. So, the fact that he was married was never hidden. He wasn’t a bigamist in the way that most people think of bigamy: a traveling salesman has a wife and kids in Nashville and another set in Chattanooga. No, this wasn’t that sort of situation at all. Both of James’s households lived in the southwest quadrant of Atlanta. His women shopped at the same grocery store; they exercised at the same YWCA. The daughters didn’t go to the same school, but they did live in the same district, so their high schools competed for football titles and band medals.
Such a set-up could work only if one family consented to this arrangement, if one mother and her daughters agreed to keep quiet, respecting the squatter’s rights of the woman who found him first. Dana’s family was the cooperative one. Her mother, Gwendolyn was the other woman. Dana was the outside child.
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There are 4 comments on "175 Words of My New Book". If you'd like to leave a comment, click here to jump down to the comments entry form.
Comment #1, by Shelley Shockley ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.tayarijones.com/blog/nav-commenters.gif)
You've piqued my curiosity, because this is a subject matter I have been playing with in my head, but would not put down because it is very close to me and I wasn't sure how to address without offending people.
But more on your post - the sense of intrigue is set from the beginning and the pacing was great, it moved quickly but not too fast that you miss anything and it definitely leaves you wanting to read more! Good luck, and keep writing!
February 6, 2006 12:53 PM
Comment #2, by Michael Fischer
I agree w/ the poster above. Nice pacing, and plenty of "hooks" that make me want to continue reading. I remember you talking about this novel at GCSU.
Oh, and this made me spit my drink all over my keyboard:
"He wasn’t a bigamist in the way that most people think of bigamy: a traveling salesman has a wife and kids in Nashville and another set in Chattanooga"
HAHAHA. Def. a southern thing, re: "traveling salesman."
February 6, 2006 04:16 PM
Comment #3, by Ladylee
You are teasing us!! NO FAIR!
First 175 words... Hows about giving us a peak at the first 175 PAGES??? LOL
You know this stuff happens, but no one ever talks about it...
Rumor has it that my Grandfather had a whole 'nother family in the same neighborhood, on the next block... Go figure.
Interesting and intriguing as always:) Can't wait to buy the finished product!!!
February 6, 2006 05:29 PM
Comment #4, by Shalema
Sounds very interesting. Looking forward to more. How did you come to this storyline?
February 7, 2006 11:59 AM