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****Brian Pinkerton’s THE GEMINI EXPERIMENT is
#111 in the never-ending series called INSIDE THE EMOTION OF FICTION where
the Chris Rice Cooper Blog (CRC)
focuses on one specific excerpt from a fiction genre and how that fiction
writer wrote that specific excerpt. All INSIDE THE EMOTION OF FICTION links
are at the end of this piece.
Name of
fiction work? And were there other names you considered that you would like to
share with us? The
Gemini Experiment. Early on, the
manuscript title was "My Robot"(a weak takeoff of I Robot) -- thank
God my editor talked me out of that one! Other considered titles included
Replicant, Lifescan and The Dioscuri Project.
Has
this been published? And it is totally fine if the answer is no. If yes, what publisher and what publication
date? The
Gemini Experiment was
published by Flame Tree Press in May
2019. https://www.flametreepress.com/
What is
the date you began writing this piece of fiction and the date when you
completely finished the piece of fiction? I began
writing the book in January 2018 and completed it by September 30, 2018.
Where
did you do most of your writing for this fiction work? And please describe in detail. And can you please include a photo? I handwrote the first draft on pads of lined paper on a drawing
table in the basement. The basement is crowded with shelves of clutter, the
washing machine, dryer and furnace. There is no glamor in my writing space.
What
were your writing habits while writing this work- did you drink something as you
wrote, listen to music, write in pen and paper, directly on laptop; specific
time of day? I drink coffee and handwrite my
prose. I do not use a computer to write my first draft.
I write best in the
morning. I consult my outline, notes and notecards. I used to
listen to music while writing (instrumental only, no lyrics) but now I am more
apt to write in silence. I later make handwritten edits on my drafts until I
feel they are in pretty good shape. Then I recite the manuscript aloud into the
computer, using Dragon Dictation software, which creates a text file.
What
excerpt of the book was the most emotional for you to write? This excerpt can
be as short or as long as you prefer.
The main character is a young father coping
with a terminal illness.
Excerpt:
Ultimately, Tom was diagnosed with a progressive
neurodegenerative disorder known as Lowrey’s disease. In a similar fashion to
ALS, Lowrey’s disease culminated in an irreversible communication breakdown
between upper and lower motor neurons, disconnecting signals that united the
brain, spine and muscles.
Tom and his wife Emily read everything they could about the
disease and sunk into an immediate, dizzying feeling of terror and helplessness.
There was no cure and the typical life expectancy was three to five years of
worsening health. Lowrey’s was attacking Tom’s ability to control movement,
poised to gradually accumulate more victims in the list of Tom’s muscle
activities including walking, speaking and, ultimately, breathing.
Tom and Emily pursued a second opinion, then a third, but
the prognosis remained the same. They followed the journeys of others afflicted
with motor neuron diseases who shared their stories online. “It’s one of the
cruelest afflictions,” reported a former athlete on his blog as he entered his
second year of struggles with ALS. “Your body atrophies while your mind remains
sharp. You’re fully cognizant of everything that’s happening to you as you
gradually lose control of your movements. You just wither away.”
Tom fought to remain cheerful and optimistic, if nothing
else for the sake of his wife and their seven-year-old daughter, Sofi. Tom and
Emily chose to postpone telling Sofi until she was older and the symptoms were
more obvious. They worked hard to act like nothing was happening around her.
‘Clumsy Daddy’ became a common phrase around the house and the extent of their
acknowledgment that something was wrong.
Why is
this excerpt so emotional for you to write?
And can you describe your own emotional experience of writing this
specific scene/excerpt? This part of the book
confronts my own fears of illness and mortality for myself and my family.
Were
there any deletions from this excerpt that you can share with us? And can you
please include a photo of your marked up rough drafts of this excerpt. No significant deletions that I could find in the draft -- mainly
moving things around and playing with word choice.
Other
works you have published?
Novels:
Abducted (2004)
Vengeance (2005)
Killer's Diary (2010)
Rough Cut (2011)
How I Started The Apocalypse (trilogy of novellas, 2012-2015)
Bender (2014)
Anatomy of Evil (2015)
Time Warp (to be released in 2020)
Anything
you would like to add? Writing can be therapy for me,
using metaphors in genre fiction to address and resolve inner conflict.
Brian Pinkerton takes everyday,
ordinary people and puts them through a living hell. He is the author of novels
and short stories in the mystery, horror and thriller genres. He received his
B.A. from the University of Iowa, where he took undergraduate classes of the
Iowa Writers Workshop.
INSIDE THE EMOTION OF
FICTION links
001 11 15 2018 Nathaniel
Kaine’s
Thriller Novel
John
Hunter – The Veteran
002 11 18 2018 Ed
Protzzel’s
Futuristic/Mystery/Thriller
The
Antiquities Dealer
003 11 23 2018 Janice
Seagraves’s
Science
Fiction Romance
Exodus
Arcon
004 11 29 2018
Christian Fennell’s
Literary
Fiction Novel
The Fiddler
in the Night
005 12 02 2018 Jessica
Mathews’s
Adult
Paranormal Romance
Death
Adjacent
006 12 04 2018 Robin Jansen’s
Literary
Fiction Novel
Ruby the
Indomitable
007 12 12 2018 Adair Valerez’s
Literary
Fiction Novel
Scrim
008 12 17 218
Kit Frazier’s
Mystery Novel
Dead Copy
009 12 21 2019 Robert Craven’s
Noir/Spy Novel
The Road
of a Thousand Tigers
010 01 13 2019 Kristine Goodfellow’s
Contemporary
Romantic Fiction
The Other
Twin
011 01 17 2019 Nancy J Cohen’s
Cozy Mystery
Trimmed To
Death
012 01 20 2019 Charles Salzberg’s
Crime Novel
Second
Story Man
013 01 23 2019 Alexis Fancher’s
Flash Fiction
His Full
Attention
014 01 27 2019 Brian L Tucker’s
Young Adult/Historical
POKEWEED: AN ILLUSTRATED NOVELLA
015 01 31 2019 Robin Tidwell’s
Dystopian
Reduced
016 02 07 2019 J.D. Trafford’s
Legal
Fiction/Mystery
Little Boy
Lost
017 02 08 2019 Paula Shene’s
Young Adult
ScieFi/Fantasy/Romance/Adventure
My Quest
Begins
018 02 13 2019 Talia Carner’s
Mainstream
Fiction/ Suspense/ Historical
Hotel
Moscow
019 02 15 2019 Rick Robinson’s
Multidimensional
Fiction
Alligator
Alley
020 02 21 2019 LaVerne Thompson’s
Urban Fantasy
The Soul
Collectors
021 02 27 2019 Marlon L Fick’s
Post-Colonialist
Novel
The
Nowhere Man
022 03 02 2019 Carol Johnson’s
Mainstream
Novel
Silk And
Ashes
023 03 06 2019 Samuel Snoek-Brown’s
Short Story
Collection
There Is
No Other Way to Worship Them
024 03 08 2019 Marlin Barton’s
Short Story
Collection
Pasture
Art
025 03 18 2019 Laura Hunter’s
Historical
Fiction
Beloved
Mother
026 03 21 2019 Maggie Rivers’s
Romance
Magical
Mistletoe
027 03 25 2019 Faith
Gibson’s
Paranormal
Romance
Rafael
028 03 27 2019 Valerie Nieman’s
Tall Tale
To The
Bones
029 04 04 2019 Betty Bolte’s
Paranormal
Romance
Veiled
Visions of Love
030 04 05 2019 Marianne
Maili’s
Tragicomedy
Lucy, go
see
031 04 10 2019 Gregory Erich Phillips’s
Mainstream
Fiction
The Exile
032 04 15 2019 Jason Ament’s
Speculative
Fiction
Rabid Dogs
033 04 24 2019 Stephen P. Keirnan’s
Historical
Novel
The
Baker’s Secret
034 05 01 2019 George Kramer’s
Fantasy
Arcadis:
Prophecy Book
035 05 05 2019 Erika Sams’s
Adventure/Fantasy/Romance
Rose of Dance
036 05 07 2019 Mark Wisniewski’s
Literary
Fiction
Watch Me
Go
037 05 08 2019 Marci Baun’s
Science
Fiction/Horror
The
Whispering House
038 05 10 2019 Suzanne M. Wolfe’s
Historical
Fiction
Murder By
Any Name
039 05 12 2019 Edward DeVito’s
Historical/Fantasy
The
Woodstock Paradox
040 05 14 2019 Gytha Lodge’s
Literary/Crime
She Lies
In Wait
041 05 16 2019 Kari Bovee’s
Historical
Fiction/Mystery
Peccadillo
At The Palace: An Annie Oakley Mystery
042 05 20 2019 Annie Seaton’s
Time Travel
Romance
Follow Me
043 05 22 2019 Paula Rose Michelson’s
Inspirational
Christian Romance
Rosa &
Miguel – Love’s Legacy: Prequel to The Naomi
Chronicles
044 05 24 2019 Gracie C McKeever’s
BDMS/Interracial
Romance
On The
Edge
045 06 03 2019 Micheal Maxwell’s
Mystery
The Soul
of Cole
046 06 04 2019 Jeanne Mackin’s
Historical
The Last
Collection: A Novel of Elsa Schiaparelli
and
Coco
Chanel
047 06 07 2019 Philip Shirley’s
Suspense/Thriller
The
Graceland Conspiracy
048 06 08 2019 Bonnie Kistler’s
Domestic
Suspense
The House
on Fire
049 06 13 2019 Barbara Taylor Sissel’s
Domestic
Suspense/Family Drama
Tell No
One
050 06 18 2019 Charles Salzberg’s
Short Story/
Crime Fiction
“No Good Deed” from Down to the River
051 06 19 2019 Rita Dragonette’s
Historical
Fiction
The
Fourteenth of September
052 06 20 2019 Nona
Caspers’s
Literary
Novel/Collage
The Fifth
Woman
053 06 26 2019 Jeri Westerson’s
Paranormal
Romance
Shadows in
the Mist
054 06 28 2019 Brian Moreland’s
Horror
The
Devil’s Woods
055 06 29 2019
Epic Fantasy
Wings
Unseen
056 07 02 2019 Randee Green’s
Mystery Novel
Criminal
Misdeeds
057 07 03 2019 Saralyn Ricahrd’s
Mystery Novel
Murder In
The One Percent
#058 07 04 2019 Hannah Mary McKinnon’s
Domestic Suspense
Her Secret
Son
#059 07 05 2019 Sonia Saikaley’s
Contemporary
Women’s Literature
The
Allspice Bath
#060 07 09 2019 Olivia Gaines’s
Romance
Suspense Serial
Blind Luck
#061 07 11 2019 Anne Raeff’s
Literary
Fiction
Winter
Kept Us Warm
#062 07 12 2918 Vic Sizemore’s
Literary
Fiction-Short Stories
I Love You
I’m Leaving
#063 07 13 2019 Deborah Riley Magnus’s
Dark
Paranormal Urban Fantasy
THE ORPHANS
BOOK ONE: THE LOST RACE
TRILOGY
#064 07 14 2019 Elizabeth Bell’s
Historical
Fiction
NECESSARY
SINS
#065 07 15 2019 Lori Baker Martin’s
Literary Novel
BITTER
WATER
#066 08 01 2019 Sabine Chennault’s
Historical
Novel
THE
CORPSMAN’S WIFE
#067 08 02 2019 Margaret Porter’s
Historical Biographical
Fiction
BEAUTIFUL
INVENTION: A NOVEL OF HEDY LAMARR
#068 08 04 2019 Hank Phillippi Ryan’s
Suspense
THE MURDER
LIST
069 08 08 2019 Diana Y. Paul’s
Literary
Mainstream Fiction
THINGS
UNSAID
070 08 10 2019 Phyllis H. Moore’s
Women’s
Historical Fiction
BIRDIE
& JUDE
071 08 11 2019 Sara Dahmen’s
Historical
Fiction
TINSMITH 1865
072 08 19 2019 Carolyn
Breckinridge’s
Short Story
Collection
KALIEDESCOPE
& OTHER STORIES
073 08 21 2019 Alison Ragsdale’s
Emotional Women’s
Fiction
THE ART OF
REMEMBERING
074 08 22 2019 Lee
Matthew Goldberg’s
Suspense
Thriller
THE DESIRE
CARD
075 08 23 2019 Jonathan Brown’s
Mystery/Amateur
P.I.
THE BIG
CRESCENDO
076 09 02 2019 Chera Hammons Miller’s
Literary
Fiction w/ suspense, concern with animals & land management
Monarchs
of the Northeast Kingdom
077 09 09 019 Joe William Taylor’s
Literary
Mystery
The Theoretics of Love
078 09 15 2019 Linda Hughes’s
Romantic Suspense
Secret of the Island
079 09 19 2019 Max Elliot Anderson’s
Middle Grade Adventure/Mystery
Snake Island
080 09 22 2019 Danny Adams’s
Science Fiction
Dayworld: A Hole In Wednesday
081 09 24 2019 Arianna Dagnino’s
Social/Historical/Adventure
The Afrikaner
082 09 29 2019 Lawrence Verigin’s
Thriller/Suspense
Seed of Control
083 10 05 2019 Emma Khoury’s
Fantasy
The Sword And Shield
#084 10 07 2019 Steve McManus’s
Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
SEVEN DEVILS
#085 10 08 2019 Sheila Lowe’s
Mystery/Psychological/Suspense
with Scientific Bent
PROOF OF LIVE
#086 10 10 2019 Jess Neal Woods’s
Historical Fiction
THE PROCESS OF FRAYING
#087 10 11 2019 Karen Odden’s
Historical
Suspense
A TRACE OF DECEIT
#88 10 14 2019 Kate Maruyama’s
Love, Loss
& Supernatural
“HARROWGATE”
#89 10 17 2019 Sherry Harris’s
Mystery
“LET’S FAKE A
DEAL”
#90 10 18 2019 Linda Mooney’s
Science
Fiction Apocalyptic/ Post Apocalyptic
“THE TRUNK”
#91 10 19 2019 Jayne Martin’s
Flash Fiction Short Story Collection
“TENDER CUTS”
#92 10 22 2019 Janice Cole Hopkins’s
Inspirational
Romance
“IT ALL STARTED AT THE MASQUERADE”
#93 10 29 2019 Kristi Petersen Schoonover’s
Short Story Collection
“THE SHADOWS
BEHIND”
#94 11 01 2019 David Henry Sterry’s
Fiction:
Sexual Violence
“THE TENDERLOIN WARS”
#95
11 03 2019 Jay Requard’s
Dark Fantasy/Horror
“DEATH
& DUST: THE PALE SAND ADVENTURES”
#96
11 04 2019 Caroline Leavitt’s
Fiction
“WITH
OR WITHOUT YOU”
#97 11 06 2019 Kelsey Clifton’s
Science
Fiction
“A DAY OUT OF TIME”
#098 11 13 2019 John F Allen’s
Urban Fantasy
Tale
“The God
Killers’
https://chrisricecooper.blogspot.com/2019/11/98-inside-emotion-of-fiction-god.html
https://chrisricecooper.blogspot.com/2019/11/98-inside-emotion-of-fiction-god.html
#99 11 16 2019 Damian McNicholl’s
Historical
Novel
“The Moment of Truth”
#100 11 19 2019 Stacia Levy’s
Mystery/Suspense
Novel
“Girl Crush”
#101 11 24 2019 Charlotte Morgan’s
Fiction Novel
“Protecting Elvis”
#102 11 26 2019 T. L. Moore’s
Children’s
Christian Fiction
“Ed On My Shoulder:
Maria & The Candy Trail”
#103
11 27 2019 Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg’s
Coming of Age Literary Novel
The Nine
#104 11 29 2019 Charlotte Blackwell’s
Adult
Paranormal
“MYSTIC EMBRACE”
#105 12 07 2019 Mike Burrell’s
Satire Novel
“THE LAND OF GRACE”
#106 12 09 2019 Phil McCarron’s
Screenplay
“Escapement”
#107 12 11 2019 Wendy H. Jones’s
Crime
Fiction/Police Procedural Novel
“KILLER’S COUNTDOWN”
#108 12 13 2019 Sandra Arnold’s
Historical
Literary Fiction
“The Ash, the Well and the Blue Bell”
#109 12 16 2019 Amalia Carosella’s
Historical/Contemporary/Duel
Timeline/ Women’s
Fiction
“DAUGHTER OF A THOUSAND YEARS”
#110 12 19 2019 Laura Bickle’s
Weird
Western/Contemporary Fantasy
“DARK ALCHEMY”
#111 12 27 2019 Brian Pinkerton’s
Science
Fiction Thriller
“THE GEMINI EXPERIMENT”