The Next Novel – My Brother’s Keeper

The next book, and it’s called “My Brother’s Keeper…”. It explores a couple of different ideas.

One is the concept of judging others.

Another is talking yourself into things that aren’t true (conspiracy theories).

Letting go.

And finally, are you doing people any good when you continually help them?

Here’s the gist of the story.

An injured police officer (Bryan), seemingly delirious after being assaulted with a cattle prod, shoots another officer (Tom). The second officer is saved only because of his bulletproof vest. On the surface, it looks like the craziest accident in the world.

But is it?

Themes explored –

JUDGING OTHERS: Tom and Bryan’s wife Glinda are friends. But are they more than that? Are they friends with benefits, so to speak? Does that play into it any?

CONSPIRACY THEORIES – Something called cognitive disassociation is discussed briefly. Basically, it’s thinking something is going on and then finding every scrap of evidence to support it (even if you’re making it up).

LETTING GO: In the last novel, Event Horizon, Will shot and killed one of his best friends. Despite it being ruled a good shooting (his friend Max had murdered his own wife and may have been poised to kill Will and Jonesy), Will is living with guilt. The power of the word “Maybe” haunts him. As one person in his group says, “Maybe is an equation you can’t prove.”

HELPING TOO MUCH (and where the title of the book comes from): At one point is helping someone too much? Are you helping someone? Or are you hurting them? And what do you do when it looks like it’s all your fault?

I’m still on track for a Christmas release. I’m on the tenth or eleventh revision, Spell checking like crazy, and fixing small plot holes.

One tool I use is ProWritingAid. It’s pretty good, but like all AI tools, it’s not the gospel according to the computer. It tosses suggestions out, and while 90% of the time, it’s on the money, sometimes it’s not. It’s up to you to take the suggestions.

One feature I like is the chapter critique. It gives some suggestions, but there are things that it misses. For instance, I ran it through the manuscript critique, and something it complained loud and long about was I left a plot hole unresolved concerning Tom, one of my central character’s detectives. Tom had been hunting for a peeping tom in Romeo. The nearby town of Manassa also has one. Smart money says it’s the same person.

I didn’t mention it because it has nothing to do with the story aside from the reason Tom had been working late.

When it complained, I realized the readers might complain

I gave it a resolution. Will and Bob Mortenson catch the creep.

Now it complained that it interfered with the pacing of the original investigation

I ignored it based on principles of leadership. Will has people working for him. His best bet is to stay out of the way and let them do their job. He doesn’t need to be hovering around them looking important.

His catching the peeper happened while he was sitting with Bob, the Manassa Town Marshal.

Lastly, I set up the next two books in the last chapter. The much dreamed about “Tales from the NCO Club” will be book 6. Book 7, “Dead Man,” will be an RJ/Pam adventure, and we’ll see their relationship and that case (which covers a couple of years).

I know it will complain about that.