fuonlyknew

How I Came to Write This Novel

The idea for this novel has floated around my brain for many years. I grew up in a small, working-class city in northern New York. While not a wealthy place it had a thriving downtown, with stores, restaurants, bars, a movie theater. On any Saturday it would be packed with shoppers and teenagers, like myself, hanging out. But in the early 1970s it got ‘Urban Renewaled’; all the buildings were torn down and replaced by new ugly buildings and for some reason a huge wall around the whole area. It was meant to be a pedestrian mall, but noone came and the downtown died.

This has always bothered me, and so I thought a fictional account of why this happened, complete with graft, corruption, and bad guys might work. The book follows the main protagonist Richard, an academic who has returned to his hometown, as he and a motley crew of new and old friends investigate what happened, at their own risk from a ‘gang that couldn’t shoot straight’ array of villains.

Richard, Brenda (a friend hardened by life), Itchy (a gay guitar genius), Theresa (a sexually abused and exploited young woman), Marat (a young ex-con) do indeed uncover what happened as the tale follows their amateur sleuthing, and hopefully renewal of the city.

However I chose the title RenewalS as this is the story of not only the renewal of a city but of people as well. I’ve always rooted for the underdog, and there are many of them here, who for many reasons find themselves on the down side of life.

To me, the most interesting character in the story is Theresa. Sexually abused by her father, tortured by her mother, she is rescued by her cousin Teddy (the subject of the novel’s Prologue). But as she matures she is sexually exploited by him, pimped out to a rapacious old crook named Leonard Vivelamore for whom Teddy works. Richard rescues her, but traumatized as she is, Teddy still holds sway over her and convinces her to tell him what Richard and his pals are up to. She is found out and returns to Teddy. But finally, not easily and not without misgivings, she breaks free of him and slowly discovers her own autonomy.

I grew to love and admire Theresa, yet others follow their own path to renewal. Marat, with the support of Richard, discovers he is able and intelligent. Brenda leaves her regrets behind and opens up to life. Richard’s corrupt brother, in on the doings of the crooks, repents and shows both courage and bravery.

There are other tales of renewal, but will save for readers to discover.

In all, Renewals is serious but leavened with a great deal of humor. It is more than a who-done-it (though that is there). It is also a meditation on hope and life.