The Long Road from Perdition - Almost Set to PRINT

Days like today is always a proud day for an author.  The manuscript you've been laboring over, staying up until all hours of the night rewriting, thinking about, wondering about it's success...is finally done.

Having said that, the easy part is over.  What?  The easy part?  Hell yes.  Now the marketing, promotion and social networking must be in full throttle.  What I've been doing with this blog was only a warm up.  So, now that the novel will soon be out, you'll be hearing alot more from me.

I dare say, I think this is the only novel ever to take place in the GT (Golden Triangle of SE Texas).  You know, Groves, Port Arthur, Beaumont and the like.  It's about time, really.  I've always felt this area deserved some notariety for something other than the rich musical heritage.

I worked hard on this novel.  Now it's YOUR turn to tell me if you like it.  Here's a short synopsis on the back book cover:

Young Nicholas witnesses a horrifying scene leaving him emotionally broken only to discover, “The scars you can't see are the hardest to heal.”

Nicholas Fontenot is a precocious yet sensitive teenager who lives in an abusive home with his family. After witnessing a horrifying scene, his world is torn apart and leaves him emotionally broken. As the only witness of a grizzly crime, he is shuffled through the Foster Care system until he escapes his life of misery and abuse. Through his journey, Nicholas meets a kindred spirit in Charley, a drag queen and owner of an off the beaten path gay bar in New Orleans.  A host of colorful characters within this bar become Nicholas’ extended family.   Yet, his troubled past continues to haunt him until he is forced to leave the only happy home he has ever known .   His struggles give new meaning and insight to the thought; “The scars you can't see are the hardest to heal.” His journey is a long one, but his travels to find peace is even longer. It is through his journey that he discovers "The Long Road from Perdition." 

Well?

Growing up in the Golden Triangle

Greetings all, JR is busy tweaking his novel and working on promotion options (shhh, not supposed to tell you that). Anywho, he emailed me last evening and asked that I post something for you to read on the blog. Along with that email was an attachment, so without further adieu:

Everyone has memories of growing up in the town where they spent the majority of their youth. I have mostly bittersweet memories and I'm not sure if that is the case with everyone, but when you're an odd duck, it seems to be the norm. I wasn't most popular in school, I wasn't a "brain" or even a nerd. I was just somewhere in there amongst the crowd.

I did have a small group of like minded odd ducks that were friends of mine. That made all the difference in the world. I've heard others talk about growing up and the memories they hold and each of them are unique and resemble the type of town or city of their upbringing. To give you an idea of "My Golden Triangle" here are some one worded or phrase memories that I have:

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Pecan trees

Van Buren Elementary

Groves Jr High (formerly Woodlawn Jr High)

PN-G

Groves Golf Course

Leo & Willies

Drakes Drive-In

Drydens

Parkdale Mall

Lubys

Bruce's Supermarket

Refineries

Short Stop Convenience Store

West Groves Circle

Lamar University

Groves Kindergarten

Groves, Texas

More later regarding JR's novel, "The Long Road from Perdition"

Have You Ever Been to the "Golden Triangle?"

Since my novel is set in Groves and Beaumont, Texas, I thought I would introduce you to my hometown.  People from this area call it the "G-T," short for Golden Triangle.  The reason why is pretty simple, the areas that are listed together as a community form the shape of a triangle if you were to look on a map (Beaumont, Port Arthur and Orange).  Some of the better known areas are:  Beaumont and Port Arthur. 

Beaumont has really grown since I was a kid.  I remember back in the day when it had the first indoor mall, (Parkdale Mall).  Port Arthur is famous because of it's former resident:  Janis Joplin.  This area, or the "G-T" is roughly 90 miles southeast of Houston, Texas.  If you were to travel from Houston on I-10 to Port Arthur, the first thing you would notice would be the oil refineries.  From a distance, it looks pretty in the night, but during the light of day, you can see the work that these refineries actually do.  Constant puffs of smoke producing the retched fumes they produce is enough to make you gag at times. 

That's what I remember about the G-T.  The sound of the ocean, seagulls squaking, the smell of rotten eggs from the oil gases, high school football and the weather.  The hottest weather you can imagine.  Remember, you are spitting distance from the Gulf of Mexico.  Imagine getting up in the morning and taking a shower, dressing and step outside.  Standing outside for less than 1 minute can reduce your efforts of getting clean and fresh to nill.  The hair will be saturated with sweat, the bottom of your sneakers will start to melt (literally) and your shirt will have unsightly sweat stains.  The heat is unbelievable.  In fact, as Neil Simon once aptly said about another region as hot as this one; "This is hot.  Africa hot." 

So there you are, the G-T is a forever small town incapsulated in the growth of modern day southeast Texas.  Small town in every way; friendliness, attitude, politics and some might say small minded with regard to diversity.  Every town has their blemishes and it's an important part of Nicholas's problems in "The Long Road to Extradition."  Read about the G-T HERE.

JR-