Synopsis:
Shawn and Alex have been friends since first
grade.
Alex, the rock star quarterback, appears to be
basking in the limelight of his success and his new romance with Pam. But appearances can be deceiving.
Shawn is the key man in the football team’s solid
defense. He’s also the senior class’ most eligible bachelor. But Shawn has no
time to get involved with a girl—at least, that’s what he tells his
friends.
In reality, he does have a love interest… Tony
Valito.
Side-by-side, the relationships between the two
couples blossom. One in the open. The
other in secret. That is, until Shawn’s world erupts when the rumor that he’s
gay gathers momentum.
In trying to find Shawn, perhaps his friends will
end up finding themselves. And everyone will discover how dangerous are the
lives of high school athletes.
Excerpt:
Alex makes a fist with his free hand
and brings it to his mouth. He blows hard into it. He’s holding back a tidal
wave of emotion.
Coach Roberts sits down next to Alex. “Why
don’t you go home and get some sleep? You look like hell.”
“I can’t,” Alex mutters.
“Sure you can, Alex. We can take it
from here.”
Alex slams his feet firmly on the
floor. “Sure you can. I can’t. But you can.”
The coach is confused. “What are you
saying, Alex?”
It’s been eating at him for hours. He
blurts it out. “My best friend was lying on the floor, bleeding to death, and I
couldn’t do anything. Not a damn thing. And I didn’t stop Peter and Dan when I
had the chance. And now Shawn is in there and you want me to go home and go to
bed. This sucks. I suck.”
Joe goes over and kneels down in front
of Alex. “Don’t do this to yourself, Alex. There’s plenty of guilt to go
around. Right now we need to be strong. We need to be strong for Shawn. And for
Pam. And for Julia. There’ll be plenty of time to point fingers. But not now.”
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Laying Down the Tracks to Finding Shawn
Finding
Shawn started out as a simple
story that I wanted to tell, about the bullying of a gay teen by a high school
athlete. But along the way the two
primary characters, Alex and Shawn took on lives of their own. And as I started
exploring their friendship the characters just sort of exploded. It happened
when I tried to understand their relationship. Why were they best friends? What
bridge existed between them?
Enter Pam, Shawn’s sister and confidant. How would
she handle having a gay brother under the claw of an overbearing cop father? And
how would keeping Shawn’s secret from Alex, her boyfriend, effect their new
romance?
How did Shawn meet his love interest, Tony, and
was Tony worth jeopardizing his reputation and potential athletic scholarships? And how would a macho group of football
players destined for greatness handle the outing of one of their own? As I
began to answer these questions the book suddenly became so much more fun and
exciting. It was like weaving together a
road map into the unknown.
Along the way, I pondered how the story would
develop and how people would react in different parts of the country. There was no doubt that this story and the
way these characters responded might be different if this had happened in the
deep south or in a very rural conservative community. Utica, NY is a mix of inner city and
backwoods. There are night clubs and bars that host a punk band one night and
country western the next night. Utica also has a very depressed economy. The
2008 depression hit Utica back in 1998. It’s number one industry is tearing
down abandoned buildings.
So it was a perfect setting for a sports centric
community that revered its winners while it ignored their flaws. Of course
sitting in the spectator seats is not the same as showering with a guy. What
would his teammates do?
After the first few chapters, the book started to
write itself. Scene after scene just flowed out. Shawn, Alex, Tony and Pam were
real people with their own personalities and skeletons in their closet. And
what they did, how they reacted to the fast paced events was dictated by those
personalities and experiences.
So please, jump in and meet my friends Shawn,
Alex, Tony and Pam. They’re all great people. I hope you get to like them as
much as I do. And I hope that Finding Shawn will touch you in many
ways. I look forward to your feedback and questions.
About
the Author:
PHIL MARCELLO started writing as a boy in the
sixties. Growing up in the projects wasn’t easy, but reading and writing were a
couple of healthy vices he picked up along the way. Life happened, but Phil
never entirely lost his interest and over the years, he started, but never
finished, over a dozen stories.
Fortunately, he saved them all and now has the
time and desire to complete them. Phil knows it will take years, but as he
enjoys writing and views it as his art form it’s a labor of love he gladly
undertakes.
PHIL MARCELLO can be found at:
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