Clean Sweep
Page 33
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10. While writing Clean Sweep, one of my biggest challenges was revealing behavior and conversation indicative of Grant’s mental health prior to letting readers in on his condition, as later diagnosed. In fact, I started dropping hints about Grant beginning in chapter 4. When did you first notice conversation or action on his part that raised a red flag for you? How did you react? Did you shrug and ignore it? Did you believe I had simply written something in a strange manner? Did you feel he needed help?
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Fiction often requires readers to suspend disbelief, but was Grant’s action of moving street homeless into an atrium an act you found difficult to accept? Were you enthusiastically pulled along by his excitement and magnetism? Or did you have doubts? It seems Carli struggled with both excitement and doubt. How did you react when, in chapter 15, Grant exclaimed, “Cruise wear is out”? Did you find his statement funny, due to its oddity? Did you think, perhaps, Grant is getting a bit wacky? Did it come to mind that he might be struggling with a chemical imbalance and mental health issue? Chemical imbalances known to cause mental illness can go unnoticed for periods of time, even by family members and others closest to individuals with these imbalances. In retrospect, these signs often seem more obvious. If you were Carli, at what point would you have said, “Hey, something is off”? What does her taking action to help say about her character?
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11. For each person who experiences chemical imbalance and/or addiction, there are usually several more people – family members or friends – who share the associated struggle of seeing unusual actions, thoughts, and pain in someone they love, and in being unable to singly create desired changes. Grant’s condition allows us to see this very personal impact on Carli. Would Clean Sweep have resonated with you in the same way if we had not been privy to Carli’s despair and heartbreak resulting from this personal connection? As a society, we have come a long way in reducing the stigma associated with mental health issues and addictions. Have we come far enough? Do we do enough to make help available to those in need?
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12. A novel is a series of scenes. Together, they create a progression of actions, both external and internal to characters. Some scenes are more conversation-oriented, others are more action- or event-oriented, and still others are more setting-rich, reaching readers through descriptions of “place.” Aside from the overarching messages of Clean Sweep, do any particular scenes stick in your mind more than others? If so, why are they memorable? Does it have to do with any of the following specifically: Setting? Conversation? Action? Language? A particular phrase? A specific thought? An emotional impact the scene has on a character or on you? Another reason?
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13. Art is an important thread running through Clean Sweep. It is part of what defines Carli’s life, and it becomes a defining element of Carli’s contribution to those she most wants to save. Did you find the art scenes: interesting in and of themselves? Or as a forewarning of sorts? As symbols of Carli’s state of being? Or something altogether different? What do you feel about the role of art in Clean Sweep?
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14. How do you feel about Grant’s death? Was it necessary? Did you want a different outcome? How does it add to the story or tie into Carli’s life-affirmative transformation? How does it draw you into the story told by Clean Sweep, or turn you away, hoping to change the outcome?
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15. The subtitle for Clean Sweep is, “A Novel.” It is simple, straight forward, and standard protocol for literary fiction. When all was said and done, I followed protocol, but I seriously considered taking a risk, and adding more specific information to the subtitle. I wanted potential readers to know more about the essence of this story when they read the cover. Some of the alternate subtitles I considered were, “A Novel of Hope,” “A Novel of Newfound Hope,” “A Novel of Human Connection and Hope,” “A Novel of Conviction,” “A Novel of Faith and Conviction,” “A Novel of Compassion,” “A Novel of Devastation and Hope,” “A Novel of Trust,” and, “A Novel of Faith.” Should I have taken the risk? What would you have thought of a more descriptive subtitle? Would you have chosen any of the above or something else altogether? Please, let me know your thoughts. I am curious!
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16. Who are your two favorite characters? Or, with which two characters did you feel the strongest connection? Why?
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17. Is Clean Sweep a story about Carli, or men and women living on city sidewalks, or, perhaps, is it about a larger societal issue of mental health issues, poverty, and homelessness? What do you think?
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18. What would you change about this novel? Or any of the characters?
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19. The final chapter of Clean Sweep gives details of Grant and Carli’s art exhibit, in which characters we have met on the streets are depicted before, during, and after their street life. We considered earlier the role of art in Carli’s life and in the novel. Let’s now consider a different aspect of art: how much does art merely reflect the world, and our impressions of the world, and how much can it influence change in the world? Do you believe an art exhibit such as Carli’s could prompt any types of change in a real-life situation? What impact would this exhibit have on you?
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20. Are you happy with, or satisfied by, Carli’s final transformation and her drive to help through her art? Does it seem appropriate?
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21. As Carli notes in her art exhibit in Clean Sweep, “No one says, ‘When I grow up, I want to live in a box on a city sidewalk.’” Will you remember this if you happen to see someone who is street homeless? Will you remember they once had a very different past? Did reading Clean Sweep change your views of someone you might see on the streets, even though the exhibit and the characters in this story are fictionalized?
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A note. And one more question.
Several readers of early drafts of Clean Sweep were Manhattan residents, and gave this feedback: “I expected to find Wilson and Cedric and the other street homeless characters of Clean Sweep on the streets when I walked out of my apartment. I also expected, and wanted, to see Carli’s art exhibit.” How real did the characters and situations of Clean Sweep become to you?
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Share your thoughts on Clean Sweep. Please, send an email my way. Eblee.author@gmail.com
Reviews Are Always Appreciated!
Reviews help others decide if Clean Sweep might be a book they would like to read. I would like to have as many interested readers enjoy Clean Sweep as possible.
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If you have a minute, would you kindly consider leaving a review of Clean Sweep on my Amazon Author’s page, your Goodreads page, or social media posts, where other readers might find it and learn your thoughts? A few lines or phrases will do just fine if you are pressed for time.
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I am happy you found Clean Sweep. I hope you enjoyed it.
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Best,
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E. B. Lee