Don't Disappoint - Chapter 1

We begin the the third week of our second quarterly PILCROW’s Serialized Novel Contest. Over the next week, we’ll serialize the excerpts of our remaining Finalist’s unpublished novel, and then subscribers (both free and paid) will vote on a Winner to be fully serialized here on the Substack. Finalists are awarded $500; the Winner $1,000.

Our Finalists are:

• Vice Nimrod by Colin Dodds

  • Chapter 1

  • Chapter 2

  • Chapter 3

  • Chapter 4

• Still Soft With Sleep by Vincenzo Barney

  • Prologue

  • Part 1, Chapter 1

  • Part 1, Chapter 2

  • Part 1, Chapter 3

• Don’t Disappoint by Martin Van Cooper

While the traditional organs of American letters continue to wither, we recognize the need to forge a new path. If you believe in what we’re doing, PLEASE share and subscribe and spread the word.

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In Don’t Disappoint, amidst a flailing career, a displaced midwesterner in Los Angeles goes home to confront the complications of a mother with advancing dementia, only for a marital sucker punch to leave him questioning what’s left of his family to salvage.

Martin Van Cooper writes the Substack Don't Read the Dust Jacket

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1

The sky was iridescent beige and a light rain would continue for the rest of the day and into the night. It was 45 and the stillness of the air gave a finality to the mist and chill. He was on the way to the airport and had to meet his sister, for a coffee she said, before leaving and he knew it was going to be a close call. Security check at CLE was never more than 15 min and traffic nothing to speak of, but he was half an hour late after getting Jessica’s texts and then talking to her on the phone for a harried couple of minutes, leaving him wondering whether there was any real need to fly back to California at all.

Jason Driver pulled into the Starbucks in Seven Hills at the corner of Snow and Broadview and saw his sister Alice’s car already there and her seated at the window.

Sorry, he said, sitting down across from her.

Everything ok? Get something.

I don’t want anything.

It’s fine, get something.

Yeah, no, I don’t want anything.

And then after a moment he took off his jacket and blew into his hands to warm them, avoiding eye contact with her.

What did she say? ...