Writing the Great American Novel

I'm working on my novel, piece by piece. Thanks to some help by my compatriots over at the Ranting Room, I've broken through the one chapter barrier and am now up to eight, count 'em EIGHT chapters!

Exciting times. Thank God for borderline unemployment... that's all I can say!

Following is a brief excerpt.

* * *

“Those things will kill you.”

Ray looked up at this interruption of his cigar. Before him stood a thin young woman wearing nice sandals.

“What, this?” he send, brandishing the stogie as if he’d just noticed it.

“Yes. That’s a stinking, burning stick of cancer.”

“Now wait a minute… smoking an occasional cigar WON’T give you cancer.”

“Oh really?”

“Yes. Haven’t you ever heard of inoculation?”

“Uh… like for chicken pox or measles or something?”

“Yes.”

She stared at him. He continued.

“Do you know how inoculation works?”

“Not really.”

“Basically, you give someone a little bit of something that would hurt them in a larger amount. Like, some broken versions of a bacterium for their immune system to fight with.”

“Okay…”

“My cigars, far from being the cause of cancer, are actually a preventative measure.”

“That’s not right…”

“Yes, it is, madame. Science is a powerful thing. And it has taught me that the only sure way to avoid cancer is to inoculate myself against it on a daily basis with a small dose of high-quality Dominican tobacco.”

“But…”

“It’s science.”

“Okay, then, sorry. It still stinks.”

“Obviously not enough to inoculate me against this conversation. Maybe I need a maduro…”


-DG