In 2023, I took a sabbatical from my teaching duties. The goal was to start the process of rewriting my cult-survival story. After taking a course on memoir writing and making the initial changes, I shied away from the project.
The rewrite I envisioned then wasn’t the right fit for my story. My goal was to get rid of any fictionalized parts, change fictional names to real names, people, places, etc. In a meeting with a memoir expert I decided it was all too much for too little return. She recommended in-depth research, interviews with former cult members, and a total rewrite, years of work.
Now I understand something. That is not what this story needs. It doesn’t need to be added to. It needs to be stripped back, reduced from a short novel to a mid-length novella. From over 40,000 words to under 30,000. Bare bones. And so the rewrite has begun.
The original book, A Train Called Forgiveness, was my first attempt at writing and publishing a book. I self-published and sold a modest amount of copies. It gets good reviews at Amazon. But as time passed, something has gnawed at me. Two things. First, the writing could be tighter. Second, there needs to be a thematic change. I’m not telling yet.
I’ve always loved minimalist writers and gritty writers. Cormac McCarthy and Denis Johnson come to mind. I love writers who make the process as much about editing as writing. Writers who painstakingly get rid of every unnecessary word, and then craft what remains into pure art. That’s the goal for the rewrite.
The new book will remain creative non-fiction, but many real names will be used. The title will change to Cult Boy. If you’d like to see the first chapter in progress, you can check it out on my new website, glitcsh.com. Beware, because it’s a work in progress, it might change from week to week as I hone in on the minimalist vibe I’m seeking. – dse