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PGProctor

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    Perpetually revising while looking for an agent.

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  1. Opening Scene: Provides a glimpse of the protagonist and secondary characters and provides the background for future conflict. Prologue September 1710 Somewhere in the Bahama Archipelago The unforgiving surf ripped Harry Llewellyn’s boot off and sent it tumbling. The captain felt like a child’s rag doll trampled into the muck when he crawled onto the beach. Wearing one salt-encrusted cavalier boot, he righted himself. He limped hard, trudging up the highest dune. Gingerly lowering himself, he sat on a massive hunk of coral thrown ashore by the tempest. He plucked at the cactus thorns embedded in his stockinged foot with a heavy sigh. The ruin of his beloved Raging Queen lay smashed to splinters. The lookout’s warning of the impending reef came as the hurricane had blown itself out, dashing the rising hope in the breasts of the crew. With a broken rudder and shattered masts, it was impossible to save his foundering ship. The survivors salvaged what they could from the crashing of the fierce waves. It was unlikely that the mile-long island had fresh water. The chance of a rescue was slim. The storm’s ferocity scoured the low shrubs and stunted trees of their foliage. Ever optimistic, the tall man sagged from the dire catastrophe. He doggedly pursued a French vaisseau in hopes of a fat prize. Harry should have sought a sheltered cove when the fearsome winds bore down. The corpses of his crewmen rose and fell in the surf. A lucky few made it to shore, along with the six who, like Harry, always survived. Harry hung on to his cocked hat despite being trounced by the surf. Beating it against his leg, he sighed at the shredded plumage and clapped it on his head. Raking his fingers through his prodigious beard, he tried to rid himself of the plastered sand. Sharp pain forced him to tug off his remaining boot. A tiny crab had attached itself to his stocking. Flicking it away, he dumped the sand and shells from his boot. He rolled down his stockings and wrung them. “Bah!” Harry’s first mate climbed the dune. The small, olive-skinned man bore a parcel and Harry’s lost boot. He sat cross-legged by his captain. “Bloody, nasty little bastards,” he cursed, plucking sand spurs from his feet. “Well, I’ve royally buggered this up. Ricci, what happened to your shoes?” Harry inquired. “Floating around out there somewhere. By god’s piss, this is a mess. I’ve saved your log and papers wrapped in three layers of waxed canvas. Your pipe and tobacco, too.” Ricci handed his captain the bowl, bag, and sodden boot. “A little damp. Two kegs of freshwater floated in with chicken crates. The pig swam ashore. The sheep broke a leg so Jean cut its throat. Mutton tonight.” Harry tamped out the pipe. “I don’t know what I would do without you. Now if you could spirit us out of here. The log isn’t as important as my plan for our future. I’ve lost the best damn crew any pirate ever had. As always, the seven of us remain.” “Privateers, not pirates. Jean spotted a mast to the northwest. I hope for a rescue if we can make a big enough smoke, as long as it’s not the Spanish. Others are making it to shore. The Mestizo drifted in on a spar. Those papers you treasure so, are they for creating a gentlemen’s club for people like us?” “Ladies too, of course. Think of it. Between all of us, we know a hundred others like ourselves. People who don’t age, who don’t get sick, who survive catastrophes. Wouldn’t life be easier if we compiled our resources for mutual protection when times are hard? I’ve thought of gathering our people to work out a plan, to formalize our intent. You said you know a dozen in the east. Jean knows a few in Africa. We all know plenty in Europe. I even met a Tuscarora fellow in the Virginia colony.” “If you could get word to everyone, we could plan to meet in London. They like their clubs and coffeehouses there,” Ricci offered. “I have a price on my head in England,” Harry mused. “Maybe Lisbon, or Marseilles, or Tangiers.” He gestured with his pipe at the five working on the beach. “Look at those magnificent people.” Even Lilbourn, who’s doing his best to steal my woman.” “Pshaw. Susannah would never look twice at a bounder like Richard Lilbourn.” “Oh, she’s looked twice. More likely three times. He is handy in a fight. I’ll give him that. My darling Susannah Abigail says I’m not a serious person. That I’m a braggart who makes unnecessary trouble for myself. I take risks. I’m the grasshopper in Aesop’s fable.” Harry lit his pipe, coaxing forth a slight curl of smoke. “Tastes like kelp. I stole her from Viggo, so serves me right. If Vigs paid her more attention, I would never have stood a chance. She needs somebody who can make her laugh.” The lady in question whaled away at the bowsprit with an axe to free a rope. Susannah was attired in sailor garb. Her long blond hair hung in salt-sodden waves below her hips. She flicked her hair away in annoyance, as it constantly blew in her face. Richard and his bosom pal Viggo assembled a shelter nearby with scraps of wood and canvas. “The Moor is mending,” Ricci commented. The two observed the limping, dark-skinned man rolling a cask out of the pounding surf and up the beach. “Jean knows what’s important. At least he saved the rum. Good thing the shark didn’t like the taste of him,” Harry laughed. Shouting and cheers drew their attention to the ruptured hull protruding from the angry waves. From it emerged a half-naked man with long, dark hair. He bore a small chest. “Hey, look! The Gaul found our loot,” Ricci said. “René’s a good man. Too bad we can’t eat money. I don’t think we’ll starve, but the living will be rough. At least we can buy a new ship with the gold.” “If we ever get out of here,” Ricci commented glumly. “Hmm. Be of good cheer, my friend. I’ve been in tighter spots. Promise me something, Ricci. If I should get thrown in prison, or lost in the Tortugas, or kidnapped by slavers, swear you will follow through. Take these documents and carry out my plan to launch a fellowship of the extraordinarily long-lived. It will be a remarkable gathering.” Ricci smiled fondly at his old friend. “It’s a promise I’ll never have to keep, but I will swear to bring about my captain’s mad dream.” Harry laughed a great belly laugh. “Let’s get roaring drunk and persuade this crew to be the founding members of a great fraternity of endless possibilities.”
  2. The Act of Story Statement Gail Leonhardt volunteered to host an event held every twenty-five years for a group of people who are ordinary in every way except that they fail to age. Antagonist Bon vivant Ricci Alim Shabaev "Ricky" is the fly in the ointment. He arrives at Gail’s home in desperate condition, disrupting Gail’s life. Ricky hopes to ingratiate himself and gain acceptance into The Membership. He was present for the founding of the organization but declined to join following the murder of founder Harry Llewellyn. Harry was his dear friend and Gail’s lover. Centuries of ill will exist between Ricky and other members. Gail's friends are suspicious of Ricky's motives due to his unreliability and long history of charlatanism. Breakout Title: Ribbons of Time: The Membership Genre and Comparables: Ribbons of Time: The Membership is speculative fiction with a touch of magical realism, falling into the realm of paranormal romance. It is also a comedy of manners peopled by unreliable narrators. Comparables include: The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V. E. Schwab The Midnight Library by Matt Haig Also, the movie Age of Adeline and the short-lived television series New Amsterdam (not to be confused with the current hospital drama of the same name). Hook Line: A group of extraordinarily long-lived people who organized to protect themselves from the vagaries of changing times face the challenge of adapting to the modern world and continued concealment from a technological society. Conflict: Primary Conflict: Making the arrangements for a convention-style meeting would seemingly be an uncomplicated task. However, those attending this event have the shared issue of failure to age. These ordinary people are not immortal, nor supernatural beings. They all suffered a traumatic event, after which they ceased to get older. The challenges of moving from superstitious times into a modern world motivated the creation of The Membership. Difficulties encountered by the members include coping with their identities and finances in digital times, navigating through regional politics and war, and dealing with friends and family who age and die at a normal rate. Beautiful Gail is the member responsible for facilitating the upcoming meeting, which is drawing together associates from around the world. Her extended family and very old friends are at the heart of complex relationships featuring old rivalries, loyalties, and a complicated love triangle. Ricci, soon to be known as Ricky, is a would-be member of this organization. In advance of the scheduled meeting, he arrives in desperate condition seeking Gail's help. His appearance disrupts her household and her personal plans including her attempt to become a surrogate for a childless relative. Ricci's presence also disturbs her grandson Jeremy, whom Gail has taken in following a failed suicide attempt. Secondary Conflict: Richard and Viggo are two members with whom Gail has a history of romantic involvement. The friends and rivals soon bring their own emotional baggage. After outliving his beloved wife, Viggo has staged his death and is looking to start anew. Ricky had a misadventure that nearly ended Richard's life, causing lingering resentment. The eternal bachelor, Richard is stunned to find he is a single parent for a very young boy. He hopes to exploit any feeling Gail has for him to persuade her to take parental responsibility off his hands. Gail discovers her son Robert, long thought dead, is very much alive, having the same extended lifespan as his mother. How these unreliable narrators navigate the year leading up to their meeting is the crux of the novel. The narrative is driven by the relationships of these characters managing their unusual and complicated lives. Setting: From 2017-1018 all roads are leading to New York City. An organization known simply as The Membership is assembling to plan the future for the group of a few hundred long-lived, eternally youthful participants. Gail owns an apartment building where many of the members will stay. Stateless Ricky receives an invitation to the event while working in an Indian dockyard and arranges to be smuggled into the U.S. Viggo abandons his life in Argentina, fakes his death, and embraces a new life as an American citizen. British lothario Richard sells out an international business to begin anew as the father of a young son. Gail has the habit of taking in those in trouble and overextending her resources. She rescued her grandson Jeremy following a near-fatal drug overdose and brought him into her home. Ricky lands on her doorstep in terrible physical condition following his ordeal of jumping ship in New York harbor. Despite her great age, Gail's fertility is intact and she seeks out a suitable father for a child she plans to bestow on her childless granddaughter. Following an accidental encounter near her southern mountain home, she discovers that her son Robert thought dead for many years, has returned home fleeing a failed marriage in Colorado. She sponsors his membership since he shares her longevity. Gail has had on-and-off romantic relationships with both Richard and Viggo, both of whom maintain apartments in her building. Her feelings for Viggo are not reciprocated, while unreliable Richard's ardor for her has simmered since their first meeting. Richard blames Ricky for the death of the organization's founder and his own near-death experience. He's less than thrilled to find Ricky ensconced in Gail's home. Members from all corners of the world descend on Gail's residence. Their objective is partly social since they have few outlets to express who they really are. They also seek to use science to help explain the nature of their condition. They feel the necessity of keeping their remarkable existence confidential re-establishing their identities as needed to avoid questions about their perpetual youth. Technology has complicated their lives and they are concerned about genetics, moving finances, and falling behind the times. Amid romantic shenanigans, bonhomie, and the constant fear of public exposure the group of friends and lovers chart their future.
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