In preparation for a meeting with an agent at the upcoming upcoming San Francisco writers conference, I spent a few hours reading one of his author’s debut novels: Beauty of the Broken, by Tawni Waters.
It’s a lovely book—a coming of age story and a young love story (Juliet and Juliet instead of Romeo and Juliet), accurately weaving in issues of domestic violence, religiosity, and even indigenously-based racism. It’s extremely well written, and just about every page drips with exceptional writing. Here’s just one example:
When I was little, in Sunday school, they told us angels have big strong hands and fiery swords that they use to vanquish all their foes. They told us that no man on earth or demon from hell can stand up before the power of those flaming swords. But I feel like an angel with small hands and no feet.
Mara—the protagonist in Beauty of the Broken
(In fact, the word craft is so exceptional that for budding authors who are prone to comparing themselves to others it could cause them problems. Fortunately, this isn’t one of my several writing weaknesses. I can look at writing excellence and just revel in it, hoping some of it rubs off on me without competing with it—and inevitably losing!)
The only downside? I think this story by this author had the potential for Anna Karenina scope. The themes are there, the characters are there, the story is there, and, most importantly, the caliber of writing is there; unfortunately, the market for a 364,000 word book isn’t.
Too bad. She is an exceptional writer.