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A Death For Beauty
By Alberto Rios
Set during the Civil War, a woman fears she will lose her soul when she dies. But in a moment of crisis, she discovers her path to salvation by an unlikely savior: her mentally impaired daughter.
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Description
A child with a special gift, but mentally impaired, had yet another strike against it: the infant had been born a girl. A disappointment to her mother, who never birthed the boy she had always longed for. The year is 1864, and Nettie Vancouver leads an idyllic life on a small Kansas farm as Virginia Vancouver’s only surviving child. When Nettie’s father is killed in battle, and her grandfather succumbs to the ravages of moonshine, her mother decides to leave behind her sinful indiscretions, and “lights a shuck outt’a here”, and they journey west. When they are attacked by a tribe of Sioux Indians along the Oregon Trail, Virginia’s dreams of a new life, and the redemption she hopes for, fade into despair. Captured and disoriented, she helps Nettie escape, only to discover that savage Indians had captured and tortured her. Grief-stricken, Virginia seeks atonement for what appears as an unbearable tragedy. The outcome: a combination of the astounding, and the surreal, when Virginia finds repentance at a most unlikely time, and learns to love Nettie from another world, that once was beyond her reach.
Seeking Representation for Debut Novel
Alberto Rios is a former advertising copywriter turned screenwriter who several years ago began what he says “he was born to do”, and has held high aspirations on becoming a novelist. But not just any novel will do.
He explains:
“I’d been writing short stories as a hobby most of my life until I was hired to write advertising for a Home Builder’s ad agency in Pennsylvania that specialized in selling new homes. In my spare time I was writing screenplays, two of which will be marketed next year. Although, I know I’ve found my real passion writing novels. The intimacy of these detailed stories just gets in your blood and they become a big part of your life every day. Plus the market is a bit more accessible and more flexible.
Writing is all I’ve ever loved and I’ve studied and practiced my craft diligently for many years. And I’m happy to say that after two years of writing, editing, re-writing, plotting, and polishing this work, my debut novel is almost complete. I’m very fortunate to have found an excellent editor to work with. She’s tough, but I’m tougher. Writers have to be. Writers have to know what they want and we’ve got to stick to what we believe. I started out with a good story, but with Jill’s editing, the story has improved far and away from its second draft. It’s now much more focused, more professional, and very marketable.
Early next year I’m going to start self-publishing this novel and testing the waters as far as marketing goes. It’s something all authors have to take control of, early on. I also worked as a freelance graphic designer for 12 years, so I’ve been researching and experimenting with different cover designs. I can hardly wait to query my list of potential agents and publishers that hopefully will show interest in this manuscript.
I’m very optimistic about its success and I’ve worked very hard to write not just any story, but a classic story that is meant to touch readers deeply, emotionally, and spiritually. It’s a comforting and uplifting story with plenty of ironic humor along for the journey.
I’m almost there. And this project will get much more interesting very soon.”
The proposed First Chapter is posted at: http://www.adeathforbeauty.com/