The Writer of Lies: A Novel

By Lou DeCaro

This is an in depth view of a writer's constant search for the truth. The Writer of Lies will capture the readers attention from the very first page.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jan 15, 2016
• ISBN: 9781514451038

Lou DeCaro

Lou DeCaro is the author of In The Dim Light Of The Day (Xlibris, November 2012), Marshmallow Dreams And Bitter Tangerines (Xlibris, October 2013), Anthony (Xlibris. January 2014), The Blind Eye of Love (Xlibris, October 2014), Once A Widow, Ever A Wife (Xlibris, January 2015), The Champion of Love (Xlibris, April 2015), Forever and a Day (Xlibris, August 2015), The Rose of Cuba (Xlibris, November 2015), The Writer of Lies (Xlibris}, January 2016), The Lonely and the Disabled (Xlibris, March 2016), Like Father, Like Son (Xlibris, July 2016), Maria (Xlibris, October 2016), The Pharaoh Club (Xlibris, January 2017), The Love Armada (Xlibris, May2017), Infirmed (Xlibris, October 2017), The Anger of Love (Xlibris, January 2018), A Moment in Time (Xlibris, March 2018), Johnny Reb's (Xlibris, May 2018), Jar of Broken Hearts (Xlibris, September 2018),Tears from the River of Love (Xlibris, September 2018),and False Love (Xlibris, June 2019).

Book preview

Chapter 1

I don't know why I wake up in the middle of the night. But when I do, I like to write. A few years ago, a local newspaper published an article about my work. The editor thought his readers would be interested in a writer like me, so I agreed to be interviewed. I must say, the article was very well done.

My writing really has become an important part of my life. In fact, not a day goes by that I don't write something. I guess I enjoy it so much because I am able to reveal my innermost thoughts. I always try to be original and make my characters believable. Sometimes I think my characters are locked inside of my head waiting to be set free. I also get a great deal of satisfaction when someone reads one of my books. It's fun to hear what they think after they're done reading it.

Recently, I joined a local book club and became very friendly with one of its members. Her name is Barbara. She's the person I go to for a second opinion. In fact, we have a lot in common. We both think life is like a roller coaster. The trick to surviving the ride is to hold on tight.

I also became friendly with a man from the book club. He probably has the best understanding of what people are truly like. His name is Frank. He likes to tell me everyone plays a role in life. When I asked him what he meant by that, he told me everyone was trying to be something they really weren't. And since everyone was trying to be different, no one was being honest with themselves. In fact, many of my characters turned out to be liars. As a result, I became known as the writer of lies.

The other day I met Barbara in the park. We usually get together once a week for lunch under the Alice in Wonderland statue. Shortly after she arrived, she asked me if I finished the novel I was working on. To her surprise, I said yes. Then it dawned on me. I had just completed my ninth novel. It was time for me to start thinking about the tenth.

Barbara once told me I should have been a stand-up comedian. Apparently, she thought I had a really good sense of humor. She also told me my sense of humor was merely a defense mechanism that was born out of a need to be recognized by people. I agreed. She also said I was a very lonely person who was afraid of a permanent relationship. I didn't agree with that, but respected her right to her opinion nonetheless.

That evening, I thought about what Barbara said. I was probably this way because I was the middle child. In most families, the oldest child gets the most attention. The middle child has to fight for attention. And the youngest child is usually spoiled and gets everything it wants.

There is one thing I must say about myself. I was never a whiner or complainer. When it was obvious I wasn't going to get what I wanted, I figured out a way to get it myself. I wasn't going to wait around and pout about anything. I became a very assertive and determined kid. And by the time I was ten-years old, I had my first article published in a local newspaper.

The greatest part about my life at that point was my independence. My number one goal at that time was not to make too many mistakes. If I did make mistakes, I'd have to contend with my family and friends. That was the last thing I wanted. So I fell between the cracks, and ran the other way when things got rough. But, that's not the case in my novels. If anything, my main character faces adversity head-on, and never runs from a fight.

Not all of my main characters are the opposite of me. That would be too easy, and very transparent. Barbara swears there is a little of me in every character I create. To be a good writer, you must possess a multifaceted personality. And you certainly need more than just an alter-ego. Some characters I create have more positive qualities and values than I do. Sometimes, the opposite occurs. It all depends on why I created that character in the first place.

I'm also not afraid to mix roles. I don't stereotype men and women. A female character can possess masculine traits, and a male character can be very feminine at times. It all depends on what image I'm trying to create. Barbara understands me well, and I admire her a lot. She is not just beautiful. She's incredibly intelligent. Maybe that's why I admire Barbara so much. She has everything in my opinion. It's too bad she's married. Or at least she says she is. I've never met her husband, come to think of it.

Chapter 2

The following Friday I once again met Barbara in the park for lunch under the Alice in Wonderland statue. After we kissed each other hello on the cheek, Barbara asked me if I remembered what day it was. When I said no, she told me it was the day my first novel came out.

In The Dim Light Of The Day was a tragic love story on many levels. In fact, I consider it the saddest love story I've ever written. Barbara thought so too. When the novel begins, my main character is having a major breakdown. He just learned he has Parkinson's disease, and not too long after his wife files for divorce. The saddest thing about this character is he is still in love with his wife. Right away, I establish the husband as a compassionate and devoted individual who has been dealt a bad hand in life.

I never imagined I would get Parkinson's disease. But, that's exactly what happened. Then, my wife filed for divorce after thirty-one years of marriage. I didn't want a divorce. I loved my wife. And, I thought she loved me. Maybe she didn't want to be burdened with taking care of a sick person for the rest of her life. I really wasn't sure.

He goes on to tell the reader he didn't want to get sick. Sometimes, things just happen. At the time, he didn't feel sorry for himself. He didn't complain about it. He kept it a secret from the rest of his family and friends. Barbara thought that meant he was a very strong character. But she immediately got the impression that the wife and son were very cold-hearted.

It didn't take long for me to feel things were about to change. I got that feeling when my wife started asking people what it was like to care for someone with the disease. She was with me when I got the results, and sat there without saying a word. Shortly afterwards, she went back to work. Later that evening, she said very little. There were hardly any words of encouragement or support. My son's reaction was even less comforting. When he found out I had the disease, he told a friend it was the last thing he needed to hear. I was sorry if I caused him any inconvenience. I was told I got the disease from overexposure to toxic fertilizers, pesticides, and insecticides. In addition to being a full-time teacher, I had a small landscape maintenance business while my son was in college. I had to work two jobs because I needed the extra money to put my son through medical school.

Barbara said she cried the first time she read that passage. She got the impression that the wife and son were planning to abandon the main character all along. The diagnosis was the straw that broke their backs.

Chapter 3

I didn't want to take any chances with my main character. The fact that he was nameless in the novel was very important. I wanted to create a character that everyone could relate to, especially people that were abandoned because they were ill.

I also wanted to develop the wife's personality as early as possible. Barbara thought that was critically important. So, I wrote the following.

"When my wife announced she wanted a divorce, I became very depressed. I did everything I could to convince her otherwise, and even took her on a weekend getaway so we could be alone and try to work things out.

That Monday, the day after we returned, she came home from work claiming she had a migraine headache. I made dinner, and then sat down to watch some television with her as she lay on the couch. The doorbell rang at nine o'clock. It was a process server. As I was served the divorce papers, my wife got off the couch, walked upstairs to get a few things, and left the house. She came back the following day, but ultimately left for good in December on the same day my mother died twenty eight years earlier."

Barbara thought this passage said it all. But, I disagreed. There were some other aspects of this character that had to be established early on, especially her delusional and erratic behavior.

Then, the phone rang. It was one of my wife's coworkers. She called to ask my wife something about her schedule, and at the same time she asked me where I was the night before. Apparently, my wife attended a Christmas party and told everyone I wasn't there because I had another party to attend. I guess she didn't want everyone to know she left me. As I got undressed, I noticed some pictures on my desk. They were pictures I had taken on our weekend getaway two days before I was served with divorce papers. One picture was really nice. It was a picture of me and my wife having dinner at the inn. It was the last picture ever taken of us together. Both of us were smiling.

Barbara said I succeeded in creating the heartless character I needed to create. For the next dozen chapters, I focused my attention on the main character and his futile attempts to save the marriage. But I couldn't allow the reader to forget about the wife for an instant. I had to make sure she remained determined as ever. Barbara said I was smart to do that. But it was getting late at this point, so I had to say goodbye for the time being.

Chapter 4

For the next five or six months, the husband tried everything he could to convince his wife to come home. They hardly spoke to each other, and the wife became more belligerent towards him. I was running into a brick wall with ideas, so I made a bold move with the main plot. I decided to have the main character appeal to his son for support by visiting him unannounced. Barbara thought it was a great idea.

"The weather started to get worse as I began to drive. For the next three hours, I drove through one heavy downpour after another. I could hardly see out of my windows because the rain was falling so heavily. Armed with only a map and a good sense of direction, I plodded along and eventually found the town. I stopped at a local store and asked the proprietor where my son's street was located. To my amazement, it was right down the road from the local store. It turned out to be a new subdivision of homes. They must have cost a lot of money because they were huge. My son's house was just inside the subdivision, so I found it without too much difficulty. I parked my car right in front of the house on the road, walked up the driveway, and knocked on the front door. The door was actually open. I could see inside through the glass screen door. Nobody answered. I wondered if he knew I was there and just wasn't answering the door. I really didn't think that was true. Maybe he was taking a walk. Maybe he was in the basement doing something. I figured the smartest thing to do was to wait in my car. So I walked back down the driveway, and sat in my car. About ten minutes went by. I got out of my car, lit a cigarette, and started walking up the block to look at the other houses. When I turned around and started to walk back, I saw my wife and son pull into the driveway in her car. Immediately, my wife and son began to walk towards me. As they were doing so, I saw my wife whisper something into his ear. I think I know what she said, but can't say for sure. As they got nearer to me, my son walked ahead of his mother, greeted me, and asked me what I wanted. I told them both that I decided to take a ride to speak with him about the divorce. I then asked my wife if she would be willing to talk about things. She said no, and told me she wanted the lawyers to handle the matter. Then she walked away and went into the house. I had no idea she would be there, and apologized for interrupting her visit. Then my son and I took a walk.

I told my son the reasons why I thought his mother was making a mistake by going through with the divorce proceedings. I pointed out that I didn't think she would succeed in court, and that it would be a terrible shame to continue along this path. He disagreed. Then I told him that I still loved his mother, and that I didn't want to see the marriage end or the family destroyed. He said nothing. I asked him if he would be willing to sit down with us and help us work things out. He said no. Then he told me he was upset at me for calling him a mama's boy on Easter. At that point, I realized my situation was hopeless. We walked back to my car in front of his house. His mother was nowhere to be found. After a moment or two, I hugged him goodbye. As I drove away, I realized he never invited me into the house, or even asked me if I needed to use the bathroom, or if I wanted a glass of water. I came to the conclusion that my son didn't want to have anything to do with me, and that he had chosen sides. My psychologist later told me this was probably the case all along, but that I was too blind to even consider that this could be true. He said in some ways this was the best thing I could have done. I gave him the benefit of the doubt by saying he might be right. But, I really didn't want to believe it. I still loved my son very much. As I drove home that night, I couldn't help thinking about all the happy times we had together, and everything I had done for him. Maybe, I said to myself, there will come a day he will realize he made a mistake. Then again, maybe he doesn't think he made a mistake at all. Someone told me things would change between us once he became a father. I didn't think so. My son was gone. And as long as his mother and I were apart, I didn't think there was any way he was coming back."

Chapter 5

Since this was such an emotionally charged section of the novel, I decided to accelerate the plot a bit and proceed to the denouement. Clearly, the visit was the climax of the novel. Even Barbara told me she couldn't bear reading about one more bad thing happening to the husband. It was time, she said, to steer the story to its conclusion.

All along, my main goal was to write a novel about the pain associated with unrequited love. It also focused on the selfish nature of love, and the senseless torment some people impose on themselves because they refuse to believe that their marriage could be over. The reader feels the pain the main character experiences when he tells them sometimes, and for no apparent reason, he thinks of his wife in the dim light of the day. Clearly, he still loves her. Barbara even went so far as to say the husband would take her back if she suddenly changed her mind. I totally disagreed with that.

Just to play it safe, I wrote something generic at the very ending so everyone could relate to my main character.

I learned a lot about human nature from my psychologist. He was a great man. He told me that Time really does heal a lot of wounds. He also said most wounds are never healed because people let their false pride and ego get in the way. When the opportunity no longer exists, they wind up spending the rest of their days wondering whether they did the right thing. That doubt torments them for the rest of their lives. He also said bitter people are eventually poisoned by their own venom. It's too bad. A lot of people I knew could have lived a much happier life.

Barbara said it was perfect. I had succeeded to tell a love story from a man's point of view rather than the traditional female position. And while the main plot was easily understood, I also thought I successfully incorporated outside factors such as the main character's failing health and his son's betrayal to enhance the tragic nature of the novel. Like the psychologist said, a lot of people could have lived a much happier life. Even though it appeared I had succeeded to convey this message effectively, I was bothered by my ending. I continued to wonder why my characters didn't know this simple rule in life.

One of my friends from the book club couldn't understand why his former wife hated him so much. It seemed she became more bitter towards him as time went by. Ironically, she was the one to file for divorce, and allowed herself to be consumed by hatred as a result. Her bitterness and contempt for her former husband eventually caused her to live a miserable life. Sometimes I wonder how many people would file for divorce if they knew how miserable they would be in the end. I guess I don't know human nature as well as I thought.

Chapter 6

Immediately after completion of In The Dim Light Of The Day, I began my second novel. My next work was more of a coming of age love story than anything else. In fact, Barbara thought it was the most diverse novel I had written. Once again, we are introduced to an anonymous main character who just ended a long-term relationship. From the very beginning, the reader becomes familiar with the starting- over motif. The first time we meet this man, the reader learns he just retired and got divorced.

"I always wanted to live in New York. When my family moved to Long Island in 1961, I swore I would move back someday. There was something about the city that intrigued me. Maybe it was the fast-paced lifestyle that impressed me the most. Long Island seemed to crawl in comparison.

I had a lot of fond childhood memories of the city. I liked living among different kinds of people, and learned at a very early age not to judge people by the color of their skin, their ethnic background, or their religious beliefs. As a result, I grew up open minded and color- blind.

But as the years went by, the idea of living in the city took a back seat to more important things like going to college, getting married, and raising a family. Yet, every time I went to the city during those years, I would think of the promise I made to myself as a child."

Barbara said it obvious from the start that my main character was resurrected from my first novel, and that I had to be careful not to make it too obvious to the reader. If anything, I thought he was more like me. Nevertheless, the main character is a painter, and meets the woman of his dreams one day while painting in Central Park.

"The first time I actually painted in the park was Sunday, August 12, 2012. That morning, I put my equipment together and walked a few blocks to the 79th Street entrance. Once inside the park, I continued to walk in a southerly direction until I came to the Alice in Wonderland Statue.

The minute I started putting paint on the canvas, people walked over to see what I was doing. Surprisingly, almost everyone asked permission