Privileged Lives is a
novel about the rich and powerful and what they do in the dark – perhaps out of
boredom. Take note: this is a novel.
Written in a very
thick book (500+ pages), published by Delacorte Press in New York, the novel is
quite captivating until the very end.
But for writers,
and would-be writers, attention is best placed on the background knowledge of
the author about many things which enabled him to write the novel.
What did Edward
Stewart know about? Secret Societies and what they do, their link to powerful
lawyers; police procedural and where the law comes in; media and what media can
do to perpetuate lies; arts and how arts can be used by the rich in their
pecking order; HIV and ARC (AIDS-related complex), their symptoms and how they
are acquired; gays and gay life; priests, their sex needs and providers;
cocaine and other prohibited drugs and their effects on the body; the drug and
its link to crime; psychiatrists and their practice; custom-made lipsticks and
their chemistry; fashion and what’s not correct in fashion; commercial
buildings unoccupied, their strategic positions, and connection to crimes; what
weird things idle people enjoy to see in weird sex. Armed with all of these,
the author was able to weave up a novel where each character stands out as real
being in the mind of the reader.
If you like the
book, it means you’ve learned from Edward Stewart something of every element that
he had introduced, beginning with comments from the characters to what happens
to the characters as an effect, and the over-all chemistry the story is leading
to. You may not like the story to end from the pleasure of having been
acquainted with the characters as though they are real.
What’s the one
word we can use to describe his use of these elements if not realism? The author
worked so hard to present a realistic story.
Unfortunately, the
book doesn’t seem to have printouts after 1988. It is very obvious the book is
an assault on those in power. This novel could be classified as minority
literature since its publication appears restricted. There was no single review on it – at least
when it was published.
Delacorte Press is
part of The Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc. Did someone call? In
the Philippines it would appear like that. One call from the powerful and off,
the book goes!
Some reviews of
the novel appeared only after 10 years in 1999, but still scanty. This time it
was published by Amazon.com. The reviewers, though just a handful, said they
liked the book. Few reviewers imply scanty circulation or very few customers.
But the book is truly riveting until the end. Find a copy and read!
Back to the
background knowledge of the novelist, does it take every novelist to know that
much? Not necessarily. It depends on your story. Just like any piece of
writing, your novel can be as simple as you want, as long as it comes out
realistic. Focus on something that you know very well, something you have experienced
first-hand. Some writers, in fact had assumed the life of a prisoner since they
wanted to write realistic stories from prison. But this is extreme. It is just being
able to breathe, think, and live the life of your character.
Saleability is not
a gauge for a good novel. There have been millions of books sold on saleability
alone because they cater to the taste of the buyer. The fact that some novels employ
a mix of realism and surrealism and get sold means that the adult mind is still
a child hungering for the surrealist, an escape from reality.
Some examples of
surrealism would be a hand walking on the floor, a piece of cake floating in
air, someone appearing on horseback and then gone in a whisk. There are novels
that have these examples and yet they become best-selling. It is not the kind
serious writing as art would employ. Would you be happy if you are known to be
writing in this fashion?
A beginning writer
would best take care to begin writing from reality if he is serious about
writing – and not write just where easy money comes. He can do this by being
sensitive about so many things, learning about diverse lives, and experiencing
their world, even vicariously. Then he can begin to write with credibility.
