The storyline for Center Stage came at a time in my life when I was in a reminiscent mood. You know what that’s like – thinking back over your childhood, young adult times, and later. With the young adult times, there are so many relationships to explore. It seems the offbeat ones hold fast in my memories.
There was one relationship that tested so many things about myself. This person was my polar opposite in so many ways. She was gregarious. I was shy. She was extravagant. I was prudent. She was flamboyant. I was modest, and the list goes on. So, you may ask: why were we friends at all?
Tough question. To some extent, I believe, I was living vicariously through her. I was able to be up close and personal with what it was like to express all those traits I didn’t see myself as having. I admit that being in a nightclub with her was nerve-wracking. I even threatened to leave her to find her own way home once when she was headed “toward the moon,” so to speak. She didn’t seem to have any safety valves whether she was being manic or depressed. Her balance seemed to be more toward the manic side of her disorder, which made for some bizarre experiences.
The one constant was that others always seemed to serve in the role of being her audience. I don’t believe she would ever have acknowledged this. She was aware of her prescribed condition, but I don’t believe she ever really connected her behavior to it. I didn’t have any hard feelings toward her. I simply had to walk away when the imbalance between us became untenable.
With all that said, at the time I wrote Center Stage I had not been in touch with her for years. I often wondered what happened to her. She was smart and had great promise. I just wondered if she was ever able to establish a balance within herself.
There was one relationship that tested so many things about myself. This person was my polar opposite in so many ways. She was gregarious. I was shy. She was extravagant. I was prudent. She was flamboyant. I was modest, and the list goes on. So, you may ask: why were we friends at all?
Tough question. To some extent, I believe, I was living vicariously through her. I was able to be up close and personal with what it was like to express all those traits I didn’t see myself as having. I admit that being in a nightclub with her was nerve-wracking. I even threatened to leave her to find her own way home once when she was headed “toward the moon,” so to speak. She didn’t seem to have any safety valves whether she was being manic or depressed. Her balance seemed to be more toward the manic side of her disorder, which made for some bizarre experiences.
The one constant was that others always seemed to serve in the role of being her audience. I don’t believe she would ever have acknowledged this. She was aware of her prescribed condition, but I don’t believe she ever really connected her behavior to it. I didn’t have any hard feelings toward her. I simply had to walk away when the imbalance between us became untenable.
With all that said, at the time I wrote Center Stage I had not been in touch with her for years. I often wondered what happened to her. She was smart and had great promise. I just wondered if she was ever able to establish a balance within herself.
Spinning a Tale from a Memory Spark
April Saunders is a woman after the brass ring and willing to do whatever it takes to feel it within her grasp. In her quest to be center stage, she barely even notices the trail of victims she leaves in her wake. Eventually her husband and daughter join all the others left behind.
Now the tide has turned. She has been left behind. No power. No options. No family. No friends. No hope.
Then a mysterious and seemingly magical woman named Grace appears at her door. Despondent, April is so weak-willed at this point that she allows Grace to take charge, unaware that her life is about to take a turn that few ever get to experience. As she takes a preternatural journey into her past, will her ambition continue to rule her heart? Can there be salvation for one who has betrayed so many?
Is There Salvation?
If we all had the opportunity to revisit the trail of our life experiences, how would we feel? Would we do anything differently if we could? Would we try to atone, make amends? Would we become contemplative and view where we are now with an open mind?
I hope Center Stage will prompt readers to be willing to observe their pasts and grow from the experience. We all have those moments in our pasts when we wish we had acted differently. It’s important to open ourselves up to the lesson they offer and move forward in our lives. April faces this same dilemma in Center Stage. Will she make better choices?
If we all had the opportunity to revisit the trail of our life experiences, how would we feel? Would we do anything differently if we could? Would we try to atone, make amends? Would we become contemplative and view where we are now with an open mind?
I hope Center Stage will prompt readers to be willing to observe their pasts and grow from the experience. We all have those moments in our pasts when we wish we had acted differently. It’s important to open ourselves up to the lesson they offer and move forward in our lives. April faces this same dilemma in Center Stage. Will she make better choices?
Check It Out!
 | Read reviews for Center Stage at https://www.dannyewilliamsen.com/center-stage.html and here on the Women's Fiction page. Of course, it's on Amazon. It is available in paperback and Kindle. You can read more of Dannye's books, both fiction and nonfiction at the following sites: https://www.amazon.com/Dannye-Williamsen/e/B004KEAFE8 http://www.SassyScribblers.com http://www.DannyeWilliamsen.com |  |
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