For the December Conference!
1. Story Statement
a. This novel is told in alternating timelines between a sabbatical in Italy and a stressful year in New York.
b. Secretly hoping to reclaim the title of main character in his own life, Harrison takes an impulsive sabbatical to a panoramic, stepped village in Lake Como under the guise of grieving his best friend he lost in New York.
2. Antagonist/Antagonistic Force
a. In the earlier New York chapters, the surface level antagonist is Emily, whose selfish, narcistic tendencies – almost all relating to her upcoming wedding – not only make Harrison feel like a shadow in their friend group, but distract from the most pressing issue, that their mutual friend, Mara, is silently fighting a terminal illness. Following Mara’s death, Emily confirms Harrison’s worst fears, that his friends’ lives will continue on without him despite his achievements in a supporting role.
b. Underlying the above conflict which prompts Harrison’s decision to flee to Lake Como, the real antagonistic force reveals itself to be Harrison’s mistaken belief that good things aren’t meant to come his way and he’s therefore meant to be merely a bystander in his own life (based on a series of prior wounds). It’s this belief that could prevent Harrison from realizing that his Italian odyssey, and the people in it, was the story he wanted to be a part of all along. The idea that Harrison is nothing but an observer in his own life is what leads Harrison to subconsciously exclude himself in his own storytelling (i.e., the earlier New York chapters).
3. Breakout Title
a. Cushion for the Fall (current title)
b. Alternatives include Post Hoc, To Those Worth Remembering
4. Comparable Titles
a. Sean Greer’s Less is Lost
i. Follows a queer protagonist on a road trip.
ii. Explores past relationships and often envelopes complicated topics with humor.
iii. Has distinct narration/POV.
b. Kaveh Akbar’s Martyr!
i. Explores queer identity of the protagonist following the death of a loved one.
5. Log Line
a. A disillusioned New York attorney flees to Lake Como under the guise of grieving his best friend, only to be swept up by meddling locals, a charming photographer, and the realization that he’s not there to mourn, but to stop living as a spectator and reclaim the spotlight in his own life.
6. Conflict
a. Inner Conflict
i. Harrison has accepted as gospel the mistaken belief that he is meant to be an observer in his own life. This is the result of a series of wounds that teach him good things are not meant to come his way, at least not for good. One example of this is Harrison’s first love who easily dismisses him while Harrison is still closeted. Another example is Mara, the only friend who really understood Harrison, who passes away at a young age from a terminal cancer. In Lake Como, Harrison finally relents to telling Luca (his love interest) about the events in New York leading up to and following Emily’s wedding and Mara’s death. Only when prompted by Luca does Harrison discover Harrison himself is not found in any of his stories. What was first a deep-harbored fear was now boiled over, showing Luca that Harrison is not even a secondary character in his own life.
b. Secondary Conflict
i. In Lake Como, following the opposite of a meet-cute while eating shit at his local grocer, Harrison meets SOFIA, his middle-aged landlady, who lives in the apartment below him with her debatably communist mother, known only as MAMMA. Sofia, by brute force, and Mamma, by sage Italian wisdom and radioactive limoncello, seem keen on providing Harrison with guidance he never asked for, which inevitably leads to conflict. Harrison wants to mope in peace while the ladies (Mamma, especially) make it their duty to feed and care for Harrison like a wounded baby bird. Additionally, Harrison is irked by Sofia’s prying, as she is constantly asking about what happened in New York and Harrison’s past that is making him act this way. Harrison finds an unsuspecting ally in Sofia, who’s equally unlucky in love and too blinded by her duty to care for Mamma to live her own life. Harrison helps Sofia evade a greased up real estate tycoon who wants to buy Mamma’s house to add to his collection. Mamma, sensing Harrison’s impending exit, admits over limoncello she is selling the house after witnessing Harrison’s odyssey. It is a rare and selfless act of motherly love to stop Sofia from using caretaking as a crutch and seize what life exists beyond their idyllic shores.
7. Setting
a. Primary Setting (Bellagio, Lake Como)
i. Harrison rents an upstairs floor apartment in the mazed tourist town of Bellagio on the idyllic shores of Lake Como. The apartment is barren, which Harrison understands was because Sofia moved herself out for the extra income, and moved to the downstairs unit where she lives with Mamma. Sofia and Mamma’s home is what Harrison doesn’t have – nostalgic recipes, family photographs and a connection to loved ones. The upstairs/downstairs dichotomy becomes important as the novel progresses. Eventually, Harrison moves a couch into the apartment (more below). The town of Bellagio itself is what you’d expect from a storied, tourist town in Italy. Harrison prefers the mazed streets, old dock workers, and cobblestones. While he could have chosen other quieter towns, deep down he chose Bellagio hoping he could jumpstart his own Odyssey with a handsome stranger.
b. Secondary Setting (New York/New Jersey)
i. In the earlier New York chapters, setting revolves around Harrison’s friends – not Harrison. Therefore, when friends are buying houses and getting married, the settings reflect that; wedding venues, open houses, stuffy bridal showers, etc. There’s a sense of luxury and sterility. In all of this, Harrison’s own house/apartment is never revealed, which is a personal choice that reflects his own feelings of displacement.
c. Couches
i. Throughout the novel, couches play a role in setting as a motif in both New York and Italy timelines. The couches reveal themselves to be places where Harrison confronts truth and finds his most authentic self, even in the face of real fears (i.e. “Cushion for the Fall”). One example of this is Mara’s couch. Harrison and Mara have one final conversation on her couch while Mara is in hospice and Mara makes Harrison promise that he won’t disappear from his own life. Another example is Mamma/Sofia’s couch, which Harrison drags upstairs to use for himself. Eventually, Harrison and Luca sleep together on that couch and Harrison shares with Luca his past in New York.
