Author Adonis Mann: Blog Take Over--Y. Correa "Reversal" Day 1

What was the inspiration behind the Reversal concept?

Coincidence or destiny?

That’s the question I ask myself when it comes to the birth of “Reversal”.

To this day, I honestly don’t know which one it was. But after having completed the story, I’ve come to believe that I was meant to write it all along. So, perhaps it was destiny.

I guess, like with all stories, we should start at the beginning ….

One day, as per usual, I was chatting with my good friend and fellow author A. Lopez Jr. , who’d consequently just woken up. As I routinely did, I asked how he was doing, although I already knew that he was groggy and tired.

That’s when he shared with me the fact that he’d had a “sort of bad dream”. He shared that in the dream time was going backwards and people were dying young; he was among those people.

The conversation went a little something like this;

Me: That would make a fantastic story. You should write it down.

A.: Naw, I am working on too many projects as it is. But you’re right, it would make a good story.

Me: Then maybe just jot down the concept this way it could be something that you could come back to later.

A.: No, I don’t think it’s my story to tell. You take it.

Me: Me? No, I couldn’t do that! That would be stealing.

A.: It’s not stealing if I am giving it to you. It’s yours, take it. Write the story.

Immediately my mind flooded with the premise of the story—the ins and outs of how that world could function, the myriad things that could happen. More than that, the richness of the location and time setting.

The conversation continued between A. and me, and we went back and forth for some time about how that story would and could work.

Finally, he says, “See? I knew it was yours.”

I smiled. I was grateful for his confidence in my ability to narrate the richness of the story.

He finished with, “It’s called ‘Reversal’.”

“‘Reversal’ it is!” I responded.

I am not altogether done. This doesn’t end with an immediate “happily ever after”.

You see, although I started to write the story that very day it took me three years to finish. “Reversal” was a rollercoaster ride to get done. I mean, like, for real.

I’d find myself in these moments of mental debate ….

I don’t know if I am doing this story justice.

Dear God, it sucks ass!

What the fuck am I thinking?

Should I delete everything and start over?

Naw, I hate it. I’m dumping it.

Wait, this story is pretty damn good. Let me try to add a little more to it.

I love this story. Bad! Ass!

I totally need to finish this thing, like, right away.

😟 Sheesh, what am I thinking? It sucks! I’m gonna delete it.

But I can’t delete it, A. is counting on me!

Damnit! 😖

Round and round the mental rollercoaster went for several years. Until the beginning of 2020. At the beginning of the year I said to myself, “If I don’t achieve anything else this year, I am at least going to finish ‘Reversal’ ... good, bad or otherwise.”

Enter 2020, slowly but surely I would add a little bit to the story. A line here, when I could. A line there, when I could, and so it went.

Until November 2020.

Enter NaNoWriMo.

Now, for many, many years I was not the biggest advocate of NaNoWriMo. I have several reasons why. Truthfully, I’m still not that big of an advocate of it. But I said to myself, “I think I am going to dedicate some NaNoWriMo time to ‘Reversal’, but I’m gonna do it MY way.”

By “my way” I was referring to it being a “relaxed” challenge. There was a reason for it. I have been working two jobs for several months, so I knew that I couldn’t dedicate all the time in the world to writing during the month of November, but whatever writing I did do it would be on “Reversal”.

So with the plan well in order, I embarked.

I was blessed enough to have written the majority of the story during November 2020, although I did not complete it by the end of the month. However, the vast amount that I did add paved the way for me to complete the story at the end of the first week of December.

I was so proud, but also, admittedly torn.

Did I not do the story justice in the rush to finish it? Did I cut corners and in turn produce a less than favorable story? Honestly, I didn’t know how I felt about it. I was a hop, skip and jump away from deleting it altogether.

In lieu of disposing of the story, I opted to share it forward. Perhaps someone else’s opinion would help settle my angst.

In comes my Ace, author Queen of Spades.

“Queen,” I said, “here is the deal. I am this close to dumping it. I need you to read it and give me the plain and simple facts. Cold, hard, and all that.”

“Okay,” she responded willingly.

Days later, I was drumming my fingers on a table waiting to hear something back. Like, anything. She was doing the Poker Face like a pro. I couldn’t get an inch or a mile from her. Nothing.

At least, until she was good and ready.

The day she was done reading the story, she was as quiet as a church mouse for the majority of the day. Anxiously, I shook my feet and waited. She was torturing me, I assumed.

Then, at the end of the day, it came.

“Well Y.,” she said, “It’s a super compelling and great story. I loved it.”