Welcome To Charmsville

Description:

Darren Ferguson has been voted in as The Town’s new mayor and plans

wholesale changes. Not least, renaming “The Town” to Charmsville.

With the Global Financial Crisis in full-swing, it seems to have bypassed Charmsville, courtesy of Ferguson's financial ingenuity and mental nimbleness to get things done for his constituents.

However, not everyone is impressed with the new mayor's decisions. Least of all the boys from the Charmsville Bowling Club who are firmly in the ire of Ferguson and his aggressive approach to gentrification in his quest to take Charmsville into a new dawn.

In their pursuit to keep the bowling club from Ferguson's clutches, Charmsville stalwarts, Alan Sutton, Frank Patterson - along with everybody's favourite lovable rogue who is fresh out of prison, Terry Blanchard - embark on what can only be described as an unhinged soap opera, with more farcical chaos bound to flood the streets of Charmsville. Will they save their beloved bowling club from the evils of capitalism?


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Background:

 

So, the writing of Welcome To Charmsville commenced on New Year's eve 2014. And before you ask, no, it hasn't been that long of a road.

The first draft took around 12 weeks to write. The next five years? A combination of laziness, self sabotage and certain other events.

Fast-forward and the final draft has been ready for release for the last 18 months, but instead has occupied the desk drawer compiling dust.

Then, recently, a friend of mine gave me the necessary kick up the backside to get things moving, so... here we are!

The idea for Welcome To Charmsville was inspired by events surrounding an incident at my home town's main bowling club in the late '90s (I think it was 1996 but can't be too sure, neither can Google it seems), whereby the club had closed due to financial 'constraints'. Its members were forced to either merge with a rival bowling club or seize playing the sport.

Like in many other countries, gentrification across Australia is now rife. The idea was to incorporate the ideas of small community spaces being literally bulldozed by big city development companies using governments and local council approvals as viable avenues for financial gain.

Like every profession, while there are many good people who ply their trade in these industries - both in the private and public sector,- there are also some who aren't.

With these themes, the idea was to bring to life a full blown soap opera and while I very much hope those who choose to read Welcome To Charmsville find it funny and entertaining, there is an undercurrent of darkness which forms the patchwork of this story.

Many community spaces for retirees are being shunned in favour of financial gain and these measures taken by the powers that be, in my opinion, largely cut across the threshold of common decency.

How do we rectify this? Sadly, I think as a society it's too far gone and in a world where everything is measured by 'the bottom line' this is yet another grim facet that encapsulates the modern world. Perhaps all we can do is take the piss out of it throughout various art forms (like fiction)!

 

 
What will entice you to indulge in Welcome To Charmsville?

Like my previous works, if you like the dry humour of Robert G. Barrett and/or Australian cult classic films such as Two Hands and The Castle then this may just be up your street.

I'd like to think that it would be a good companion whilst on the beach occupying a sun-bed and drinking a few beers. Word of warning, though - If you offend easily it might be best to stick to Mills and Boon...

Welcome To Charmsville contains more of that gritty realism which made some readers squirm and shudder during Borrowed Time and The Straight and Narrow. Oh well...

As I've said before, you can't make salt of the earth characters sound like Oscar Wilde, it would only reduce their essence as characters. It might be fiction, but each character needs a strong, unique personality and I hope those who read Welcome To Charmsville will understand that, regardless of how grotesque certain characters throughout these pages may seem.

Cardiac Risk in the Young

All royalties received from Welcome To Charmsville will be donated to the Cardiac Risk in the Young (better known as CRY).

CRY is an organisation whose vision is to prevent young sudden cardiac deaths through awareness, screening and research, and supporting affected families.

For more information and/or to donate directly to CRY, visit https://www.c-r-y.org.uk/.