Seeking Feedback

[longknife]

I';m currently working on a novel about a soldier suffering from PTSD who is treated using American Indian healing methods.

Someone who's been there and done that would be preferable.

 

[Muhammed]

I've practiced trancendental meditation for over 30 years. Sometimes for thereputic reasons. Is that the type of thing you are wondering about?

 

[longknife]

I've practiced trancendental meditation for over 30 years. Sometimes for thereputic reasons. Is that the type of thing you are wondering about?

No. I'm just rewriting and revising a novel and want someone to give me feedback on it.

Sonora Symphony

War's Wounds Healed by Papago Indian Medicine


Staff Sergeant Ray Daniels doesn't know who he is, how he got where he is, or what the future holds in store for him. He goes AWOL, riding through the night until his Guiding Spirits take him to meet a Papago Indian elder who takes him in with a desire to heal the mental wounds of war with traditional medicine and the healing sights and sounds of the Sonora Desert. Ray must regain himself in order to continue his military life – the only life he knows or cares about.

 

[longknife]

I've decided to seek a literary agent for the novel and would appreciate any reactions to the following:

Dear xxx,



He jerks upright, fists clenched, stomach cramped in agony, He can't remember what roused him. He knows not who he is, where he came from, or how he came to be in a hospital hooked up to tubes and lines.


I am seeking representation for Sonora Symphony, a contemporary novel of 109,000 words.


This is a unique approach to a serious problem facing tens of thousands suffering from Post -Traumatic Symptom Disorder. It effects military and civilians alike. A program of healing Marines suffering PTSD via American Indian healing was tried at Camp Pendelton, California but I do not know why or when it was discontinued. I was fortunate in that mine was dealt with over the years, although I still react badly to the sound of gun fire decades later.


Staff Sergeant Ray Daniels is lost in the fog of war, alone and nobody will tell him anything. Frustrated and angry at being poked and prodded and asked questions for which he has no answers, Ray leaves the hospital and with but twenty dollars in his pocket, sets off into the night. His spirit guides lead him to a small all-night diner on the edge of the Sonora Desert.


A Tohono O'odham veteran takes Ray into his home and, in an effort to heal him, shows him the surrounding desert. Joe Redmond feeds him good food and herbs, as well as sharing stories and legends of The People. Slowly and in bits and pieces, Ray regains snippets of memories.


Army regulations state that, if his amnesia is not cured, Ray will be discharged and sent to a Veteran's Administration facility. Ray learns he is a member of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee. When Joe indicates there is a possible way of regaining Ray's memory using traditional Indian medicines. Ray begs Joe to take him through it – even if there is a possibility it could be fatal.


I am from Southern California and spent twenty-three years in the US Army. I retired in 1980 and moved to Las Vegas. Bluewood Publishing has released three of my historical novels about the founding of the California missions – Father Serra's Legacy.


As per your submission guidelines, a synopsis is attached.


Your blog and agency website indicate your interest in the American west and spirituality. Thank you for your consideration,


Sincerely,