• October 31, 2011

Bad Boy by Grant Jerkins

Grant Jerkins’ debut novel, A Very Simple Crime, was released to critical praise from places such as Publisher’s Weekly, The New York Times Book Review, and Library Journal, and was also one of my top reads of 2010. Tomorrow I will be reviewing Grant’s follow up, At the End of the Road, but today I’m turning over the blog to Grant. I’ll just let him take it from here…

Grant JerkinsPeople are always telling me they want to write. But they don’t know what to write about. And what do I think they should write about? And I usually think to myself, well how the fuck should I know what you ought to write about? I never say that, though. No, my stock response is, “Why don’t you write a story about a dog told from the dog’s point of view?”

I always thought that was cute.

When Elizabeth White invited me to guest post on her site, I said I was honored. Then I asked her what did she think I should write about? I have a pretty good idea what she was thinking, but what she said was, “Why don’t you write a story about a dog told from the dog’s point of view?”

Probably thought she was being cute.

It’s only 625 words. When you get right down to it, most dogs don’t have that large of a vocabulary anyway. – GJ

Bad Boy

Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy.

Move. Move. Move. Boy move. Go. Boy move. Go. Boy move go. Go. Go. Go. Outside! Outside! Outside! Outside! Out! Out! Out! Out! Out!

Smell. Smell. Pee. Pee. Smell. Pee. Smell pee. Smell Pee. SOME GODDAMN DOG HAS BEEN PEEING IN MY YARD! SOME GODDAMN DOG HAS BEEN PEEING IN MY YARD! My yard. My yard. Pee. Must pee. Must Pee. Must pee here. Must pee here now. Now must pee. Here. Pee. Yes. Yes. Yes…

Boy? Boy? Boy? Smell. Boy? Smell. Yes. Run. Run. Run. Run. Smell. Run. Run. Smell. Run. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy, boy.

New yard. New yard. New house. New yard. (BAD BOY.) (BAD BOY) (BAD BOY.) Boy? Boy? Smell. Smell. Pee. Smell pee. Smell pee. THAT GODDAMN DOG! THAT GODDAMN DOG! Fix him! Fix him! FIX THAT GODDAMN DOG! Pee. Pee. Pee. Yes.

Boy? Boy? Boy? Smell. Smell. Boy? Boy? Run. Run. Run. Smell. Run. Smell. Run. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. (BAD BOY.) Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. (BAD BOY.) Boy. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. New yard. New yard. New house. New yard. Smell. Smell. Good. Smell. Good smell. Good. No smell. No smell good. Good no smell. Pee.

Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? (No smell.) Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? boy? boy? boy? boy? boy? boy? boy? …. boy? …. boy?…. boy? …. boy? …. boy? …. sleep.

Boy! Boy! Boy! Boy! Boy! Boy! Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. (BAD BOY.) Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. (Girl.) Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. (BAD BOY.) Boy. (Girl.) Boy. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go.

Woods. Woods! Woods! Go in woods! Go in. Smell. Wonderful. Wonderful. Smell. Wonderful smell. Run. Run. Alone. Run. Alone. Run. Alone. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Joy. Run. Run. Joy. Alone. Joy. Run. Joy. Joy. Joy. Smell. Smell. Roll. Roll. Roll. Roll. Joy! Joy! Joy! Joy! Roll! Roll! Roll! Roll! Joy. Roll. Joy. Roll. joy …. LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN! Bird!? BIRD! BIRD! JOY! Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Stop. Rest. Rest. Rest, rest, rest, rest, rest, rest, rest, rest, rest, rest …. rest …. rest…. rest …. BIRD! Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Run. Stop. Rest. Rest, rest, rest, rest, rest, rest, rest …. rest …. rest …. sun …. rest …. sun …. rest …. sun …. sleep.

LISTEN! Scream!? Listen! Listen! Boy? Boy? Boy? Boy? Scream! (Girl.) Run.

Boy. (BAD BOY.) (Girl.) Boy? (Girl?) Hurt. Smell. Hurt. Smell. Hurt smell. (Girl.) Smell. Heat. Blood. Sex. Heat. Blood. Sex. Heat Blood. Sex. Smell. Smell. Smell. Heat. Blood. Sex. Heat Blood Sex. Death. HeatBloodSex. Death. HEATBLOODSEX. DEATH. HEATBLOODSEXDEATH! Boy?

Smell boy. Smell boy. HeatBloodSex. Boy smell heatBloodSex. Smell. Smell. (BAD BOY.) Smell. Smell (BAD BOY.) HeatBloodSex. Badness. Heat. Blood. Sex. Death. Badness. KICK. Hurt! Hurt! Hurt! Hurt! Hurt! Hurt! KICK. Hurt! Hurt! Hurt! Hurt! Hurt! Hurt. Hurt. Hurt. Hurt. Hurt. Hurt. (BAD BOY.)

Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy. Boy? Boy. Boy? Pet. Pet. Pet. Yes. Me. Pet. Yes. Joy. Joy. Joy. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. Pet me. Boy! Boy!

Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go. Go.

Boy. (BAD BOY.)

Grant Jerkins lives with his wife and son in the Atlanta area, where he has worked for ten years advocating for the rights of adults with developmental disabilities. A Very Simple Crime, his debut novel, has already been adapted for the screen by Oscar-nominated screenwriter Nicholas Kazan (At Close Range, Reversal of Fortune) and O’Neill Fellowship playwright Terry Curtis Fox (Cops, The Pornographer’s Daughter.) Barbet Schroeder (Barfly, Reversal of Fortune) is attached to direct. Grant’s second novel, At the End of the Road, will be released by Berkley on November 1, 2011. To learn more about Grant, visit his website.
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3 Comments

  • Grant Jerkins

    October 31, 2011 - 11:07 AM

    Thanks. Might have to read it twice for it to click. Just some Halloween fun. And thanks for hosting me, Elizabeth.

    Reply

  • Lucious Lamour

    October 31, 2011 - 9:46 AM

    Not sure if I’m “getting” what was intended, but if I am that is damn disturbing. And creative. Very cool.

    Reply

  • Sabrina Ogden

    October 31, 2011 - 9:43 AM

    Great guest post! That dog had quite the little adventure…

    Reply

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