Becoming Insane by Leyla Cardena
Summary:
When the monsters hiding underneath your bed are much less frightening than the bills you have to pay, the family you have to support, the job you have to find, and the unrealized dreams you cry about, then you know there’s a problem.
Especially when you are a full-grown adult in your mid-thirties.
It’s 1987. John Crane feels like throwing himself out of the window because of his depression, while his friend Jack Vain has to support his spiraling O.C.D. and panic attacks.
Their issues are driving them into a shared psychosis.
Without these issues, John and Jack may never have needed to go searching for the demon in the middle of the night, through the mean streets of New York.
John Crane’s writings will never be read and discussed, and Jack Vain’s drawings and paintings will never be seen and admired. But the creature is here. It knows them. It wants them. It wants their help. It wants to eat, to touch, to create. It wants to live and be free. It wants to avoid death and become immortal. John and Jack’s creativity looks like the perfect host.
As the beast of insanity takes hold, will John and Jack survive their own imaginations?
Information about the Book
Title: Becoming Insane
Author: Leyla Cardena
Release Date: 30th April 2019
Genre: Thriller
Page Count: 214
Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45162769-becoming-insane
Read an Extract
John Crane took deep breaths to calm down his anxiety, staring at his hands with an empty look, peeling off the dead skin at the tips of his fingers – a common habit of his, every time he would feel stressed. His agent, Mr. Morgan, was reading John’s manuscript – stopping and rereading the paragraphs that seemed too complicated to him. “Hmms” and “ah, okays” were mumbled, and John began to feel impatient. Leaning towards Mr. Morgan’s desk, John took a quick glance at the pages and paragraphs that had caught his agent’s attention and tried to guess what he was thinking. When he leaned back, noticing John scrutinizing him, the anxious author stared at the documents placed on Mr. Morgan’s table, his gaze rested on the year stated on the documents. The year was 1987, and these digits were screaming like an alarm bell in John’s mind. He had promised himself that this year, he would do anything in his power to get one of his works published. Had John finally written a masterpiece? Or was it just a piece of pretentious garbage?
Mr. Morgan lifted his head, took a quick look at John, before staring back at the manuscript, and started talking. “This seems okay, but I don’t think everyone is keen on symbolism.”
John exhaled and answered defensively, trying hard not to lose his calm. “Yes, but…it’s obvious enough, even for the untrained…”
“I suppose with this title…” said Mr. Morgan cynically, holding the title page to John’s face – God, Men, and Beasts. “Obvious indeed, eh? Don’t you think the title is a tad bit too heavy for a compilation of fairy tales?”
John buried his hands underneath his right leg and obligating himself to dig up the whys and hows of this book situation. “Any kind of book, be it fantasy or horror, is a reflection of what is happening today– socially, morally, etc.,” he begins to explain.
“Of course, but it doesn’t mean we can’t have a good time with them and just relax. Without having to guess every time what this or that means.”
“I haven’t created a puzzle; they’re fairy tales! There’s going to be morals in them, which is a logical result.”
“Listen, if you want to publish this, in that case, I’d advise you to call them short stories, not fairy tales.”
“…Why?”
“Because when people hear ‘fairy tales’, they think ‘kids’. And those stories, filled with social, philosophical, psychological, moral, and sexual innuendos, not to mention religious and political satire, cannot be associated with the word ‘fairy tales’.”
“Okay. So, in other words, it’s just a big pile of shit,” John uttered in a disgusted manner, raising his hands in the air.
“I didn’t say that. I didn’t say it wasn’t good. It’s excellent, for the ones who care to read about those kinds of subjects.”
“This is atrocious. You have just stated that the majority of people won’t read my book because they’re idiots and want to stay that way! I think that people are more intelligent than you think they are. Curious, at least.”
“Well, you sure are optimistic…”
John leaned back and tried to remember which passages could have been considered to be too thought-provoking. Maybe it was the dream sequences of some of his characters where he could lose the reader’s attention or rather the “mindfucking” parts as John liked to call them – a mishmash of described images that referenced insanity against reason, fantasy against reality, and emotions that devoured logic.
Mr. Morgan, whose interest had already shifted to finishing his cup of coffee, told John, “Anyway…the last time we talked together, you told me you had financial problems, and that you were relying on indemnities that would probably end very soon. I told you to bring me a book that would sell for a wide audience, and so you did…but I don’t think ‘God, Men, and Beasts’ can help you out if you want to make money quickly thanks to a book.”
Even though John’s emotions and patience had been tested during those last few minutes, he couldn’t hide from the fact that money had to be gained quickly, and that it was very probable that “God, Men and Beasts” would not make enough money in time for him to pay his debts. Mr. Morgan’s last comment was perfectly reasonable but unfortunate.
“So, it won’t sell?” asked John in a pessimistic tone.
“Hmmm…it could…yes. But, you won’t gain anything from it until a very long time. If you want to make money quickly to pay your bills, I’d advise you this – either you write a small, funny or provocative book (and not about politics, religion, or anything else), even an erotic book for all I care, or you go and get yourself a job and write on weekends. Why don’t you write something about your boyfriend? If you have one…”
“Yeah…of course…in other words, you want me to write shit about my private life?”
“Not shit, just…something that could gather a larger readership…something generic, you know…at least, if you
want to make a quick buck.”
“No. I won’t. And, you want to know why? Because, this is what I write about. I take up fantasy and symbols to express, artfully, what is happening today,” John concluded, getting up from his chair, ready to go, convinced that there was nothing more to say.
“I’d advise you not to be so proud, Mr. Crane. It is easier to write about the injustices of the world than it is to write about its beauty and the positive aspects. Anyway…in that case, you’ll have to find yourself a job. Good luck with that. I’ll see if I can find a publisher for ‘God, Men, and Beasts’, but I can’t promise you anything.”
John walked towards Mr. Morgan’s desk, took back the manuscript, and said, “That won’t be necessary, Mr. Morgan.
But, thank you anyway.” He walked away, leaving Mr. Morgan alone – his cup of coffee still in his hand, and his eyes bulging out, unable to believe the nerve of his client.
Author Information
I was born on the 2nd of August 1990 in Geneva, Switzerland, and still live there until today. I haven’t even changed neighborhood! I still like it very much and the fact that I live near the red-light district makes it even more interesting. I had many little jobs since the age of fourteen, shoe shops, hairdressers, pharmacy, boutiques. Then from the age of sixteen until eighteen I became an apprentice as an administrative assistant, working at the company three times a week and going to commercial school twice a week. I then found a job at eighteen as an administrative assistant in a trust company then got promoted as a legal assistant for its corporate department. I went to night school to study law, and gathered some other professional certificates/diplomas during that time. At 23, I quit everything as I realized that the only reason why I did all this was because I needed to be financially stable enough to write and create. Something I unfortunately didn’t have the time to do while working and studying. And also rest and sleep a lot!
Twitter: http://twitter.com/CardenaLeyla
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is my fifteenth novel.
