Walking on Stones, A Novel

By Chris Handrahan

An author describes his book.

What is the novel “Walking on Stones” about?

Firstly, the author considers this novel, his first completed novel, to be a challenge of understanding. In fact, it took the author an abundance of time after the novel was finished, rereading it many times – mainly due to the dichotomous structure of the story involved during the process of writing it – to come to a fuller understanding of exactly what he had written and what it is about as a wholeness.

This work of fiction is a novel within a novel. It is in many ways a novel about the progression and task of writing a first novel and of the desire to write a novel to begin with. What makes a writer need to write a novel? Especially when there is minimal expectation of reward from the novel being written as a finality and published involvement within a greater, priorly structured world. In many ways, the author, by publishing a book, enters an external environment previously established and properly, exclusively shielded.

The author admits this is not a book for the enjoyment of everyone but befitting to those who do claim an interpretation of it: which is not singular to all readers the same. It is not expected to be.

Books inspire more books.

This is a clue to an understanding of the story within a story’s authorship and the perspectives of its narrative.

This is the author’s first completed novel: while the “novel within the novel” remains incomplete. A crucial source of inspiration for a writer is the reading and study of books written by other writers to come before. In this way, books both inspire and limit the author, as with the reader, based on personal experience, availability and selection. No one can read every book, and our understanding of the world is often a consequence of this difference of choice.

Experience is also an inspiration and limitation for the writer, as is language and cultural roots or its lacking as a primary motivation. The same can be said about the encouragement or its absence by those within an author’s sphere of experience or isolation from others of different or similar background experiences. Perspective comes to the writer through experience with the world, and the empathy within a novel, if any, for reader and writer, arises from those experiences. Also, all experience cannot be had by everyone the same.

A story about a stone.

Intentionally, there is much about this novel which should not be taken too literally by a reader. Rather, the reader, as with the nature of books, must absorb the words until its finality or discard with it as choice. Likely, if followed to its conclusion, there is much to return to and find through a rereading or by analyzing the memory of what was read.

It is important to note, timelines are obscured (by the several protagonists’ shared understanding or misunderstanding of a world), though this is stated from the opening pages as a presage of what is to follow.

The novel has many elements of isolation and separateness. Often, throughout history, this has been the fated experience of the writer set about the task of writing following the choice to write as a method of enthusiasm.

The story contains spotted instances of drug use, no different than reality itself as a history of humanity, which are considered essential to the plot and a better illustration of the characters acting towards a climactic finish. The final chapter should be realized as an intended anticlimax simply for the reason of its time limited (or deadline) urgency, itself an expression of the urge compelling a writer to write the best story according to the established elements a story is meant to contain and the boundaries of a reality it must exist within regardless of method.

A novel about the consciousness of life and existence.

Though the world and its history are filled with many interpretations of consciousness, no one, including the branches of science, has been able to clearly define it or specifically point it out. This is likely for the best. The author utilizes this lack of specificity as a challenge and simplicity to the book’s composition. The novel is very much an exploration of consciousness and belief: as a benefit and lack of claim by the author of the novel and the author (or authors) within the novel itself as a bitter sympathy of perplexity.

For this reason, the story is only found to be understood, if an understanding is found, at its ending. A book should be this way anyway.

The story has some nonspecific, vaguely Indigenous components and interpretations of nature, animals and human history. The author makes no claims nor statements about esoteric ownership of understanding concerning Indigenous cultures, knowledge or traditions. Any explanation is drawn from the author’s learning and interpretations solely as an individual within a specific time of an aged world with long, widely interpreted systems of beliefs and cultures.

The characters making up the story have no stated ethnicity: as a universal plainness of interpretation dedicated for each reader to find, and a purposeful obscurity intended by the author. It is also the author’s preference in storytelling. This is a story.

The inseparable body and mind of all life.

Lastly, and as a supplementary necessity to state, the novel makes no contention, other than indifference and the separation of difference, to political, religious nor cultural ethics or beliefs. Often, this is claimed by a wider world afterwards for the benefit not befitting the author’s intention in writing a novel and sharing words with a broader, polarized world beyond the scope of the book’s isolated setting and atmosphere.

For anyone to have read it, or happens to read it, the author hopes you enjoy its modest complexity.