I’ve been working on this piece for three years now. And I think, by now, it deserves a name.
I just can’t give it one. Nothing’s working. I really need some assistance here.
My story is about a young man, [name_u]Shawn[/name_u] Lanicker, who commits a mercy killing against his friend and fellow solider, [name_f]Astrid[/name_f] [name_m]Keller[/name_m]. It’s a dystopian novel, as many stories seem to be at this point. [name_f]Astrid[/name_f] had fallen ill with an unnamed, terminal disease- that I have no intent on ever naming, actually. Most of the story is about [name_u]Shawn[/name_u] trying to cope with his regret and coming to terms with past struggles with the help of one of his comrades, Haruko Kitabutake. He learns how to read and write, which allows him to read [name_f]Astrid[/name_f]'s diaries and short stories, giving him insight into her life as a body harvester. War and illness had driven people to turn to cannibalism.
[name_u]Shawn[/name_u]'s real name is [name_m]Samuel[/name_m], after his father who murdered [name_u]Shawn[/name_u]'s mother and sisters when he was young. He was extremely close to his older sister and was traumatized by the ordeal. He had a really rough childhood and things were going well for him for just a few years before [name_f]Astrid[/name_f], his only source of happiness, got sick and died.
It’s all about [name_u]Shawn[/name_u] figuring out how to cope with the struggles of life, his undiagnosed PTSD, and growing night terrors and horrific dreams.
Yeah, that’s the basic version of it all. I’ve been calling it Without [name_f]Astrid[/name_f] for a while, but I honestly don’t like that name very much.
After the Fact
After the Thunder
After [name_f]Astrid[/name_f]
One Regret
It’s a pity ‘Gone’ is already taken. It would have worked well here. I like the idea of a one word title though. [name_m]How[/name_m] about ‘Without.’