vwl Posted December 10, 2015 Report Share Posted December 10, 2015 Sneaking in today at the bottom of the AD main page in the short story section is another excellent story by Cole Parker: The Farm Boy Link to comment
ricky Posted December 10, 2015 Report Share Posted December 10, 2015 Sneaking in today at the bottom of the AD main page in the short story section is another excellent story by Cole Parker: The Farm Boy Yes, a fantastic story. Not at ALL what you'd suspect from the title either. I loved the story and it is excellent. Link to comment
ChrisR Posted December 10, 2015 Report Share Posted December 10, 2015 um... WOW! Thanks once again, Cole. A truly wonderful tale. And I don't think I've ever before chuckled so much at the word "COOL!" Link to comment
Bruin Fisher Posted December 11, 2015 Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 A lovely story. Can I go live on that farm? Link to comment
Chris James Posted December 11, 2015 Report Share Posted December 11, 2015 One of those "short" Cole Parker stories that take all day to read. I get it, there was so much to say and he did it well. Shades of Ren for the farm aspect and the horses... I do believe that Cole is a secret cowboy at heart. Enjoyed the characters and how they worked out the issues since what is a good story without issues? Thanks, Cole. Link to comment
Rigel Posted December 13, 2015 Report Share Posted December 13, 2015 I loved this novella. (It's a lot longer than just a short story.) What the horse farm setting brought to my mind are all of the great stories by Andrew Todd (http://www.awesomedude.com/andrew-todd/). Cole's tale has such a wonderful flow, and the self-referential plot point near the end that explains why the story is being written in the format it was being written in was amazing (but I won't reveal any more, for fear of spoilers). --Rigel Link to comment
Cole Parker Posted December 13, 2015 Report Share Posted December 13, 2015 Thanks, all. I worked hard on this one, and I am proud of it. I tell myself every time I write in present tense, no more! But here I found it very effective. And with experience, it isn't as difficult as it was the first time. It's funny, but the mail I got for this was from people who haven't written me before. I guess different themes cause different people to write. I never get much mail, but enjoy what I do. It is heartwarming to be appreciated. C Link to comment
Nigel Gordon Posted December 13, 2015 Report Share Posted December 13, 2015 A great story well told and especially well written. Link to comment
Stophl Posted December 13, 2015 Report Share Posted December 13, 2015 When I started to read Farmboy I was looking for a fitting description for the way Derrick reports what's happening to him. Then I thought of one: laconic. And then I read the same word a few paragraphs later in the story! And initially I was a bit confused by the blue paragraphs. But it worked really well for the last flash-back. Initially I thought some text got lost when abruptly we are transported to this horrible scene (I hope I am not giving away too much here). Link to comment
Cole Parker Posted December 13, 2015 Report Share Posted December 13, 2015 I expected there to be some confusion when reading it. I also expected it all to become clear. I tried to make the way it was written suggest the way Derrick felt early on. Confused, unsure of how to act, or how he'd be accepted. Wanting badly to fit in. I used several devices to accomplish this. I hope at least subconsciously, some of this came through. Sounds like perhaps it did. C Link to comment
Chris James Posted December 16, 2015 Report Share Posted December 16, 2015 A thoroughly commendable story everyone should read...all it lacks is a soundtrack...and, of course, I have a suggestion: https://youtu.be/Ol8HTS-5wWc Link to comment
Cole Parker Posted December 16, 2015 Report Share Posted December 16, 2015 I didn't know John Denver played the violin! C Link to comment
Gee Whillickers Posted December 17, 2015 Report Share Posted December 17, 2015 I didn't know John Denver played the violin! C Naw, he was just fiddling with it. Link to comment
ricky Posted December 17, 2015 Report Share Posted December 17, 2015 Naw, he was just fiddling with it. Oh boo! Leave it to Gee to make it sexual. lol And you know what they used to say! A man that will pun will certainlypick a pocket! Link to comment
Lugnutz Posted December 17, 2015 Report Share Posted December 17, 2015 Naw, he was just fiddling with it. Link to comment
Rutabaga Posted January 18, 2016 Report Share Posted January 18, 2016 I started this right after it was posted and got so depressed about 10-15% of the way in that I had to stop. I'm going to try to take another run at it soon. I've never been let down by a Cole story so I know I should persist. R Link to comment
Lugnutz Posted January 18, 2016 Report Share Posted January 18, 2016 You won't be sorry. Link to comment
ricky Posted January 18, 2016 Report Share Posted January 18, 2016 I started this right after it was posted and got so depressed about 10-15% of the way in that I had to stop. I'm going to try to take another run at it soon. I've never been let down by a Cole story so I know I should persist. R I was like you. PLEASE, go on, it gets better I promise. You certainly won't regret it. Cole doesn't write un-good. Link to comment
JamesSavik Posted January 18, 2016 Report Share Posted January 18, 2016 It took me a while to read this story. I stopped and started a few time. It poked me right in the issues a few times and I retreated. A lot of what Cole was describing is the way Post Traumatic stress manifests itself. Even when you take a person out of a bad situation it's still inside them like poison. It will come out one way or the other. It could have been a much, much darker story. Due to the intelligent and compassionate actions of the hero of the story, the UNCLE in my view, the story turned out about as well as it possibly could have. There were other directions that it could have gone and most of them weren't nice. Been there. Done that. Threw away the t-shirt. Link to comment
Rutabaga Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 I finally made it through to the end. I knew I would not be disappointed. In fact I was ready to stand up and cheer in a few places.I found myself greatly affected by this paragraph about halfway in:"I've been happy with all the chores and work I do on the farm. It keeps my head still. When I'm alone and not working, my head fills with a jumble of thoughts about my dad and mom, about what life was like then, and about now, too. I try to hold them together, but sometimes I really can't. I try not to think about a lot of things from back then, too."It was pretty amazing when a major source of these feelings finally and dramatically came to light -- and though quite plausible n hindsight was unexpected by me.My already high esteem for Derrick went up several more notches with his Colin Kelly-esque solution to the problems with Missy. I was impressed with the maturity and restraint that showed.Good show.R Link to comment
Cole Parker Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 Possibly we all have a dark side to us. This story certainly was begging at those parts of me to reveal themselves. I had to purposefully reject them. It would have been easy to fall to the seductive charms of the dark side. I didn't, though, and that's one of the reasons I'm proud of this story. The characters in it, for the most part, had great courage. I find Derrick's uncle a man of immense integrity; I wish all abused kids could have a figure like that in their lives. Link to comment
Rutabaga Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 I find Derrick's uncle a man of immense integrity; I wish all abused kids could have a figure like that in their lives. I agree, and also agree with your comment at the end of the story. As best I can recall, we never learn for certain whether the uncle is the brother of Derrick's father or Derrick's mother, although I would guess it was the father. But if so, it's hard to imagine how two such different people could come from a common family origin. We also never learn any info suggesting why Derrick's father is so obsessive and cruel. R Link to comment
Cole Parker Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 I think I made it clear that he was Derrick's mother's brother. I'd have to check to make sure, but I'm pretty sure that's in there. C Link to comment
Rutabaga Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 I think I made it clear that he was Derrick's mother's brother. I'd have to check to make sure, but I'm pretty sure that's in there. If it's in the early part of the story I read some time ago, that would explain why I couldn't remember it now. Update: I just went looking and can't find it. Update 2: Went looking a second time and still can't find it. R Link to comment
Cole Parker Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 I'm fairly sure it's there. Perhaps not stated as, He was her brother, but stated so it was clear in any regard. I could go find it, but am otherwise engaged. Perhaps someone else could enlighten us. I hate having to apologize! C Link to comment
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