It started as a creative writing assignment while at university.
Bryan Candy was tasked to pen four chapters of a fictional book that semester. His instructor at the University of the Fraser Valley — poet and novelist Andrea MacPherson — told her students to stick to writing what they know.
So Candy dreamed up a story that was based on his childhood in Abbotsford as well as his current employment situation.
Then, he was working at a warehouse in an industrial site surrounded by farmland. That would be the setting for his novel, he decided.
But for the plot, Candy turned to a narrative that was similar to what was in the news at the time — the crime-ridden world that included three people he went to high school with: the notorious Bacon brothers.
“There were so many drive-bys [shootings] and dead bodies happening,” Candy recalled. “I thought, ‘What if something like this happened and they dumped a body off at my warehouse and took off?’ Somebody would have to deal with the consequences.”
After Candy pumped out the four required chapters to earn his creative writing credit, he spent 10 weeks on independent study with MacPherson to finish the remaining 12 chapters of Jim’s Course.
For the next five years, Candy submitted his draft manuscript “to every publisher and every publishing agent in western Canada,” he lamented. “You can’t send it out en masse. You have to wait for everyone to respond before you pursue the next one.”
In between, Candy moved to south Korea and taught English. It wasn’t until he returned home and met the self-published author, Dave Burdett (The Map, A Logan Nash Adventure) that the light dawn on him to follow suit. “I thought, ‘If he can do it so can I,’” the Port Moody author recalled.
He ordered a self-publishing package through the Victoria-based Friesen Press, which allowed him to work on the novel with one of its editors but still maintain financial and distribution control.
Seven months later, Jim’s Course was out in print.
Candy said he has been encouraged by the reviews, including from his former warehouse colleagues. And the support has helped him as he writes his sophomore novel, which he describes as having a darker plot than Jim’s Course.
This time, though, Candy hopes to have the work picked up by a publishing house so he doesn’t have to go through the lengthy waiting process or the personal costs. His second book is expected to be ready in 12 to 18 months.
• Bryan Candy will sell and sign Jim’s Course at the Gallery Bistro (2411 Clarke St., Port Moody) on Sunday, Aug. 9 from 1 to 2 p.m. To buy it, visit bryancandy.com or visit friesenpress.com or Amazon.ca.
