STAY WOKE -- A Thriller About Grief, Anxiety and Prejudice

STAY WOKE is a suspense/psychological thriller novel. It's primarily told through the point of view of Broderick "Brody" Marshall, a Black man who is mourning the death of his estranged wife and who is now tasked with raising his ill daughter Fatima on his own. Trying to escape the pressures of his extended family, he takes Fatima to live in Orolet, a secluded lake town where his grandma had a cabin. His plan (if you can call it one) is to restart his life and return to civilization a better man, father and provider for Fatima.

But Orolet is an isolated place. The next-door neighbors barge in unannounced. The town folks are suspicious and prejudiced. The police are useless.  And maybe it's the lack of sleep, but Brody could swear he sees the ghost of his dead wife...

STAY WOKE started as just a title.

In 2026 the word "woke" has become so watered down that people will argue it means nothing. But it always has meant something to my community, who have had to move in a world of white supremacy, keeping our loved ones and family safe while being aware that there is a system that wishes to oppress us. The title was an attempt for me to take the word "woke" back.

I started writing the story during my wife's pregnancy, which filled me with a different kind of existential dread and anxiety. Once the setting came to me, that's what the story became about; exploring my anxieties about fatherhood, about being Black, about losing my wife, and about feeling isolated. STAY WOKE represents the most personal thing I've written.

This campaign is about helping to get Brody and Fatima's story out there for more people to read. It covers some expenses to get that ball rolling and to release this very winter-centric book sometime in January 2027.

NOTE: NO PART OF THIS PROJECT WAS MADE WITH GENERATIVE AI, LLMs or agentic AI. Nor will any part of this process, any stretch goals, or any of the funds go towards anything AI related.