(Originally posted August 6th)

I’m working on the second ‘Mindbenders’. After a year of slogging along with the thing, abandoning it several times in frustration and just grinding away at it, it finally seems to be taking off. Characters humming on their own, story gaining depth instead of throwing off tangents and brain farts like a spoiled brat.

But now, I need your help.

I have a section coming up that involves work during the recent Financial Crisis, at the end of 2008, early half of 2009.

I need examples of situations where your job or your lifestyle was in danger or flat-out collapsed. I need examples of people in power – and working people (in this day and age, the definition of people without power) – acting in both exemplary and vicious petty fashion.

I need your stories.

I’m not promising you credit or royalties – although I may cite you on the acknowledgments page. All stories will be kept strictly confidential, however, if you want them that way. I’m not likely to use them exactly as you tell them to me anyhow – my norm is to rework things to fit the story I want to tell. But I need as much detail as you can share with me to make them feel real. The details in real stories almost always outstrip fiction – or make it credible.

If you don’t think your story’s relevant to what I want to say, don’t let that stop you. If I’m inspired, I’ll go far afield and find a context to make it work.

You can leave stories here as comments if you wish. Certainly, if you want some confidentiality, you can send them to my email, tedkrever@gmail.com – there’s a link on the right-hand column of this page.

Thanks for your help. I think this could be a very interesting good book – help me get it there.