The Awakening of Jim Bishop: This Changes Things

​     Jim Bishop’s world is ripped apart when his wife dies. Inspired by her, he is determined to be more like her, and vows to build a life of purpose and meaning through helping others. His journey takes him through the troubled lives of five strangers: a corporate executive, a nurse, a low-level computer programmer, a minister and a pregnant, homeless woman. Each of them have their own secrets, and each longs for a chance for redemption. Along the way, a mysterious vagrant named Gene interacts with each character, nudging them in new directions.
I would definitely recommend this book. In fact, I would like to re-read this again because that’s just how good it is! “ Joanne 
A Word About The Awakening of Jim Bishop

     I usually write thrillers. But with this novel, I wanted to write a story that was more character-driven than plot-driven. First, I created the protagonist, Jim Bishop, and his situation -- facing a life alone after the death of his wife. Then I created five characters he might interact with and each character had his/her own hidden struggles. I actually diagrammed this on a piece of paper with lines and arrows linking all the characters to each other.
     Then I fleshed out the plot and pulled the story together. I had some great help. This story was the capstone of my Queens University MFA degree, and was workshopped (read and critiqued) by lots of students and professors during my time there.
     Dealing with six or more characters can be tough, and some of my best feedback has been how I managed to pull it off without confusing the reader. I'm proud of the final product and hope you enjoy it.

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“A heartfelt, occasionally tragic, story from beginning to end. Sharpton has written vivid characters that readers will quickly care about. They are real, tragic, flawed, good, and everything in between. Anything but predictable yet definitely satisfying, a highly recommended read” - Mary Bramwell
​“A book that I could not put down, I read from cover to cover becoming more and more interested and invested in the protagonists. I may have shed a little tear as I read the last pages. Thoroughly recommend.” Jill

How To Help A Writer

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Writing a book is hard work and the rewards are few. If you want to help a writer tell his stories, try some of these suggestions:

If you like the book:

  1. Buy the book
  2. Review the book (Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads)
  3. Tell a friend about the book
  4. Give a new copy of the book to a friend
  5. Give a new copy of the book to an enemy
  6. Ask librarians and bookstore managers to order the book
  7. “Like” the book on Amazon
  8. Share a link to the book on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn
  9. Ask your book club to read the book
  10. Email your friends about the book

If you really like the book (Just for fun...):

  1. Buy 1,245 copies of the book
  2. Review the book everywhere — movie reviews, Yelp!, restaurant reviews, city benches, etc.
  3. Tell everyone you know and many you don’t know about the book
  4. Go over to your friend’s house and read the book to him
  5. Give one copy of the book to your enemy every day for a year
  6. Enjoy the read.
Writing With a Bit of Meaning