There are no original ideas. The plots remain the same for movies, television shows and especially for books. Boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, boy loses girl. Alternatively, as in the case of Glendale author Steven Schindler’s book “On the Bluffs,” a man faces a midlife crisis, his wife is cheating, and he loses his job, only to find a new life by visiting a place from the past.
However, a plot is really what one makes of it. Generally speaking, the basic framework of a generic plot rarely strays from its structure. Schindler has managed to transcend the redundant plot structure, taking his book to interesting and uncharacteristic levels.
Brian DeLouise, late-night radio station engineer, is tired. He’s tired of his life, tired of his wife, really tired of all the conspiracy theorists on the radio shows where he works. In a moment of poor judgment, he mouths off to one of the guests, and that sets a series of life-changing events into motion. He loses his job, but not before he discovers his wife’s most recent affair has led her to demanding a divorce and all the money from the sale of their house. Off he goes to the wintry coast of Cape Cod, in search of a long-lost lover.
