New Literary Novel 'Lindsay's Role' Set for Release, Follows One Man's Struggle with Control and Family Breakdown
𝗔 𝗠𝗮𝗻 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗦𝗲𝗲 𝗛𝗶𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆
Lindsay believes he is simply defending his position as head of the household. He tells himself he has done nothing wrong, that the courts favour his wife, and that his brother's mockery is proof of a world stacked against men like him. The novel sits inside Lindsay's own thinking as he works through these justifications, showing readers how insecurity, resentment, and a need for control can pass for strength in a man's own mind, long before he is able to name it for what it is.
"Lindsay believes his own excuses at first, and so does the reader," said P. J. Whitby. "That was important to me. I did not want to write a man who knows he is wrong and does it anyway. I wanted to write a man who has to slowly find that out."
𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗢𝗹𝗱 𝗜𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗠𝗲𝗻
Much of the tension in the book comes from Lindsay's relationships with his brother Henry, who has built a comfortable life and sees Lindsay as a disappointment, and with the memory of their late father, a strict man who taught his sons that drink and control were part of being a man. Lindsay's sons, Mark and Liam, listen from the next room to the pattern their father has fallen into, a detail the author uses to show how these behaviours are learned and passed down rather than appearing out of nowhere.
𝗗𝗿𝗮𝘄𝗻 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻
The story took shape after P. J. Whitby spent years following media coverage of domestic violence, combined with his own experience of it and his observation of marriages that break down when one partner puts personal ambition ahead of the family. Rather than writing from a distance, the author chose to place readers inside the mind of the person causing harm, a decision he felt was necessary to show how ordinary the early stages of this behaviour can look.
𝗔 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲
"Lindsay's Role" is structured so that readers first see Lindsay much the way he sees himself, before the narrative gradually shifts and lets his actions and their consequences come into fuller view. This slow turn is central to the book, and the author hopes it encourages readers to sit with a character they might otherwise be quick to judge, and to think about what leads a person to this point rather than simply where it ends.
𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐈𝐬 𝐅𝐨𝐫
Written for readers between the ages of 19 and 90, "Lindsay's Role" is aimed at those who are drawn to literary fiction built around difficult, real-world subjects. The novel follows one family and one man's struggles to explore themes of masculinity, control, and the possibility of change.
𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿
P. J. Whitby lives by the sea in Brisbane, Australia. He returned to study later in life and completed a university degree before turning his attention to writing. He lives on his own, without immediate family nearby, but keeps close friendships built through his love of literature and his enthusiasm for life. . "Lindsay's Role" is his second novel, following his debut, "Sister Hoods," and draws on both his personal history and his long-standing interest in the questions the book raises.
𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱
With the release of "Lindsay's Role" approaching, P. J. Whitby hopes the book reaches readers who value fiction willing to sit inside a hard subject rather than look away from it, and that Lindsay's story adds something honest to how male violence is talked about and understood.
Bracken Joseph
Australian Book Publishers
+61 721160858
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