(Sneak Peak) The Trials of Corey Brown

I've been working on two novels for the past couple of months and I guess it would make sense to share a little bit of one of them. 

'The Trials of Corey Brown' is about a person named Corey (duh). I don't really want to give this character a gender or physical description because I want them to mean something different to every person who reads it. No, it's not a stance on any current events or political issues, I just think it's cool to make something that can be personal and different to lots of people. Plus, my favorite part when I read a book is imagining what a character looks like. Sure, the author gave them brown hair, but maybe I don't think brown hair fits with that character's personality. 

Anyways, Corey is very introspective, analytical (ignore the fact that those are almost synonyms) and likes to overthink stuff. This excerpt is the first one I wrote for this novel and it's really what made me want to pursue this idea, so without further ado, I present the first chapter of my book, enjoy!

The over-analyst’s guide to the cereal aisle

The cereal aisle is one of the more intriguing aisles in the common store. Each brand promises something and more often than not, each brand is just ripping another off: Lucky Charms versus Marshmallow Mateys, Cheerios versus Cereal O’s, Frosted Flakes versus Corn Flakes, the list goes on and on for hours. They taste almost identical and the prices usually are relatively similar, yet everyone prefers the name brand Cheerios over the Cereal O’s. Don’t even get me started about the packaging… Hold up, I did this wrong. I forgot to introduce myself.

Okay let’s start this from the top: My name is Corey Brown and my hobbies usually consist of the basic nerd ideals: reading books, obsessing over TV shows, closely following everything Marvel, word searches, crossword puzzles and overanalyzing cereal aisles at three in the morning. I started recording my thoughts a few years ago. I wasn’t able to sleep at night because my brain was busy processing all that had happened during my day and sometimes these little strokes of genius would hit me and I'd have to write it down or record it because my brain would explode if I didn't. I've filled up about four or five USB drives with my musings, and while most are nonsense there are a few that I'm glad were saved; Anyways, back to cereal.

I sorta think that the cereal aisle is a pretty good representation of America. Before you think I’m crazy, let me explain my reasoning. We all dress up as best we can and try to make good impressions on other people. When we try to make friends we don't show the real us, we display the cropped and edited versions of ourselves in hope that they approve of us enough to stick around. Cereals often refrain from depicting an accurate representation of the actual product inside the box. Instead of selling the cereal, they sell the magical epiphany one would encounter from trying their food; besides, who cares about “Frosted toasted oats with marshmallows” when you could be searching for magical treasures with a troublesome leprechaun?

Yet, the funny thing is that both cereals are the same. Sure, one has more sugar and the other has more protein, but at the end of the day, they’re fundamentally the same. They consist of roughly the same ingredients and serve the same purpose; making sure people, mostly kids, get a decent meal. Us humans are a messy race and we like to separate ourselves into categories based on our various differences: age, gender, race, ethnicity, hair color, humor and music tastes. The list could go on forever, but at the end of the day we are all made of the same stuff; skin, no matter the color, that protects our insides from the weather; eyes that we use to see the differences in each other and the beautiful and colorful details of life; hands that can be used to push someone down, or pull them up; hearts that pump blood and are filled with love and hate, hearts that break when squeezed too hard but can overflow with love.

I wonder what would happen if we could stop trying to sell ourselves as something we’re not. I wonder what would happen if we could learn to appreciate our differences and variety, I mean a cereal aisle with only Life or Cheerios really sucks. Before the world can change, it starts with one person. Could this person be me? Probably, but I just looked at my phone and it's almost four. I'm totally screwed for school tomorrow, but I think it was worth it. Wait one more thing, I just realized that when I said Marshmallow Mateys I really meant “Frosted toasted oats with marshmallows.” Oh well, I can't win em all. This is Corey Brown signing off until next time, where I’ll probably overanalyze grass.