~Character Image: Stefan Sparks~
"Hi I'm Stefan", he says shaking my hand.
"Hey I'm Josh", I smile.
"What's this about?", I whisper to Candice.
"Stefan is your first client. Helping him means believing in his writing, nurturing him, and bringing out the best in him. You'll provide a draft of Stefan's book to Brandon, then Brandon will decide to publish it or not", she explains.
"Is there a time limit?", I ask.
"Well, usually it's a month but Brandon doesn't rush the first draft so you have all the time in the world.", she says.
"So I have to work with Stefan on his book?", I ask.
"You bond with your client, see what piques his interest, and figure out what inspires him, first you get to know him, that should tell you a little about his writing. He'll give you a rundown on his book. Give him your honest thoughts, tell him if he goes wrong. He's in your care, during your work hours, where he goes, you go. Good luck Josh", she smiles.
"Like a stalker?", I blurt out as Stefan starts laughing.
"See, he's laughing at your creepy joke. That's progress.", she winks as she walks out of my office.
"Soooo. Stefan, tell me about yourself", I say to him while sitting on my desk.
"My name is Stefan Sparks. I'm 24. Writing is my passion. I don't want to be a famous writer. I just wanna write things that would make people happy. If my writing touches at least one person's heart then that'll make me happy", he says.
"That's a brilliant way of putting it. A really impressive answer Stefan", I applaud.
"Thank you sir", he says.
"Call me Josh", I smile.
"I recently moved here. I'm still getting used to it here", he sighs.
"Oh? You recently came here?", I ask.
"Yes sir... I mean Josh. Someone recommended Diamond Star Publishing Company to me so I decided to check it out.", he says.
"Do you think this will be your big break?", I ask.
"I strongly believe in my writing", he smiled.
Gosh, this dude was too cute! He has the most amazing smile.
"So tell me about your book?", I ask.
"It's a fiction book. It's called 'The Department of Purgatory', I brought three chapters, it's about a boy named Lexus. He wakes up in a mysterious place, later he finds out he's at the Department of Purgatory. It's a place in between the dead and the living. A parallel world I guess. The soul is judged there by the Commission of Grander", he says.
"The Commission of Grander?", I ask.
"Yes. They judge the soul based on the life they've lived and the decisions they've made. They're either sent to heaven where they gain eternal life or go to hell where they gain eternal suffering or depending on the severity of their malice, the devil makes them a demon. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, that's the downfall of humans.", he explains.
"Well, Stefan. It seems like an interesting idea. Mind if I read the first three chapters?", I ask.
"Yes of course. Go ahead", he smiles.
I put a chair next to me so I can ask him questions related to the chapters. He sat quietly while I read the first chapter. A mystery right off the bat, not just one mystery but two. I immediately get pulled in and quickly read chapter 2 and 3, I wanted more. Stefan is adding one mystery after the other, it's a good concept and well-thought build up. This would make his reader want more.
"This is really good Stefan. I really like this", I smile.
"Oh thank you so much", he says.
"Tell me about the upcoming chapters and the endgame?", I say to him.
He gave me a rundown of the next few chapters and told me the ending. I was still in pure shock at the way it ends.
"Something you'd never see coming right?", he smiles.
"Wow... I did not expect that...", I say trying to recover.
"The story and build-up is good. I have so many ideas.
"I'm not worried. I'll have faith in your writing.", I say to him.
"So what now?", I ask.
"Now you write", I say.
"In here?", he asks.
"You can stay here if you'd like, there's also a quiet room we can go to?", I ask.
"The quiet room seems nice", he says.
Diamond Star, the Quiet Room: 11:35 AM
Candice led us to the quiet room, it was a spacious room, just being in it made me feel more relaxed.
"Are you focused to write?", I ask.
"Yes", he says.
There was also a girl and a guy there, sharing the room. The girl then saw me and walked up to me.
"Hi", she says.
"Hello", I smile.
"I'm Shelly and this is my client Aaron", she says as she introduces herself and her client.
"I'm Josh and this is my client Stefan.", I say.
"He's your first client right?", she asks.
"Yes ma'am", I reply.
"Well Josh, let me give you some advice. Always be honest with him. Don't sugarcoat anything. If you find something unnecessary you tell him if the story fails then try to fix it, work together", she smiles.
"Thank you for the advice", I smile at her.
I leave Stefan in the quiet room and I headed to Leo's office. I open the door but Leo wasn't there.
"Brandon isn't here. He's in a meeting remember?", a voice says.
I turn around and saw Damian, his smile told me something was about to go down ...