Depth of Focus: A Novel

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Depth of Focus: A Novel (eBook) Pub. Date: 11/30/2010 Publisher: Kenya D. Williamson
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Paperback

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Depth of Focus: A Novel Pub. Date: 3/20/2012 Publisher: CreateSpace

$13.61

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Depth of Focus: the Stanzas Pub. Date: 3/22/2012 Publisher: CreateSpace

$17.42

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Depth of Focus: the Stanzas and A Novel Pub. Date: 3/20/2012 Publisher: CreateSpace

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Overview

Danni wants a life — her own. She’s paid her dues. She moves to New York to study photography. But, there’s a small problem. Several people think she hasn’t paid her dues. And they’re ready to collect what they imagine she owes them. Whether it’s love, respect, sex, an apology, money, commitment, forgiveness or something else entirely, Danni feels like she’s being pulled in a million directions that all wind up at the same dead end.

A meddling roommate, nosy neighbor, former lover, current lover, mostly-absent father, jealous sibling, insecure best friend, demanding boss and suicidal mother vie for attention while Danni tries to balance her lousy waitressing job, approaching (see: dreaded) birthday party and shrinking college fund. She’d gladly run and hide. But, they all know where she lives. And she can’t afford to move. Besides, if she continues keeping everyone at arm's length, she’ll lose a lot more than a promising career.

This verse novel — that can be read in stanzas or what looks like ordinary prose — tells the story of a young woman’s quest for independence and career success. Complicated by relationships that pull her in different directions, that path leads Danni to an awakening she never expected — and isn’t quite sure she wants. Plans can change. But, Danni wonders... can people?

Editorial Reviews

A.S. R.

I really enjoyed Depth of Focus very much! Miss Williamson creates a believability and ease of visualization that is very compelling. Her characters are very distinct and the dialog that weaves their relationships together is crisp, funny, and moving. The relationship of her main characters Danni and Joe is particularly interesting and engaging and one that I think most everyone will relate to on many levels. I can imagine her work easily translating to the screen. I can happily recommend her...

Mr. Lucky

I wasn't sure what to expect from this debut novel from Kenya D. Williamson. It's a very rich and deeply personal character study about a young girl fighting to maintain peace of mind against increasingly impossible odds. While the character has been abandoned seemingly by all around her, including her family and friends, I got involved with her earnest quest to forge a decent future for herself and the story resonates even further because of the difficult times we live in. This is a deeply...

More Reviews (1) Fewer Reviews

S Pep

I wasn't exactly sure what to expect after purchasing Depth of Focus and was pleasantly surprised to find that Ms. Williamson has crafted an engaging debut novel with insightful characters who pop off of the page. The compelling plot is deftly told with humor, skill and talent. Most importantly, Williamson's book has a lot to say about love, relationships and how we live our lives. I read the entire novel on an airplane and couldn't put it down. A strong recommended read...

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781453782842
Publisher: CreateSpace
Publication date: 3/20/2012
Pages: 268
Product dimensions: 5.50 (w) x 8.50 (h) x 0.67 (d)

Meet the Author

Kenya D. Williamson is a verse novel and short fiction author, screenwriter, actress and poet from Levittown, Pennsylvania. Her poetry and music backgrounds influenced her writing style so much, she gave in and finally merged them.

"Depth of Focus: A Novel" and "Depth of Focus: The Stanzas" -- both verse novels -- tell the exact same story of a young woman's quest for independence, love, career success and healing while battling deep-rooted insecurities that nearly drive the aspiring photographer into alienation and the rejection of the things and people she cares about most. But, while "The Stanzas" is broken into the poetry/rhythm the author heard while writing the original manuscript, "A Novel" is written in paragraphs -- and what might appear to be normal prose.

Kenya hopes to reach readers who don't necessarily consider themselves poetry fans along with those who do. Whether her characters are confronting fears of intimacy, fears of being alone, fears of failure, identity crises, guilt, someone trying to steal their jobs or possessions, sibling rivalry or physical jeopardy, one of the author's goals is to touch, uplift and entertain her audience by exposing her characters' vulnerabilities -- through drama, romance, suspense and comedy.

Currently living in Los Angeles, Kenya is writing two more verse novels -- "Siblings & Other Torture Devices" (comedy) and "Windmills" (drama/suspense) -- while compiling a collection of short stories and writing a dark comedy script. For each book, she's simultaneously writing both versions -- novel and stanzas. Parts of Kenya's resume are posted on the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) at www.imdb.me/kenya. Her full resume and samples of her work can be found at www.kenyadwilliamson.com.

Find Kenya online:

Her website: www.kenyadwilliamson.com
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4384752.Kenya_D_Williamson
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/kenyadwilliamson
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Kenya.Dieja.Williamson
Twitter: http://twitter.com/kenyawilliamson

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seashellNC

Posted March 4, 2012

Depth of Focus is a story line about a 20 something finding her

Depth of Focus is a story line about a 20 something finding her independence. Danni, the main character, has been taking care of others her whole life. At age 5, her father left the family, as he had difficulty dealing with Danni's mentally unstable mother. He left behind his old camera, which Danni treasured. The responsibility of taking care of her mother fell to her aunt Jackie, until Danni was old enough to help. Through suicide attempts and a rarely functional mother, Danni grows up, not trusting anyone except her aunt.

At age 24, exhausted from taking care of her mother, Danni finally leaves for New York to go to photography school once she can save the money. Before she gets through her first day, she has her digital camera stolen. He father's camera gets saved by a homeless man. When Danni finds a job as a server in a restaurant, she brings him dinner every night.

She dates, but is afraid to let anyone near her. She's afraid of having her heartbroken, afraid of getting to close just to have someone leave. Her sister's friend, April, comes to stay with her until April can get back on her feet. This unusual relationship leads to Danni wanting to be a better person.

The story in written in both stanza and a novel. I read the stanza version, but I just couldn't find the rhythm of the verses. It made me wish I would have just read the novel instead. I wasn't please with the story line, but I wasn't displeased either. Some of the story lines were tied up to nicley, and some weren't tied up at all. It seemed to move to fast, without a depth of focus. There is much potential in Ms. Williamson's writing, but I don't think this book was her best.
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MuMuGB

Posted April 11, 2011

AMAZING-BUY IT ASAP!

Beware: once I had started this book, I couldn't let go of it (and this doesn't happen very often with me). I wanted to read a little bit during my lunch break and ended up reading all afternoon (which means that I will have to catch up on my work tonight). Kenya Williamson has this amazing capacity to make the reader believe he or she is actually witnessing what's happening. As if you could breathe with the characters and feel their vulnerability. I think that the best word to describe her style is limpidity. She has a limpid style.

And the story sounds true, plausible, even autobiographic- I don't know whether it's the case. Danni didn't have the best start in life. Her dad left and her mum is very sick. Depth of Focus tells the story of her quest for independence, and how her love of photography might be her redemption (hence the title, Depth of focus).

I actually liked it so much that I am going to buy a few books to give to my friends as a present.
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Anonymous

Posted March 19, 2012

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Posted March 19, 2012

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