Dear Judge / Agent / Editor,
Attached are 3,000 words of my finished 60,000-word memoir, An Honest Christian Fraud, for your contest consideration.
After I served more than a decade in law enforcement, my faith, purpose, and desire for life was stripped away during a family’s final call for help. I had considered myself a good Christian father, husband, and police officer, until the day I finally shunned it all, cursed God, and desired a fresh start. This memoir chronicles my transformation from continuously wearing the fake Christian mask, as I claimed to be good, great, and blessed, all the while transforming into an emotionless robot, scarring my family, drifting through life, running from myself, and screaming at God about the chaos of the world.
Is life really worth living? Was God nothing but a lie sold by parents, by the church? Was I alone in my suffering while everyone else was always good, great, and blessed? One phrase, three words. I screamed them over and over until I was sure God had heard. And finally, He responded. That experience was the only way I found peace, purpose, the abundant life, the easy yoke, and the light load He'd always promised.
The target audience is Christian men and women, over 28, preferably with a child, who have had a faith crisis or struggle as they wade through their years and experience the true realities of the world.
This is my debut work. It was created after experiencing the deaths of many police officers and realizing it was a possibility that I, too, could be killed on the job, leaving behind three fatherless children. Would they think their dad’s life and faith was always good, great, and blessed like so many others faking it in church today? Would they feel different or alone when a crisis of life or faith came? I couldn’t let that happen; I knew the pain. In life, everyone needs someone to identify with and talk to when one's time inevitably comes. This memoir focuses on not feeling so alone and also feeling like you have a friend.
Thank you for considering my work. I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours sincerely,
Chad Campese Campese67@hotmail.com 740-272-2637 6529 Margaret Dr. Westerville OH 43082
