most of the next eighteen years in Japan, where, after a brief career as a wire service reporter, he spent ten years in investment banking in Tokyo and a further decade in the portfolio management industry. He left the financial services industry in 2008 and is currently pursuing a PhD in creative writing at the Queensland University of Technology.
Mills applied the Page 69 Test to his debut novel, Bitter Passage, a work of historical fiction, and reported the following:
The Page 69 Test works for only the first half the page. As luck would have it, page 69 of Bitter Passage is bisected by a scene break. The second half of the page—after the scene break—lacks sufficient detail to inform the reader about the plot or characters, so it fails the test. The first half of the page, however, is more helpful as it hints at the friction that is starting to build between the two main characters, Lieutenant Robinson and Assistant Surgeon Adams. It is this friction, driven by the two characters’ contrasting objectives in searching for the lost explorer, Sir John Franklin, that underpins the story.Visit Colin Mills's website.
On page 69, we find the following exchange between the two main characters, Robinson and Adams, and the seaman Billings (the POV is Robinson’s):Perhaps Sir John could batter his way through the ice with the sheer force of his character. “I’m hungry,” Billings said again. He wheedled like an exhausted child. “Mister Adams, I’m hungry.”This exchange reflects the characters’ personalities and motivations, and foreshadows some of the conflict to come. Robinson is a glass half-empty kind of guy; cynical and concerned mostly with what success or failure will mean for him. Adams is more the glass half-full type; optimistic and selfless, as we see in his gentle treatment of the seaman, Billings. The exchange on page 69 foreshadows a clash of morality and ambition.
Robinson glared at Adams. “For God’s sake, give him something to do. Make him be quiet.”
“Jimmy,” said Adams, “go and keep watch for bears, will you? Shout if you see one. I will give you some biscuit soon.”
Without a word, Billings stood and lumbered away.
Robinson watched him leave, his jaw clenched. I am marooned in the wilderness with a romantic and a fool, he thought.
“I see nothing odd in holding a man like Franklin in high esteem,” said Adams. “Sir John’s accomplishments are admirable. A man would do well to emulate them.”
Robinson did not attempt to conceal his disdain. “Which of his feats are so admirable? Losing half his men on the way back from Point Turnagain? Eating his boots to stay alive? Getting lost in the ice?” He lifted his knapsack onto his shoulder. “Let us hope you do not emulate him on this mission.”
One reason for writing the novel was to explore the emotional state of the men who searched for Franklin and his men, something that isn’t explicit in the historical record of events. The senior commanders, James Clark Ross and Edward Bird, seemed driven largely by friendship and duty—they’d known Franklin for years and Francis Crozier, Frankin’s second-in-command, was Ross’ best friend. As a junior officer, Lieutenant Robinson must achieve a notable feat if he is to achieve promotion at a time when distinguishing himself in battle is impossible. The zealous Adams, meanwhile, thinks finding Franklin will appease the Almighty. On the bottom rung, the ordinary seamen were there for the money (discovery service paid double the usual wage).
My Book, The Movie: Bitter Passage.
--Marshal Zeringue
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