THE CANDY MAN
“The music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There’s also a negative side.”
The Candy Man (working title, will most certainly change) is a WIP mature audience coming-of-age work in its early stages. A survivor’s tale of sorts, a character named Nic recounts her late teenage years in a difficult-to-define relationship with an unnamed rockstar simply referred to as "The Candy Man”, who is only ever pictured with his eyes obscured or lurking in the shadows. Looking at the banality of grooming, the whys and hows of abuse, and the ensuing, unexpected cautionary tale of chasing musical fame, it’s also Nic’s confessional on personal mistakes made, reactive abuse, shameful thoughts, and the learning process of young adulthood. It is as much of a study of the self as it is the other.
The Candy Man, as a work, is not interested in taking prisoners when it comes to the cruelty of grooming, lasting trauma and realities of celebrity and the music industry. As of its current iterations, it is graphic. It also takes interest in uncovering what makes people tick, and will exhibit empathy for certain aspects of an abuser, which may not be something every reader wants to see (in this case, the abuser is as much a victim of the fame ladder, suicidality, and mental health struggles as Nic is). Annie is usually geeked on a good ol’ revenge tale, and has done a lot of these works (The Sprawl and the accompanying work thri11s33k3r), but this work is intended to dig through human psyche rather than socially ostracize a “villain.” By the time its done, it won’t be for everyone.
In current discussions, preliminary art, and script iterations that you may see blips of online during the process, CWs include: derealization, emotional trauma, psychological horror, alcohol and drug use, sexual content, misogyny, grooming of a freshly of-age teenager, bodily fluids, suicide and suicidal ideation, depression, hospital/medical content, trauma-bonding (in this context, between both victim and abuser), self-harm and self-harm scarring, and nightmare/dream sequences of violence.
For clarity’s sake: there are NO depictions of minors in any situation other than social explorations of childhood. Not even as background characters. Fuck that noise.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Nicola is a girl in her late teens from Canada, where a good chunk of the story is set.
The Candy Man is a famous musician from Chicago.
The Deejay is an infinitely more successful musician than The Candy Man.
The Friends are Nicola’s closest friends and confidantes.