The Tangle Box
Q: What inspired the main character in your debut novel, Tangle Box?
A: The Tangle Box grew from a short story that I worked on in 2016. It was written in the first person and the narrator was nameless and shapeless. When I returned to it about a year later, I thought that I could use the original short story, drill deeper into it, and tell the story of the narrator and his relationship with the house.
What I didn't want was to tell another tale of woe from an abused victim. I needed a narrator who could be dispassionate, who could rationalize the story. The narrator could not be a static character either, he had to grow. The story and the experience he went through had to change him.
I eventually discovered my character in Dan O'Neill. Dan is a composite of many damaged people that I have known over my life. In The Tangle Box he relates the story in first person which means the focus is narrow. I felt to achieve a balanced story, Dan had to be a pragmatist who was willing not only to relate the crimes of others but was also willing to acknowledge his own mistakes without using victimhood as an excuse for his failures.
You will find Dave Kavanagh’s Novel a page turner, available at all the online retailers including Amazon and Barnes & Noble in the USA. ISBN: 9781838402549