Recently, I watched a funny Facebook video of a cousin pressing her four-year-old daughter about the origins of some blue marker on the white counter, only to be told repeatedly by the little girl that “the dog did it.” That was her story, and she was sticking to it. Most of us remember from our childhood being taught that the truth is sacrosanct, and yet young kids often choose to lie to stay out of trouble. One way beckoned me to the truth and the other to the vault where secrets are locked away. While I wrote this story, a visual got stuck in my head of a fork in a road. Rocky’s mom compounds his misery when she puts the For-Sale sign on the front lawn right after the funeral, afraid that if they stay in town, someone will blurt out the truth before Rocky is ready. Now, in addition to his grief, he must deal with the loss of trust in his one remaining parent. When twelve-year-old Rocky learns that his mom has told him a bogus story about how his dad really died, he is gut-punched. The decision to keep a family secret is at the heart of my debut middle grade novel, SWALLOWED BY A SECRET, publication date January 21, 2020, from Immortal Works Press. Do we tell or not? What are the stakes? The choice isn’t always easy or simple, and not for the faint-hearted. When we’re pressed for the truth, it’s a dilemma.

Everyone has a secret, either their own or one they promised to keep for someone else. So, if the truth cannot stay hidden, what happens to all the secrets we keep. Three things cannot long stay hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth.

Swallowed by a Secret by Risa Nyman