Life Would Be Perfect If, by Jeff Harvey

Prose, chapbook, 40 pages, from Bottlecap Features.

Life Would Be Perfect If is a novella-in-flash following a young man’s struggle to find his place in suburban Memphis during the 60s and 70s. Faced with constant rejection, he withdraws into himself, longing for acceptance and a sense of belonging.

As a teenager, he begins to question his sexuality but finds no one he can trust to talk to. It’s not until his university years that he meets a small group of like minded individuals who offer the support he's been searching for. However, most of them eventually leave for bigger cities. Realizing that the love and acceptance he craves are beyond the confines of his hometown, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery, seeking happiness and uncovering deeper truths along the way.

Jeff Harvey is a queer writer and editor from Northeast Arkansas and now lives in San Diego. He has worked in finance and real estate and has also taught English as a second language. When he’s not writing, he edits Gooseberry Pie Lit Magazine, which he founded in 2023. He is a reader for Fractured Lit and PencilHouse. His fiction appears in numerous literary journals including Ghost Parachute, Five South, Bending Genres, MoonPark Review, Does it Have Pockets, Bull, Blink Ink, and FlashFlood. He made the 2023 Wigleaf top 50 longlist.