New novel not exactly par for course

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/10/2020 (2007 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Southdale author has taken a swing at writing another novel — this time about golf.

Jeffrey John Eyamie is ready to release Still Me: A Golf Tragedy in 18 Parts, published by Turnstone Press.

 
“Still Me: A Golf Tragedy in 18 Parts takes place entirely on golf courses — some of the most prominent and memorable courses in Canada,” explains Eyamie, an author, screenwriter, story editor and filmmaker.

“When James discovers that his wife has cut the golf course logos out of his cherished golf shirts, he thinks back to some of his most memorable rounds in an effort to figure why she did it.”

Golf course designer Thomas McBroom features prominently in the story, Eyamie added. As well, three Manitoba golf courses make their way into the book — Southwood, Niakwa and Victoria Beach.

“I’ve played and love all three of these courses,” Eyamie said, “and I’m happy that they stand alongside some of the other most-beloved courses in Canada.”

Eyamie quips that he golfs poorly, even though he’s been taking it seriously for about five years now.

“There is something profound to me about getting out there,” he said. “I think a lot of people are discovering, or re-discovering the meaning of golf this year. Golf is having a renaissance.”

One of the reasons he tackled the topic is because he’s read a few golf novels and watched a few golf movies, but he felt there was still unexplored thematic territory in the area.

“You typically see a story where the golfer is an underdog with a whole bunch of desire and not much else emotionally, and they want to play with professional golfers in a professional setting,” he said.

“For six million Canadians, golf has nothing to do with that, but they do it anyway.”

For Eyamie, it’s no stretch of the imagination to connect golf to some of life’s bigger-picture issues.

“The act of golfing is the act of imparting one’s tiny, little intentions upon nature. That’s a pretty easy canvas for me to apply some paint,” he said.

“I would say that loss plays a prominent role in this story, but I would really prefer to let people draw their own inferences from the story. Hopefully it’s fun and difficult, just like golf.”

In addition to releasing Still Me: A Golf Tragedy in 18 Parts, Eyamie has written and directed a short film called So, What Do You Think? that is currently on the film festival circuit across North America.

His first novel with Turnstone Press, No Escape from Greatness, was nominated for two Manitoba book awards and he was also in the writers’ room for the final two seasons of the HBO Canada series Less Than Kind.

“I’m always working on multiple projects,” he said. “My main COVID project is a collaboration with my 15-year-old daughter: a feature screenplay featuring killer dad jokes.”  

A virtual launch of Still Me: A Golf Tragedy in 18 Parts will take place on Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. hosted by McNally Robinson Booksellers via Zoom. More information will be posted on McNally’s events page at www.mcnallyrobinson.com/calendar