I find myself in need of a disease ... in my story an elderly man is in jail waiting for the state's official hangman to arrive to send him on his way. He is visited by the "girl" and she finds him suffering from ????. Pleading with the judge for mercy, the old man is allowed out of the jail and confined at the doctor's house. After all, he's sick so he can't escape. Anyway, he's too sick to hang ... gotta get well first.
The problem is, in the first draft the old man is consumptive ... that works for me, but not the lit agent. She says if he's suffering from consumption he's too ill to move, hang or any of the other things I have him do.
So, what other illness can I have him have? The story is set in the mid-1850s and the nearest doctor is also the nearest veterinarian.
Hmmmm, I wonder if I can make him an alcoholic? Unless someone has a better idea, that old timer is deep in the sauce.
Thanks ...
The problem is, in the first draft the old man is consumptive ... that works for me, but not the lit agent. She says if he's suffering from consumption he's too ill to move, hang or any of the other things I have him do.
So, what other illness can I have him have? The story is set in the mid-1850s and the nearest doctor is also the nearest veterinarian.
Hmmmm, I wonder if I can make him an alcoholic? Unless someone has a better idea, that old timer is deep in the sauce.
Thanks ...