The Prayer

The proposed novel, 'The Prayer', charts the story of a black pastor, Sam, in an all-black, Pentecostal ministry in contemporary inner London. Sam identifies as trans but is terrified of his identity being revealed to his deeply homo- and transphobic church congregation, in whom he also finds much solace, community, and love. He falls in love with one of his casual internet cruising partners, Allen: a married middle-aged white man. A subplot features Sam trying to reach a teenager, the son of one of his flock, to prevent him from drifting into a path of black gangs and youth violence. The boy discovers Sam's secret and shares this with the men of the church. The novel will explore black masculinity and black male sexuality, both heterosexual and queer. The critical project analyses constructions of black masculinity and black male sexual identity regarding three distinguished literary works by the black male writers James Baldwin, Paul Beatty and Michael Thomas.