DES MOINES — Des Moines-based author J. Kirby Smith, a Waterloo native and onetime Marshalltown resident, has penned a new novella titled “Fifty Shades of Faye,” which he describes as both a romantic story and a commentary on the current political climate.

Smith is a retired blue collar worker and said he only writes when he finds himself inspired to do so or has a worthwhile message to share. He has previously published works such as “Lyrical and Lovely Thoughts” and “Lovisa.” A synopsis he provided of “Fifty Shades of Faye” references the titular character seeking connection while drawing parallels to the election of President Donald Trump.

“One theme of this story is that often people who rise to prominent positions in society do so because of merely corrupt, vainglorious, self centered opportunistic motives, a.k.a. Trump, while not all but some people like Faye, the heroine of this story, are driven if temporarily into maybe questionable pursuits in life but they are, nonetheless, very good people and long for a better life,” he wrote. “Trump was, as they say, born with a silver spoon in his mouth and on third base, but he took that advantage into indecency, criminality and hopes it’s not temporary. Faye, on the other hand, beaten down by life and men is simply desperate for a deeper human connection. She seeks it in a quirky way through role playing, while attempting to finally find a decent man, unlike Trump, with emotional range who understands her. There is poetry and eroticism within this.”

Faye, he added, is treated terribly by her stepfather and later a foster father and takes an “unusual, quirky” route to find someone she can connect with and is a decent, kind person like she is, and Smith said he drew inspiration from the poems of the 19th century writer Stephen Crane, which, along with his own poems, introduce the novella.

“Fifty Shades of Faye” is available in hard copy and ebook formats through platforms like Amazon and Barnes & Noble.