Dead Broke in the Yonder Void

Title: Dead Broke in the Yonder Void
Author: Michael J. O’Connor

BUY IT NOW!
Barnes & Noble
Amazon
Bookshop

When musician Matty DeYoung is kicked out of his new girlfriend’s apartment for pissing into a box fan and spraying her bedroom in a drunken sleepwalk, he finds himself unhoused, unskilled, and wandering the crumbling streets of late 2000s San Francisco. Lost in his rapid downward spiral, he spends his days and nights drenched in a cycle of self-loathing alcoholism and isolation.

After pawning his prized guitar and participating in horrific medical tests to survive, a chance meeting with a desperate manager lands him a job at a local theater. There, he meets Austin, a fellow dirtbag who is determined to be Matty’s friend despite his alienation, addictions, and demons.

Through Austin, and the violent beauty of the streets they both call home, Matty finally discovers that the only way out of the void is to grab a helping hand and face the music.

ISBN: 978-1-951393-31-1
Price: $13.95 (paperback) $4.99 (Kindle ebook)
Release date: 2/29/24

Praise for Dead Broke in the Yonder Void:

“In this propulsive tinderbox of a novel, Michael J. O’Connor has captured the beautiful, dark corners of San Francisco with its deeply evocative sense of place. Dead Broke in the Yonder Void is a vulnerable and ecstatic portrait of a troubled young life in all its hilarity and heartbreak.
— Thea Chacamaty, Henfield Prize recipient 

“Some of the most engaging and encompassing prose I’ve read in a long time. This book will make you feel uncomfortable and alive all at the same time, right alongside the main character. Highly recommend this book if you want to get a little lost for a while—you might find more in common with the void than you’d think.”
— Chlo Connaughton, Editor-in-Chief of Zaum Literary Magazine

“Dead Broke in the Yonder Void is a dark reminder of what happens to the human beings our society decides no longer matter. From petty, power drunk landlords to institutions ready and willing to condemn the main character, Matty, to death, sympathy is scarce and often unravels rapidly. As society looks away, embarrassed, or in fear, Matty is compelled to remain small and invisible, lest he inspire rage and retribution. O’Connor is a gifted writer that gives us a raw and visceral account of a hellish downward spiral. You can smell the endless pints of cheap whiskey, the sweat-drenched anxiety, and the matted clothing, stiff with misery. By the final pages, any decent human will vow to never look the other way again.”
— William M. Brandon, author of Eternity: The Long and Short of It, SILENCE & Selene, The Exile The Matriarch & The Flood, and Welcome to Spring Street

“A witty, honest work of autofiction, Dead Broke in the Yonder Void is the story of a young man stranded at the intersection of adulthood, addiction, and the search for meaning. The desert island is the Mission and Tenderloin neighborhoods of 2000s San Francisco. The shipwreck is a series of misfortunes and misadventures. Our protagonist can only struggle to survive by blending urban camping, odd jobs, and a glimmer of hope that the next day will be better, or just won’t come at all. This is a story of redemption. It’s a story of faith. This is a story about the empty space inside us that we have to fill, the ways we find to try to fill it, and the moment we understand that we are full.”
— Nate Ragolia, author of One Person Can’t Make a Difference and There You Feel Free