The first of Alex's written works is The Lost Son Returns. It illustrates challenges faced by a young gay man. Not only is he not accepted and affirmed by his family, his family also fears that he will contract HIV and die from AIDS. As the choir director, he is not supported or affirmed by his church. The young man hopes to escape the outdated stigma of "the gay man's disease" and moves away from
his family to live life on his own terms. After witnessing a tragedy, he returns home to find acceptance by his church and his family. Alex drew from her own life experiences when she wrote The Lost Son Returns. Growing up in a home where she was only allowed to interact with youths of the same faith, Alex did not participate in extracurricular activities or make any friends. She could not wear pants or take gym. As a young same-gender loving female growing up in a holiness church, Alex was taught that she was not loved by God and was doomed to go to hell. She was ostracized at church and forced to sit in the back row. None of the congregants were allowed to speak to her. These experiences motivated Alex to write poetry. It was also at this time that Alex developed her first play which would later become The Lost Son Returns. Over 30 years would pass before Alex would rewrite, direct and produce the play she developed at age 15. Under the title, The Lost Son, the play was performed before a sold-out audience in April 2014 as a fundraiser for Unity Fellowship Church NewArk. Alex also served as casting director and stage manager for her project. At the present time, she is preparing to produce The Lost Son Returns in Atlanta during the 2017-2018 season. Alex has also completed scripts for the plays The Mothers' Den and Alabaster. She also has her first book in a series under editorial review with a publisher. She has several other books nearing completion as well as drafts of other projects utilizing the business name Moving Up^Word. For Alex, writing is both therapeutic and cathartic which is what she likes most about her work. Alex is inspired by the knowledge that God’s love is for everyone regardless of their life's journey. Alex believes that everyone should be able to be their authentic self while participating in the faith and worship experience. It took decades for her to understand this concept and she is very passionate about sharing that Good News with all walks of faith, the LGBTQ community and her community-at-large. Most of her written works are based on that premise. For booking information for any of Alex’s ongoing projects, she can be reached at (678) 824-4708, facebook.com/dana.brownjones, facebook.com/MovingUpWord or [email protected].
