ABOUT THE BOOK
It's the summer of 1989. Jack McGuinn is a dockporter, transporting tourists’ luggage, piled high in the basket of his bike on Mackinac Island, Michigan, a tiny summer resort where cars are outlawed and pedal-power rules. He’s got the season wired tight: a family cottage on the bluff, a dream job, and a loyal crew of hell-raising, tip-hustling buddies. When his old friend-turned bitter rival challenges him to ride a record-setting load, he takes the bet and soon realizes he’s not just carrying suitcases, he’s carrying the future of the island, which is about to be paved over for profit.
With the help of his pals on the dock and the love of a romantic, free-spirited Irish cellist named Erin, Jack digs deep to discover skills he didn't know he had. The Dockporter is an offbeat, nostalgic coming-of age-story that appeals anyone who ever had a summer job.
If Rushmore director Wes Anderson remade Caddyshack but it emerged as a hybrid of Footloose and Meatballs (and was a book) it would be The Dockporter. Genre-smashing, hilariously fresh, yet refreshingly familiar, it's a novel about friends, family, love, luggage, and the summers we never forget.
The Dockporter will be available on Audible, Amazon and iTunes in April 2022.
CINEMATIC SOUNDS
Designed with the natural sounds, and, if you really use your imagination, smells of Mackinac Island. Our producers visited the island to capture the island vibe and create the perfect audio vacation.
THE PERFECT SCORE
The Audible version of The Dockporter features a musical score that takes you beyond the typical narrated story. With a rich musical tapestry, this production feels like a movie.
Dave is an experienced writer/director and creative director who has worked with studios like Disney, Fox and Universal Studios and brands like Nike, PayPal and Ford. He's also an award-winning TV producer. He spent his summers on Mackinac Island as a dockporter. He lives in the Cebu, Philippines with his wife and daughter. This is his first novel.
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THE PARTY
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The story behind this project has as many twists and turns as the tale itself. Originally conceived as a feature film to shoot on location on Mackinac Island, the film was set to roll with writer/director Dave McVeigh and his partner/brother Scott co-directing. As everyone knows, feature films take a lot of time and money and unfortunately, the real world got in the way. The production was put on hold. But years later, the idea still burned bright.
Now living in the Philippines and existing on a steady diet of mangoes, podcasts and audiobooks, Dave began to reimagine the story as an audio experience, complete with the unique sounds of the island and a distinctive score. Of course, that would first mean “novelizing” the film script. He enlisted friend and writer Jim Bolone as co-author and the two transformed the film script into a novel and audio experience. The Dockporter lives, proof that stories are what matter, regardless of the format or how long it takes to tell them.
The Dockporter Facebook page is growing fast. It's the best place to go to stay up to date on the latest news and learn all the greatest stories about the real dockporters of Mackinac Island.
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© 2020 The Dockporter: A Mackinac Novel / Dave McVeigh All Rights Reserved