The Man You Script by Drew Gill - StoryTree Reviews

Georgia Francis

The Man You Script by Drew Gill

Heartbreak. It is one of those near-universal human experiences. We have all gone through, or will go through, a break up that leaves us lost. A break up we do not think we will survive. A break up that changes us. 

Drew Gill’s debut pamphlet The Man You Script is an exploration of such an experience. In 14 poems, Gill takes the reader on a journey of heartbreak and healing, centred on the speaker and his recollections of his ex-lover, The Man. 

The Man You Script’s opening poem, ‘prologue. a view from a half reader’s window’, acts as a microcosm of the book as a whole. It introduces the overarching theme of the work: heartbreak is a tale of two halves. Yearning and acceptance. Closeness and distance. What was and what is. 

In the first half of ‘prologue’, Gill establishes the speaker’s yearning nature, depicting his “desperation” and “unending” “faith” that his lover is “coming back” (lines 20-31). The speaker reminisces on his and The Man’s past closeness, recalling when they sat with their “legs entangled” (line 40). His reverie continues as he remembers who they both used to be:

“I glance away from the book I was only ever half reading

To find a ghost of you outside.

He has the hair you had when you were mine,

He is here for the ghost of me.

One who had not yet buried you ten times.”

~ ‘prologue. a view from a half reader’s window’ lines 14-18.

Throughout 'prologue', Gill employs mortal imagery of grief, burials, and ghosts to depict the speaker’s journey healing his heartbreak. Gill utilises the repeated motif of the speaker burying The Man “ten”, “fifty”, “a hundred times” to signify both the passage of time and the continued work of grieving a past relationship (lines 4-51). As a result of the speaker’s healing work, the latter half of ‘prologue’ presents the latter half of the thematic dichotomies. By the second part, the speaker has moved past his yearning; he has grown “old enough” to see through “false promise[s]” and has accepted that “knowing the truth” would not “change” anything (lines 46-70). He embraces his distance from The Man, finding “content[ment]” that they are on “opposite ends” of the world (lines 66-67). After “a hundred” burials and a “final funeral”, the speaker can finally see “the world for what it is” (lines 4-74). He accepts that what The Man “could be is gone” and what he is “isn’t here” (lines 75-76, emphasis added).

The imagery and themes explored in ‘prologue’ are carried throughout The Man You Script. By employing this continued imagery, Gill creates a cohesive body of work that seamlessly guides the reader on a journey of heartbreak and healing. 

The Man You Script is a strong debut into the publishing world for Drew Gill. The emotional impact of the poems is rivalled only by their technical ability. Pick up this pamphlet when you need to delve into your own experiences of heartbreak and finally reach the point of catharsis. 

The Man You Script is available for £10.99 direct from Drew Gill. Contact Drew via his Instagram: @drewgillcreate

Poet: Drew Gill

Illustrator: Leigh Simpson

Publisher: ‎SpeakEasy Press

Publication Date: ‎22 April 2026

Language: ‎English

ISBN-10: ‎1036960862

ISBN-13: ‎978-1036960865