Story
Outspokenly critical writing teacher allows his criticism to extend to his everyday life and soon learns why that is not a good idea. While the titular "Bullet in the Brain" does its work, we learn by example a bit about the art of writing.
Novel
When a son and mother move to Seattle in hopes for a better life, the mother meets a seemingly polite man. Things go south when the man turns out to be abusive, endangering their lives. As the mother struggles to maintain hope in an impossible situation, the son has plans to escape.
Writer
A man's daughter is viciously attacked by a dog, setting off a chain of events that ends in unspeakable tragedy.