“Drama, instead of telling us the whole of a man's life, must place him in such a situation, tie such a knot, that when it is untied, the whole man is visible.” - Leo TolstoyIf you read a lot of agent blogs, then you’ll notice that they tell you to start your story, not at the beginning, but just before a major event or change is about to take place in your characters’ lives.
I think it is an essential part of every story, even Tolstoy’s, to follow this rule because it shows and does a lot of different things. It gives your reader an idea of what is to come, or what your character is like, or how your character deals with whatever comes.
It also keeps things interesting because, as a reader, I wouldn’t be too thrilled if I were reading mundane, everyday tasks a character did. I want to get right into the action. I want to see how the characters deal with conflict in their lives.
You don’t need to say, “My character is smart, kind and deals well under pressure.” This needs to be shown throughout your book based on how your character reacts to conflict which will show the reader what they are really like.
So, my question for all the ROW80 participants is: Does the first chapter of your story place your character in a position that makes the reader want to know more?
Next week, I will post the first paragraph from chapter 1 of my story for feedback. I would love, love, love it if next week you guys also posted a teaser from the first chapter of your WIP. It doesn’t have to be very long or very polished but it just gives you a chance to get feedback from other ROW80 participants. Remember, that’s next week so you still have time!
Now, onto my accomplishments for the week:
Monday - 0
Tuesday - 1715
Wednesday - 1613
Thursday - 0
Friday - 302
Saturday - 401
Sunday - 1799
Total - 5830
As strange as it sounds, it didn’t feel like I wrote so much this week but I’m really glad I did. My goals for the new week are the same: 5400 plus the 3663 words I want to catch up on, bringing my goals to 9063 for the week.
Also, good luck to everyone taking part in NaNo this year. I’m not brave enough to do it but I’ll be cheering you all on!
My intro shows you who my character is, demonstrates his personality and then dumps you into the problem fairly quickly. Looking good on that word count! Keep it up. Good luck!
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