The First Chapter
Anne R. Allen put a post a few a week or so back (I am so glad to be caught up on Feedly now…) that discusses what all should be involved in a first chapter.
The moment I saw it, I groaned. Here we go, something else to tear everything I think I know to ribbons. But I read it, because this was a new blog I added to my reader, and I nee to get a feel for it, and much as I didn’t want to admit it, these types of posts are important. Nothing is concrete, but the thing about being a new writer, one who hasn’t written for anyone I wasn’t related or married to, is not having the ability to gauge what is concrete and what is quicksand. I think I know my stuff, but who knows what that will mean to readers?
And the first sentence, paragragh, page, chapter, of a story are essential. I know for myself, I have tried to force myself to read books (especially those ones I am supposed to like) but can’t usually make it stick. I have to get hooked, and rarely does it happen if it fails in the beginning. This is reflected in my buying behavior. The way I buy books is with Amazon’s wish list. When I am looking for a book, I go through this massive To Read list and check out the samples. Some look great until I open that first chapter, and those are the books that don’t get bought. Occasionally, I will revisit the book to read the sample again if I really like the description or have heard really good things about it, but usually I just cut it from the list.
I don’t want my book cut from anything.
This was one of those few posts that set me at ease instead of driving me into a panic and causing me to tear into into my manuscript like a Civil War surgeon. I’ve had those panic moments. I’ve also had to go back and stitch together what I lopped off. That’s partly why I’m pretty confident my intro to Sorcerer Rising is solid and will achieve what I want.
Much like Ms. Allen discussed, I didn’t write it from the get go. I went back and added it last summer when I set out to finally complete this. The original is still there, in fact its the third chapter, but I wanted a better hook, a more organic introduction into the world, and to set the stage for some of Virgil’s problems.
All that said, I’ll probably have to do it with the second book as well, I don’t know yet. I knew how I wanted to start it, but that may not set everything up the way it needs to be.
We will see.
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