I’ve been reading a lot lately on writing do’s and don’ts. One thing I learned recently is that you should start your book at the beginning of the story.
A few months ago I pulled out my original book. I do this every few years. Dust it off and work on it for a while until I realize how crappy it really is. I’ve been working on this thing for almost thirty years now, and I don’t know if there’s enough polish in the world to make this sad story shine. But I started at the beginning and actually wrote a complete new chapter 1. It set the scene, gave lots of background. Things I thought you’d want to know about the hero. It was…BACK STORY!!
Okay, some of this back story will make its way into the book (if I ever finish) but with all I’ve read recently I know that the worst place to put it is in Chapter 1. So I’m going to have to cut it out. A whole chapter. Ouch!
Then I thought, maybe it just needs a new home. So I brought it here. You should notice a new heading up above: The Severed Chapter. Here you will find this tidbit. It’s kind of a little story all it’s own, and at least representative of my writing style.
I hope you enjoy it.
Steve
(still no witty tag line)
A Writer's Haven 