Starting in the Right Place

I just got back from a perfectly wonderful weekend with the Nevada SCBWI. I attended quite an awesome conference, and got some really excellent feedback, and one of several enormous writing tips.

This is a post for all those writers who have been told, over and over again, to "Start with the action!"

That doesn't always work.

At least, what you don't realise is they mean to start with the right kind of action. For months and months I've been really working on perfecting my language, getting rid of superfluous ands, thens, and thats. I've also worked on making my opening chapter "hookier" and more exciting to read, because people kept saying it was too slow, or too rambling, not enough happened.

So, I made the first chapter quite exciting.

Guess what?

First of all, when I read my sample pages aloud to my critique group at the SCBWI, they all loved my "voice". However, they got a bit confused with names and terms. See, I write YA fantasy. For me, I tend to "name" things and use those names liberally throughout the novel. However, the reader can't divine what those words mean. They wanted a bit more worldbuilding, a bit more grounding in the world and a deeper connection to the character before he was thrust into madness and mayhem.

Same thing happened with my second critique group, except they felt the entire story started in the wrong chapter. I needed to write a new chapter, because I had started with the wrong action, and needed to give the readers a sense of place.

So, my advice is this: starting your story off with a thrilling road chase may not always work, especially in fantasy. It doesn't work for me, and I know that now, thanks to my fabulous critics. For a fantasy writer, you owe it to your readers to take that extra two, five, or even ten pages it takes in order to establish the major points of your world (i.e., if it *happens* to be a mulit-universe world) and to explain, creatively, what certain things mean.

Such as, the word below:

Chrestomathy \ kres-TOM-uh-thee

Noun;
1.A collection of selected literary passages.

Example:  My house is littered with chrestomathy. There's something about collecting selections of literary passages that intrigues me.

Origin:
Chrestomathy literally means "useful to learn" in Greek, from the roots chres ("to use") and math ("to learn").

Countdown to Conference

My writer's conference is in two days. Squeak!

For an aspiring author, writing conferences are amazing. You connect with other writers, you talk about writing, you share ideas about your stories, you get feedback... you are suddenly normal. People understand you. And you understand them. You are all talking the same lingo.

At the same time, you are talking with other people. I don't know about you, but to me it seems the more artistic you are, the more introverted you tend to be. The thought of being on my own, in a roomful of strangers that I have never talked to before, fills me with panic. What am I doing?! What am I thinking, going to something like this?!

Am I crazy?

Well, probably. At the same time, the tiny bold bit of me is going, "Omigosh, I can't wait!" Most of me is excited, but there's that bit right in the middle of my stomach that is absolutely quivering with terror.

So, any tips or advice for a newbie conference-goer? All comments are welcome. What did you bring to your conference (if you attended one)? What do you recommend? How did you relax?

All right, enough of this spruik. (Do you like that word? :-) I'll let you all go back to your merrymaking.

God bless!

Cat

Spruik \ sprook
Verb
1.To make or give a speech, especially extensively; spiel.

Six-Sentence Saturday 09/24/11

Once again, here we are!!

In no particular order:

1.) I went to a conference at South Lake Tahoe's new publishing house, Bonafide Books, and met the editor Kim Wyatt and had a fantastic time!

2.) I was inspired to become an SCBWI member.

3.) Since the conference, I have submitted four short stories, two of which (if accepted) would count as credits for SFWA, the Science Fiction Writers of America.

4.) I found out there's going to be a SCBWI conference in Lake Tahoe sometime in May next year, and I REALLY want to go.

5.) I'm trying to figure out how to become an illustrator (which is a work in progress).

6.) I got the soundtracks for Captain America and Thor, and they are joining my Iron Man soundtrack in my CD rack... Thor is a really good soundtrack, and Captain America is very cool too.

That's all for now, folks. Got to save my revisions for my WIP now and join the family in watching Escapade in Florence. See you later. God bless.