Oct 24, 2018
Perhaps it wasn’t a good idea to choose this moment to begin reading a writer’s self-help book. When I’ve already posted the first chapter of what I hope will be a winning mystery-suspense-thriller, I was running the risk of major disheartenment. But Lisa Cron’s "Wired For Story" only arrived the other day – it’s been on my Amazon wish-list for months – and I thought, "What the heck? Maybe it’ll help..."
What it has done, though, is given me more certainty that Ripe For Execution is on track to be a winner. OK, I’ve only read a chapter and a half of Cron’s book so far (and already I can say it is hugely recommended to anyone who wants to write damn good fiction...!), but I’m pretty sure there’s little in there that I hadn’t already considered.
That said, it’s really you, my readers, who should be the judges! I’m thus going to share with you the questions from the end of Cron’s first chapter, which should relate to the first chapter of any good novel. Can you see these working in this novel?
Q1: Do we know whose story it is?
In other words, do you know how the protagonist is, the hero through whose eyes you’re mainly going to experience the issues, plot, and theme of the book?
At first, I worried about this one, since my protagonist is not the first character you meet. In fact, my first chapter is actually introducing you to a series of minor characters, each with their own subplot and each a potential antagonist.
But then I realised, I’ve managed to do something – almost subconsciously – to ensure the main protagonist is highlighted in the first chapter. NB: that’s the entire chapter, i.e. "10". Remember, the individual sections ("Jake", "Theo", "Salma", etc) all make up that first chapter – which will hopefully become clearer when the novel’s in a page-turning format rather than the Inkshares website...
So – am I right? Can you work out who my main protagonist is? And, if so, can you see how I’ve tried to make sure that’s clear?
Q2: Is something happening, beginning on the first page?
Again, I worried about this one at first. In fact, in earlier drafts of this book, I began with the moment of the school exploding. But that gave me a problem: why would you, the reader, care about who was inside the school? That’s gonna be important later, both for our protagonist’s issues and one of the key subplots.
But then I thought: hang about. Within the first few paragraphs, you’ve got the mystery of that key subplot. You’ve also got the story told from a child’s POV, so everything is in the "now" and thus full of uncertainty and surprise – though also (I hope) a kind of adorability that stimulates your concern. I hope we race to the bombing pretty swiftly, and with a growing sense of foreboding.
Do you agree?
Q3: Is there conflict in what’s happening?
OK – I’m pretty certain on this one. You may not know exactly what my protagonist’s quest is yet – nor the antagonist’s, for that matter – but I’m pretty sure you can’t read any section of this first chapter and come away thinking there’s no conflict.
I hope, though, that you already get an inkling of the obvious conflict (i.e. what happens to the school) and the internal conflicts soon to come (i.e. how the school bombing will impact all the lives you meet).
So... do you?
Q4: Is something at stake on the first page?
It’s difficult to tell, here on the Inkshares website, where the first page would end, but I’m guessing it would be around the words "Come on, darling, breakfast."
Now again I started worrying that I’d shot myself in the foot by choosing a 4-year-old as my opening POV, since kids his age don’t really hold anything "at stake" in their mind for too long unless it’s an obvious ongoing threat.
But then I thought, Hang about... There are hints of ongoing threats – maybe not for Jake, but for the reader – and surely that’s more significant? And, importantly, I identified two-maybe-three of them on that ’first page’: the bang; the groan from the top bunk; Mum retreating into her room without any acknowledgement of her son.
So again, I think I’ve checked this one. How do you see it?
Q5: Is there a sense that "all is not as it seems"?
This is a hard one for me to answer, as I know what’s going on – so I’m reading everything with a growing sense of foreboding, but do you pick up on that as the reader?
Q6: Can we glimpse enough of the "big picture" to have that all-important yardstick?
This is the final question, and it’s asking if you’re already able to (a) see the point of the story and (b) get an idea for where the story is headed.
I can’t really tell you my answer to this one, because I don’t want to give too much of the game away – but suffice it to say that, in my mind at least, even that first section from the POV of Jake is indicative of the theme whilst letting you know you’re in for one hell of a ride.
Chances are this is working on a subconscious level, so you might not be able to answer it yourself. But I’d love to see what you do think the theme and/or direction of the novel is at such an early point...!
There’s so much more in Lisa Cron’s book than just a checklist to follow, and again I heartily recommend it to all my fellow contenders here on Inkshares. You can find it on Amazon by going to http://amzn.eu/d/6X09MK5
In the meantime, though, I look forward to hearing your thoughts on Ripe For Execution so far... and, if it has gripped you, please do either one or both of the following:
I look forward to sharing stories with you again soon. All the best...
Chip