Finished chapter 31 and made a big dent in 32 ; 55,851 word count.
Writing Tip: I've been reading Donald Maass' Fire in Fiction book. One section talks about the importance of the first line and last line of every scene. We all know we want to hook the reader on the first page, but I wasn't aware of the concept of these anchor lines in each scene. I'm experimenting with it to see if it works in my writing. (By the way, there are so many ideas about craft, it would be ridiculous to try to implement them all. If one appeals, give it a test run. It may or may not work with your voice, or it may or may not work in this particular piece you are writing.)
The first line of chapter 32:
Fenworth did not take the plate Bealomondore offered him.
And the last:
She grinned as she chewed.
The first one raises a question. Why didn't he take the plate?
The last one gives a concrete image to hold on to. Of course yours is nebulous because you haven't read this section and don't know who she is. But, if you had, you would have a tight grasp on how this scene moved the character who is grinning.
Anchor lines are fun when they work.
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Mrs. Paul is a fantasy author and grandma. 
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I think it is so important that you said, "...there are so many ideas about craft, it would be ridiculous to try to implement them all. If one appeals, give it a test run. It may or may not work with your voice, or it may or may not work in this particular piece you are writing."
ReplyDeleteMany new writers get overwhelmed by all the "rules" of writing, and rewrite every time they hear a new suggestion. One of my writing mentors once said, "Only change your writing to clarify or correct. Don't let it change your style."
I've gotten writing advice from other authors that, while there was certainly nothing wrong it, seemed to only change what I wrote into something that sounded like their particular style. Sometimes it can be hard to discern between a true correction and a style change, but (imho) it's a crucial difference.
Exactly, Kat. "Rules" are more often suggestions. We could program a computer to follow the "rules" and every piece written by the PC PC (politically correct Personal Computer) would be stiff and non-inspiring.
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