"That Must Be Jelly 'Cause Jam Don't Shake Like That"

The first chapter sells the book; the last chapter sells the next book.

- Mickey Spillane

A book walks into a bar and immediately spies an intelligent reader and says, "Do you believe in love at first sight or should I just walk by again?" This very intelligent reader, unimpressed with the books blurb, gorgeous cover, and the screaming words "Best Selling Author of....", does what the majority of the book buying world would do - picks up the cute little book and reads the first line. Unfortunately for the book of the cute cover and catchy blurb, the first line does not capture the readers attention, and it is put back down, to search for yet another reader, perhaps one not as intelligent as the last.

You see, to me, the first line of a book is essentially a pick-up line. In a bar, the man or woman, doles out the pick-up line in an attempt to score a date. In a bookstore, the first line of a book is usually considered when trying to decide whether or not a book should be bought.

And this is my problem.

I am, at this stage of edits, putting entirely too much thought into the first line of the book. Well, truth is, I have the first line of the book, but what I have written after it, would be or possibly should be considered a Prologue. Heaven help me, but yes, I think I've written a Prologue. It's short, I mean really short, just under 600 words, and all it really does is give some back-story, and I really don't want to use it - I *think*. And that's where the internal debate comes in.

I love my first line. I love it so much, I want to marry it. I also love that bit of Prologue, and think it flows nicely with the first line. The problem is, if I keep my first line and what follows it, and it is used as it should be, as a Prologue, then I actually need a better first line for the start of the actual book. Are ya following me?

So now, I have no clue as to how to word the next scene, what is actually the first scene. My brain is a tangled mess over this (as you can tell by my messy post). I don't really want a Prologue. I'm not a fan. I've raised many a stink about Prologues over on the book blog, and I hate to be a big fat hypocrite and have one in my own work. BUT, I freakin' love this scene! I know, I know, sounds like I need to re-read my own post from a few days ago. But dayum, killin' your darlings is tough!

And that is why I have this blog. Because I now think I have a solution. I think I can keep my wonderful first line, JUNK mark everything that would be the Prologue, and start the book following that first line. OOOOOOOH, I am liking this idea the more it forms in my head. I even know where I can squeeze in some of the information from the Prologue into other parts of the book!

First lines, they are essential, I have to want to read the next line in the book, and if that first one doesn't draw me in, then forget it - I aint gonna be finishing the book. I know I am not the only one who feels this way. Of course, I'm gonna have to make the book live up to that first line, but right now, that doesn't seem impossible. Tomorrow, yeah, it probably will and I'll be back here banging my head against the wall again.

But for now, I think I have my pick-up line, and hopefully it works far better than some of the really, really bad pick-up lines heard throughout every bar in America on a Friday night.

Take Care

In the Begining

It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does.
~William Faulkner

Jollie Mae Stryker introduced herself to me over the summer. I think I was washing dishes at the time. All I knew of this woman was that she was 30, had no family left, and had been traveling the southern states for eight years.

It was then that I got a vision for Jollie. She would get a romance. She would end happily ever after, she would find "home". Unfortunately, Jollie is stubborn and didn't want to be in a light, fun Romance. "It's not my style," she said to me. So, I decided to sell the idea to her. I tried to force my vision on her.

"But, but, I will get you a gorgeous man." I pitched. "I will get you children! I will get you happy!"

"Look, I wanna be happy just as much as you want me to be, but my life is not flowers and sunshine. I've got a lot of cactus and rain to deal with. If you would just SHUT UP for a little bit, you'll see what I'm talking about."

It was then I figured I was insane. I had been holding a week long (possibly more) debate with my imagination. The thing is, once I got my brain and rational side out of the way, my imagination made sense.

So, I kept my brain on sleep mode, and sat down at the computer with Jollie and told her to tell me her story. "Well," she said, "the average person manages to live all the years of their lives without ever committing murder. I managed to live six."

Once she told me the background, I was able to fill in the now. Where she was going, what she would be doing. I've gone through a million scenarios. I've tried to tell her story in Third Limited, but she doesn't like that. This is Jollie's story to tell. I am merely the hands with the ink.

And, truth be told, I had been doing a pretty good job of keeping up with her, until recently. I've let my brain get back in the middle of things, and the writing is a fight. What next? Would they say that?

I'm trying to figure out how to keep that bitch of an internal editor quiet long enough to get the words down on paper. Once that's done, she can edit and criticize all she wants. But right now, I'm at the beginning. I am writing that ever important first draft, just trying to keep up with my hero. She's running, and I'm simply jogging.

For you writers, are there any tricks you use to avoid the self edits so early on in the work? Please share. I'll try anything!

Take Care