This weekend I'm rereading a book by one of my favorite authors. She's very good at getting and keeping our attention. Usually I'm so immersed in her stories that I can't stand back and observe her writing techniques. But this time I WAS able to for some reason.
One technique I noticed was one she mentioned in an interview a few years back - of interleaving promises and payoffs on those promises. Some of the promises are small, some are big, as are the matching payoffs.
The first promises are from the publisher, not her. These are the cover and the blurbs on the back and inside front covers. Often by the first line of the book I'm already pretty much sold on the book. Only if the beginning turns me off will I pass on the book. For my favorite authors I don't even need to read anything. Past experience has shown me there will be plenty of payoffs in the book.
Some books begin with a payoff. Often a quiet one - an interesting character or setting, small but interesting events.
Some books begin with a promise. For me the shorter the better, a single sentence maybe. Such as that old cliché: "A shot rang out." Or maybe: "The third time the hyperdrive delivered Jane into the wrong star system she was really pissed off."
What kind of promises do you make? What kind of matching payoffs?
One technique I noticed was one she mentioned in an interview a few years back - of interleaving promises and payoffs on those promises. Some of the promises are small, some are big, as are the matching payoffs.
The first promises are from the publisher, not her. These are the cover and the blurbs on the back and inside front covers. Often by the first line of the book I'm already pretty much sold on the book. Only if the beginning turns me off will I pass on the book. For my favorite authors I don't even need to read anything. Past experience has shown me there will be plenty of payoffs in the book.
Some books begin with a payoff. Often a quiet one - an interesting character or setting, small but interesting events.
Some books begin with a promise. For me the shorter the better, a single sentence maybe. Such as that old cliché: "A shot rang out." Or maybe: "The third time the hyperdrive delivered Jane into the wrong star system she was really pissed off."
Bethany Rossiter had been a fairly ordinary girl before she died and came back to life. A loving mid-scale family, only moderately broken (no tug-of-kids drama, mostly friendly parents). Pretty, but not super-pretty. Good student, she was a better cheerleader. Until she died, that is.
What kind of promises do you make? What kind of matching payoffs?
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