As you know, I'm continuing to post my pitch in installments. For those of you who are new to my blog, a pitch is an opportunity for a writer to share the essence of her novel with a prospective literary agent, usually at writer's conferences. If the lit agent is intrigued, she will ask for a synopsis or the first 5 or 10 chapters. Or maybe the entire manuscript to read before making an offer of representation to sell your manuscript to traditional publishers.
Rachelle Gardner listed 11 questions for crafting a pitch on her blog. I decided to tackle that writing assignment head on since I'm on a journey towards publication. Please see my previous posts for answers to the first six questions.
Today, I continue with Question 7: What is the catalyst that gets the main story started?
Answer: Alex is assaulted by a paranoid schizophrenic while trying to accomplish the first portion of her GP--toss her wedding ring into the Bridal Veil waterfall. Chase intervenes, preventing Alex from being raped but not before Alex sustains a mild concussion. Not only does Chase get Alex to the hospital for treatment, he feels honor bound to make sure that Alex is cared for when no one else seems available.
I think I may have answered some of this in a previous question. Or at least alluded to it.
The next question, #8--which is What are the main points that drive the plot?--I struggled with this one. Not because I don't know the main points of the plot, but because I found it difficult to narrow down all the plot points to just the main ones. Little plot occurrences, while not grandiose when viewed singularly, can add up to revealing significant characterization when viewed as the whole. Since I'm still crafting the blog post for this question, I guess you could say that I'm still struggling to narrow down the plot points. How to reveal the main points that drive the plot, as Rachelle asks, and reveal crucial character development at the same time, especially when the "main plot" points aren't' always revealing a tidbit about Alex or Chase but something that happens to them?
A conundrum, especially since I'm a novelist and I like to ramble on...like now.
Not to worry, though. I'll keep plugging away at it, as they say, because writing is just as much about revision as it is about writing the first draft.
I'll share the main points that drive the plot next week....
Today, I continue with Question 7: What is the catalyst that gets the main story started?
Answer: Alex is assaulted by a paranoid schizophrenic while trying to accomplish the first portion of her GP--toss her wedding ring into the Bridal Veil waterfall. Chase intervenes, preventing Alex from being raped but not before Alex sustains a mild concussion. Not only does Chase get Alex to the hospital for treatment, he feels honor bound to make sure that Alex is cared for when no one else seems available.
I think I may have answered some of this in a previous question. Or at least alluded to it.
The next question, #8--which is What are the main points that drive the plot?--I struggled with this one. Not because I don't know the main points of the plot, but because I found it difficult to narrow down all the plot points to just the main ones. Little plot occurrences, while not grandiose when viewed singularly, can add up to revealing significant characterization when viewed as the whole. Since I'm still crafting the blog post for this question, I guess you could say that I'm still struggling to narrow down the plot points. How to reveal the main points that drive the plot, as Rachelle asks, and reveal crucial character development at the same time, especially when the "main plot" points aren't' always revealing a tidbit about Alex or Chase but something that happens to them?
A conundrum, especially since I'm a novelist and I like to ramble on...like now.
Not to worry, though. I'll keep plugging away at it, as they say, because writing is just as much about revision as it is about writing the first draft.
I'll share the main points that drive the plot next week....
No comments:
Post a Comment