Thinking Aloud

I think I mentioned that I had been writing and re-writing the opening to my work in progress. At the time, I was worried that I would end up stuck on that section, always re-writing and never getting past that scene. It could happen. It was happening. I don't know how many times I have re-written it now, taking more or less the same information and rearranging it over and over again. The fear of stalling out led me to my bookshelves; I wanted to see how other people went about it.

The first thing I realized was that I don't have many books set in the present, and no urban fantasy (well, it might be a stretch to call what I am doing urban fantasy, but I am using it for want of a better term).

The next thing I realized was that not only does the opening set the stage for the rest of the work, it also sets the tone. I'll try to explain what I mean by that: opening Mark Haddon's novel A Spot of Bother, I read

It began when George was trying on a black suit in Allders the week before Bob Green’s funeral.

At first, I thought this sentence was rather dull, the subject rather prosaic. But I kept reading. And then it struck me that it reflected the personality of the character George, who is a little dull and prosaic. In this particular novel, Haddon later switches the point of view to the different members of this family, and the narrative prose changes as well to reflect their personalities.

I realized that I had been describing my character's actions without really setting her tone. She's deeply cynical and a little bitter, and she will take some major hits, but she will also continue to hold close the few people she is close to and hopefully add another one to the mix.