One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

"Ryan was nearly killed twice in half an hour."

Those were the very first words by Tom Clancy I ever read. I had picked up a novel called Patriot Games and said I'll read the first page and if I like it, then I'll buy it. I only had to read that first line. My reaction: "Yep. I'll take this one!"

I love it when a book throws you right into the action at the very beginning. I do this with My Brother's Keeper. After a cryptic, foreshadowing prologue, readers are introduced to Galen smack in the middle of a sword fight. I like it. I think it works.

Now I began writing the follow-up novel but I ran into a problem: I didn't have that kind of strong opening for Galen this time around. The book opens with a couple of intriguing bits of action involving other characters in the prologue, but as I opened up Chapter One with Galen I didn't have anything real strong.

I considered revising the ending of the first book so that I could start Book 2 in a more interesting place. But that would have hurt the first book's ending. That ending needs to be what it is, structurally speaking.

By that, I mean each book in the series corresponds to an Act, so that the trilogy will ultimately tell a single Three Act Story. I want the first book to end at the end of Act One. It needs to. Anything else will be anti-climatic and take away from the sense of resolution I've been able to give the book.

So what did I do?

Well, perhaps unwisely, I just plowed ahead and wrote the opening Galen scene with what I had planned. Meaning, no real action, just a quiet little scene with dialogue introducing a couple of the characters. I didn't like it as much as I liked Galen's opening in the first book, but what could I do? My story is what it is.

Right?

Yeah, that's what I thought. So this past week I spent a few days on business in Baltimore and I was able to write the full first chapter of the second book (which will be entitled Marching As To War). I was happy that I actually made progress on the book, something I haven't done in a couple of months.

But then I expressed my misgivings about the opening with my buddy Sam McDavid. And wouldn't you know it? Sam gave me some great suggestions that will solve the problem. So thanks a lot, Sam, for making me throw out everything I managed to accomplish in Baltimore. I'm back to just the prologue and now I have to start all over again. Great pal.

But seriously, I know what Sam and I came up with for the revised opening is a great improvement so I know I'll use it, even though it creates a couple of problems I'll need to iron out. So I'd like to report that I got some writing on Marching As To War done this past week, but that meager step forward has a date with my Delete key. I'll take two steps back and make sure I nail an opening that will grab readers from the very beginning.

"Galen was nearly killed twice in half an hour." Has a nice ring to it, don't you think?