posted
So, i'm reading this book last night, which is by someone named Amanda Quick (who I am not familiar with from any previous work I know). Nice cover, and i picked it up thinking it was more of a thriller than it actually is, but be that as it may . . .
I see the first 13 as something that I would like to be able to do well with every chapter. Right? Each chapter should have something inviting and captivating to pull the reader in.
I'm reading Amanda Quick, sitting in bed, and it's okay, but not really OKAY. and I think "I'll finish this chapter, then go to sleep". 30 minutes later, I'm thinking "I'll finish THIS chapter . . . " I did that for about 6-7 chapters.
Which got me to thinking about the LAST 13. This woman has a talent for bringing the end of the chapter in and making it dramatic enough that I felt compelled to read just a little bit further to see what was going to happen next - about 6 or seven times.
I am not a great, deep, literary writer. But I like getting a good read for my money, and like to give the same, and I like the books where you just can't stop reading because you need to find out what happens next. Hatrack has made me much more conscious of punching up the opening - I think the query letter you guys helped me put together really benefited from this.
What do you think? You like he books that won't let you put it down? Ever get sucked in by a book that you know isn't that Good, but you can't let go till you know how it ends? What does it for you?
posted
I've noticed this lately a lot too, Keeps me up til all hours of the night. It never occurred to me, until something I read here or heard from another writer, that you never want to give people a reason to put a book down and NOT pick it back up - which if your chapters come to a satisfying close, may happen!
I haven't written novel-length yet (I have a few projects in mind when I'm ready for it, gearing up for NaNo this year...) but I think this is an important lesson.
It's not always ending chapters on a cliffhanger, either. It's often just leaving enough of a tease about what's coming to make the reader interested. I think Rowling is really good at this w/the Harry Potter books, which is one of many reasons I find them so compelling and fun to read (because they're hard to put down even when I know what's coming next.) It's not that the MC is left in peril each chapter, though sometimes that's what's at stake, but it's something more subtle. Unanswered questions, I suppose would be the way to sum it up. Leaving several of those is a fantastic way to keep people coming back for more.
posted
I've been working on this in my latest epic fantasy effort--making sure each break in the text is somewhere the reader won't really want to stop reading at, for one thing.
I also just have to try hard and hard to keep pushing tension in a story. I love the situations, and characters, and setting...it's making the action pitch up that I struggle with.
In Rowling's work I have been more impressed, honestly, with how every exchange, almost every line of dialogue or description, is necessary to the story itself. I've been working toward that, as well as being able to pile on the misery.
posted
Isn't it lovely to be able to say "my latest epic fantasy"? It just rolls off your keyboard, doesn't it? Posts: 1304 | Registered: May 2007
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posted
Yeah, I've lost sleep lots of times 'cause I couldn't stop reading something. (As I don't think I get enough sleep, it can be a serious issue.) They're not necessarily by the "page turner" writers...just something on the subject grabs me.
One thing I also do from time to time is flip directly to the end and read that. I'm trying to decide if it's a bad habit or not---but I like to see what the conclusions or resolutions are, sometimes before getting into it. (I recall doing it with "The Lord of the Rings," winding up not understanding why so much time and detail lapsed after they got rid of the ring, not understanding what went on until much later.)
"Getting there is half the fun," but the other half is what you see when you get there.
posted
Good to see I'm not the only one that reads that last paragraph first. I do it because I like to see how my idea of how the story gets there differs from how it actually does.
I must say, there are only a few books that have made me keep reading. Of the two that I clearly remember (Psyclone being one) I actually had nigthmares about them, so I'm not sure what that says. I'm probably in the minority, but while I like a good read, I don't like it when books intentionally make you have to read the next chapter. It's like watching a TV series that deliberately ends on a cliff hanger so you have to watch the next episode/series. I'm not a loyal watcher, and I don't always have the time to carry on, or even start, reading.
posted
I can think of a number of books that would be totally ruined by reading the last paragraph first. Arthur C. Clarke's Rendezvous With Rama comes to mind. Great last paragraph, but you need to read the book first to appreciate it.
Posts: 557 | Registered: Jun 2007
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posted
I've personally never seen the attraction of reading a last paragraph first. Either it ruins a surprise for you, or it requires a whole book to tell you what is going on and what it means.
Of course, I think Deb's original intent was to study the last 13 through the lense of the rest of the work, either the last 13 of a short story, the last 13 of a given chapter, or the last 13 of a novel. Most of the books I've read and enjoyed have good closes to chaptrs - maybe that's a mark of a good writer even more than the opening. Most writers tend to flail for a little before getting their feet on the ground. The beginning can be worked on, but chapter endings kind of grow organically as you write. I've nailed a few in my time (Deb, that story I emailed you is my personal favorite).
I wonder if we could have a "Last 13" section added to the forums? Maybe it would be a short term thing, a week or a month, but it would be a fun distraction for a while.
posted
You could use this topic (since it would be discussion) or you could start one in the Discussing Published Fiction area.
If you want feedback on your last 13, all you need to do is put it in the novel or short story feedback areas and put something about "last 13" in the topic title.
By the way, the highest compliment I find I can give a book any more is that I am eager to get back to it. I haven't read a book that I found to be so good I couldn't put it down in quite a long while. (And for me, that's a reflection on how much the author has made me care about the characters.)
posted
frankly, I am just delighted to have a topic going that doesn't question anybody's morals. I'm totally up for a last 13. Anybody else?
Posts: 1304 | Registered: May 2007
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posted
I note that a number of award winning books and stories have a terrific last 13, often a terrific last line. In fact, I think a great ending can put an otherwise ordinary story over the top and make it a classic. Obvious examples would include "The Lady and the Tiger", which would be nothing with any other ending, and Fred Brown's "Town Wanted" and the film "I was a Prisoner in a Chain Gang".
Posts: 557 | Registered: Jun 2007
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posted
I don't necessarily read the last page, but I definitely like to know what's going to happen before I read a book/see a film. I'm not a big surprise person, I don't like surprises. So, for me, there's nothing that can "ruin" a story other than a poor fit for an ending or a poorly filmed/told movie. I pretty much don't skip ahead in stories to find out what's going to happen, but I often choose books/films based on what others have said they liked about the story - and I often read reviews that include spoilers so I can gauge whether a film (in particular) will appeal to me.
I have no problem knowing the ending of a story before I read it (I knew the end of HP6 before I read it, which was fine for me) However, I also approve of authors wanting to avoid the chance of the ending of their story being spoiled before its been published.
posted
Only slightly off topic here. But I wanted to add my own thoughts.
Ever read a book that was ruined in the last thirteen lines.
in my experince it is usually hero / adventure books. Clive Cussler is a good example. The story is formulaic and characters predictable, but sometimes it is fun to get lost in the details. But the last 13 lines of almost everyone of his novels ends with some corny joke as the hero gets the girl, really the girl throws herself at the hero. It is so bad each time I read one I swear them off for the next couple of years. Then I find myself picking up and other one like that. You have already read to book so I guess the author figures, might is well get in a that last jab.
Any thoughts? Why would someone want to ruin a good bit of fun reading like that?
posted
i read a book a while ago, i can't remember the title, but it was exciting and dramatic all the way through, and at the climax, the hero is put in an impossible situation, fighting the bad guy. The chapter ends, no idea how the guy will get out of it, but hoping, because he's the good guy . . . you turn the page, start the next chapter . . . and the guy wakes up in the hospital two days later, fight over, gets the girl, end of book. Man I wanted to hunt that writer down and thunk him in the head with his book. it was like he had written the whole novel, got to the end and the publisher said "no more room, can you wrap it up in the next 500 words or so, please?"
Posts: 1304 | Registered: May 2007
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posted
Here's the set-up for this last 13, from the supernatural mystery i just finished. David is a psychic, who owns a paranormal bookstore/supply shop. Donald is the manager of the store. Point of view is the MC of the story, but she has minimal importance here. She is describing what happens with everyone as the story ends. David's mom was a witch, who died about 15 years ago. *************
And David? Well, he was getting packed in preparation for going home, when Donald called. I was sitting on the bed next to him, helping him fold shirts and pants for suitcasing. Even from a distance I could hear the panic in Donald's voice, punctuated by a series of crashes, clunks and thuds. Shamelessly, I put my ear up to the outside of the phone as David held it to his ear. “David this is not good! Not good at all, David.” “What is it? You sound like you're under attack!” “I'm not absolutely sure, because there's nothing to see, so to speak, but I'm beginning to think it's your mom.” There was another loud crash. “And David?” “Yeah?” “I don't think she likes what we've done with the place!”
[This message has been edited by debhoag (edited July 04, 2007).]
posted
I read a book whose ending made no sense because, I found out years later in the writer's obituary, that the publisher omitted the last page. Helpful, wasn't it?
I gather J. K. "Harry Potter" Rowling has said that either the last scene or the last lines of "Harry Potter 7" have been written since the start of all this---I'd hate to find the publisher pulling a stunt like the above with it. (I think I will pick up and read the remaining volumes when they come out, after all, after the fuss dies down a little---I did read and did like Volume One, and, after all, it comes highly recommended by many people.)
posted
JK Rowling said that when she started outlining the seven books, she wrote the last scene or line (I can't remember which now), but the last book ended with the word "scar." (Ooooo, chilling! At least for a huge Harry fan like me!) We'll know for sure what she did in a few weeks!
Lynda, who already has book 7 on order in both hard copy and audio!
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Keeps me up til all hours of the night. It never occurred to me, until something I read here or heard from another writer, that you never want to give people a reason to put a book down and NOT pick it back up - which if your chapters come to a satisfying close, may happen!
