Aspiring Writers Info: Set-ups, and Don't Overuse Them

[alfreda89]

Here's a short rant from bestselling author Jennifer Crusie about set-ups. Her point is, set-ups are not story. And if you spend too much time with a set-up, you lose people. I try hard to jump into a book, even when I write lyrically. People will figure it out, and I hope delight in their discovery. If my first reader doesn't figure it out, well, then I have to slide more info in. But I don't add an additional three chapters at the front of the book!

Crusie uses recent television to make her point, so if you're watching TV drama, you will get this immediately, and even if you aren't, you will still get it. Take a look.

Comments

[aberwyn.livejournal.com]

One of the things that marks an adult mind is the ability to defer a small reward in order to gain a larger one later. Ever seen the marshmallow test? :-)

[alfreda89.livejournal.com]

There's a writing blog in that metaphor!