Hello, amazing fellow creatives! Here’s to more fun perusing the library’s new releases to see what strikes our fancy. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’ve retitled Story Cuppings to better fit the premise of the podcast.
As writers, we hear all the time that we’ve got to hook readers in just the first few pages or else. We’ve got to hook agents in the first few pages or else.
Whether you’re looking to get published or just hoping to hook your reader, first impressions are vital. Compelling opening scenes are the key to catching an agent or editor’s attention, and are crucial for keeping your reader engaged.
JEFF GERKE, THE FIRST 50 PAGES
Well then, let’s study those first few pages in other people’s stories, shall we?
Today I snagged from the New Release shelf:
The first sentence of Revelator by Daryl Gregory alludes to a kid meeting “the family god,” so I just don’t know how the stakes can go down from there. What will you, fellow creatives, make of these first five pages? Let’s find out!
If you do not see the audio player above, you can access the podcast here.
This story’s got a feeling of the Southern Gothic in its voice and style, a dark, murky magic hidden in its green Kentucky valleys. The setting is beautiful, but it is not safe. I find Gregory’s prose in this tale to be positively intoxicating with its various rhythms and inflections, the dropped words and intention alliterations. The first pages not only provide an authentic voice for the little girl Stella, but a sense of true dread as we follow the adventurous child down a path into a church embedded in the mountain. What could possibly go wrong in such a place? I’m going to guess a lot.
As always, I love hearing what’s on the shelves of your own libraries. Libraries Rock!
Read on, share on, and write on, my friends!
Jean Lee's World 
Definitely Southern Gothic. Intriguing.
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How goes it? I recently took out two books from the library, both by Charles Bukowski. I read one so far: Pulp. It’s a spoof of the hard-boiled detective genre. It’s very funny. Liked it quite a lot. Take care.
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Ooo, nice! I’ve not gotten a spoof yet. There seems to be a unique inclination among our town’s librarians for thrillers and westerns. I’ve never seen any other genre dominate the New Release shelf. I’ll have to try a western one of these days. 🙂
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Sounds like a great yarn! I do love a Southern Gothic tale although admittedly, I’ll have nightmares for a couple nights thereafter. I’m such a wuss. ;0)
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Nope, I totally hear you, especially when kids are involved. 🙂
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😘👏
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I really like the sound of this! I keep looking out for the books you’ve read in our library. One day…
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I know, Chris, I know! When I see other libraries and what lines their New Release area, I’m fascinated by the different tastes that are obviously dominating some libraries over others. Someone has a HUGE love of westerns where I am…
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Westerns are pretty thin on the ground over here!
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I’m still wondering why they’re so popular here! But Blondie has come to my rescue this week; she’s been demanding I read a book she just finished, and this book came from the New Release shelf in the kid section. I’m running with it. 🙂
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I’m always happy to go with one of Blondie’s recommendations!
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I like the sound of it too…
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I love the sound of this. I must show you a photo of our village library. It’s a converted red telephone box. I wonder what you would think of the book selection. xxxxx
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I would love to see it! We’ve little libraries sprinkled about the town, which essentially look like little cupboards where one can take a book and leave a book. Granted, some books risk becoming homes to bugs, but I’ve found some really great books in those. 🙂
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