Tag Archives: The Writing Process

Birthing the Next Synopsis

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Coming up with a catchy summary to describe a book is always tricky. How do you hook a potential reader without giving away the surprises you have in store for them? I’m hoping you can help me decide between the two options below as the description for Cry Baby Cry. Which one do you think works best?

OPTION 1

Lily May Beckett tried to be a good girl and change her ways. But when the path to forgiveness leads to hell on earth, sin feels like the only option.

How far will a father go to save his daughter? How far will reporter Jo Sullivan have to go to save that daughter from her father? Haunted by the memory of her failure to rescue a murdered girl, Jo once again finds herself racing to find the answers before it’s too late.

OPTION 2

Disagreeing with someone’s gender identity is never an excuse for abuse, but what’s a father to do when determined to save his daughter? Lily tried to be a good girl and change her ways, but when the path to forgiveness leads to hell on earth, sin feels like the only option.

Haunted by the memory of her failure to rescue a murdered girl, Jo Sullivan risks her life to save Lily from her father and reveals a reality only a twisted mind could believe was part of God’s plan for humankind.

As always, you can read pieces from the new book posted on Birthing the Next Book.

Generating Suspense

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CryBaby-KDPSometimes I get worried I’m rushing through the plot lines too quickly and sometimes I worry that I’m not moving the story along quickly enough. For a first draft, however, I try not to get bogged down with pacing. I try to think, now that this character knows that, what would she logically do next? Then I start writing.

Last week, the chapters I finished seemed to do more character building than actual suspense plotting, although hopefully the tension of their personal stories will keep the pages turning.

First I tried to imagine what Lily was going through all alone with her unwanted baby.

“Shh, Rosie, shh.” She crawled over to the baby box and patted the writhing, wailing human inside. “Quiet, please. Quiet.”

Next, I visited Avril in her apartment and found she was dreaming, which gives some insight, I hope, into the decisions she’s made in her life.

In her dreams, Avril was kneeling in front of Lily again, hands held out to catch the baby sliding out of the girl. “Push,” she told Lily and suddenly there it was, slipping into Avril’s waiting fingers like a pit from a cherry.