Jan Marquart's Blog - Posts Tagged "first-sentences"
Do You Do This on Rainy Days?
It's raining. I don a pair of sweats and tie my hair into a ponytail, then set off for the bookstore with a pad and pencil. (I love pencils; they allow me to erase mistakes.)
Bookstores are usually busy on rainy days so there is lots of people moving around, flipping open books. I like to pay attention to the books people spend time with. What do they do when they turn the book over? Do they then open and read? Do they put the book back on the shelf and continue?
I scan the shelves of books and read as many titles as I can, and write down the ones with pizzazz. Then I look at the front covers and make notes on themes or how the pictures and titles are placed. Last but not least, I open to page 1 and make a note of first sentences. I especially like the ones that lead me to read further, without effort.
Okay, maybe this isn't your favorite rainy day activity. Maybe you like to sleep late and listen to music. Maybe you like to go to the movies. Maybe you like to read the paper and sip coffee til three in the afternoon.
As a writer rainy days push me inward and I sit with thoughts for my next book. Bookstores are restaurants for the mind. I gravitate to the ideas of other authors. That's where ideas, philosophies and creativity abound. I get inspired by books;I get inspired by authors and how they manifested their manuscript into a book. It allows my own ideas to flourish. You know what 'they' say: birds of a feather...
Bookstores are usually busy on rainy days so there is lots of people moving around, flipping open books. I like to pay attention to the books people spend time with. What do they do when they turn the book over? Do they then open and read? Do they put the book back on the shelf and continue?
I scan the shelves of books and read as many titles as I can, and write down the ones with pizzazz. Then I look at the front covers and make notes on themes or how the pictures and titles are placed. Last but not least, I open to page 1 and make a note of first sentences. I especially like the ones that lead me to read further, without effort.
Okay, maybe this isn't your favorite rainy day activity. Maybe you like to sleep late and listen to music. Maybe you like to go to the movies. Maybe you like to read the paper and sip coffee til three in the afternoon.
As a writer rainy days push me inward and I sit with thoughts for my next book. Bookstores are restaurants for the mind. I gravitate to the ideas of other authors. That's where ideas, philosophies and creativity abound. I get inspired by books;I get inspired by authors and how they manifested their manuscript into a book. It allows my own ideas to flourish. You know what 'they' say: birds of a feather...
