Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Torn...

Well, pretty much everyone knows about the SEFPC over at Nathan Bransford's blog.  Because I'm a glutton for punishment, too, and because someone actually recommended I enter *blush* I'm gonna toss my hat into the ring.
 
But I'm torn on exactly what to enter.
 
Oh, it's definitely the first page from OHN, which I'm relatively happy with.  But how much of it?
 
Nathan originally said up to 16 lines (I think) consitute a first page.  Well, mine's 11, though I could maybe include the next few.  But now he's saying up to 500 words, which is my first page and most all of the next one.  And I really like the punch the first page had (involving sideways-crammed haggis, hehe) by itself, which lessens slightly as you move on into the next pages and the setting up of the location and action-to-come.
 
So should I put my literal first page only, at a mere 11 lines and measley 136 words?  (And look dinky - that's "small" in American slang *g* - compared to other entries?)
 
Should I stretch it out and include the next 9 lines, which takes us to the next decent breaking point? That'd make it a total of 20 lines, and 267 words.
 
Or should I seriously rewrite the entire first 500 words and give it as much punch at the end as possible?  (Which, yah, I know I should - and likely will - do anyway, but wasn't planning on yet.)
 
Thoughts?  Comments?
 
Until then I'll keep myself busy working up a proposal for that sketch of my characters.  If I go through with it, it's gonna cost - over $300.  But, as I told DH in LOLspeak: WANT.  Want, Want, WANT!!!1!  *g*  Maybe I'll go back to selling plasma for a few weeks to pay for it...

2 comments:

Christina Graham Parker said...

Well, since I’m sitting here looking over your first pages *g*, my humble opinion is to go with your first 20 lines. Word count = 265 if you cut the “she thought” after “not likely.” We know she’s thinking since it’s in italics.

I don’t see the need in using all 500 words, but that might just be because I didn’t do it. I say, end on a punch.

Deniz Bevan said...

I'm rewriting and editing my first 500 words at a furious pace. I've already changed the order of paragraphs and chopped a whole pile of words and I'll have to do the rest tomorrow morning cos I have to go make dinner now...