World of the Writer

Today, I managed to rewrite chapter one of 'Winter Emergence', the next book in my trilogy. During Pikes Peak Writers Conference I had a read and critique session with Steve Saffel and he told me although it was well written, it didn't grab him. What did I forget? You always need a hook to grab the reader and pull them into your world. So, I rewrote the entire first page, moved information around in the chapter and did a much better job at 'showing' rather than 'telling'. The reader wants to experience the world through the character. A simple fact I had forgotten. Speaking of experiencing the world through the writer, I currently have a cat on my lap. She's purring, warming my legs, her gray fur is soft on my arms and her tongue rough as she tries to both bathe me and get my attention away from the keyboard. It's rather annoying. What first attracted me to bring her home were her vivid green eyes. Not to mention she took a toy away from a child who was trying to play with her. I decided then and there she'd be perfect to bring home and introduce to the 'boys' - my two senior cats. There was lots of hissing and 'why are you sniffing my tail?'In between her hiding under the wooden bench next to the carpeted stairs. What happened? Well, that's a tale for another day.