This opening paragraph! Stunning! And what unfolds equally so. You got me curious, though, with this:
"I recently read a novel that was plotted one way through most of the book, and then near the end there was a surge. Many small tentacles of plot and theme reached for each other and knitted tight together. I could feel the author’s excitement in these pages and it excited me to read them. Suddenly the parts had becoming a satisfying whole. The book was finished."
What book, I wondered. Are you at liberty to reveal?
Can't wait to listen to this interview with you and Dionne Ford. It will be my treat to myself after a good day's work.
Love this!!! I think it’s the most exciting and satisfying moment for both writer and reader. As a writer, I once broke a tooth (chewing gum) writing through a surge. As a reader, nothing makes me happier. It’s like eating a meal that unexpectedly switches from fine to amazing. (And I’ve always loved that boy meets girl story!) 💕💕💕
Alice, I love calling this coming together a surge, what a dictionary might call a strong, wave-like, forward motion. Andre Dubus (the elder) once told me: “When I am almost to the end of the story I’m like a horse getting close to the barn.” Sometimes as I draw near the end I wake up with the ending in mind, the whole thing. I write the ending and then I work toward that ending. Usually when I can perceive the coming together of the disparate parts of a story or novel, it feels almost frenzied and I cannot think of anything else. I don’t want to do mundane chores out of the house. I might experience an accident and never finish the story!
This opening paragraph! Stunning! And what unfolds equally so. You got me curious, though, with this:
"I recently read a novel that was plotted one way through most of the book, and then near the end there was a surge. Many small tentacles of plot and theme reached for each other and knitted tight together. I could feel the author’s excitement in these pages and it excited me to read them. Suddenly the parts had becoming a satisfying whole. The book was finished."
What book, I wondered. Are you at liberty to reveal?
Can't wait to listen to this interview with you and Dionne Ford. It will be my treat to myself after a good day's work.
Thank you, Alice!
Love this!!! I think it’s the most exciting and satisfying moment for both writer and reader. As a writer, I once broke a tooth (chewing gum) writing through a surge. As a reader, nothing makes me happier. It’s like eating a meal that unexpectedly switches from fine to amazing. (And I’ve always loved that boy meets girl story!) 💕💕💕
Alice, I love calling this coming together a surge, what a dictionary might call a strong, wave-like, forward motion. Andre Dubus (the elder) once told me: “When I am almost to the end of the story I’m like a horse getting close to the barn.” Sometimes as I draw near the end I wake up with the ending in mind, the whole thing. I write the ending and then I work toward that ending. Usually when I can perceive the coming together of the disparate parts of a story or novel, it feels almost frenzied and I cannot think of anything else. I don’t want to do mundane chores out of the house. I might experience an accident and never finish the story!