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Becca's Beginnings

How Becca Almost Overcame Writer's Cramp

By EyekayPublished 3 years ago Updated 3 years ago 4 min read
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Becca's Beginnings
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The writer hovers the nib over virgin-white paper. She waits for that perfect opening line, but creative thoughts refuse to flow.

A perfect beginning line foreshadows what is to come. It sets the mood, the tone, the tenor of the whole thing. It invites the reader into the writer's world.

Becca strongly feels the first line can make or break the book. That may not be accurate, but is undeniably an irresistible hook.

The rest of the book is ready. Each character is interestingly fleshed out and the story intrigues. The plot literally sings with the exposition, the rising and falling actions, and the dénouement.

The word dénouement refers to the final resolution of the conflict. It comes from French literally meaning, "to untie the knot." Ironically, she has everything lined up, but the make or break opener has her knickers in a virtual knot.

“Instead of a constipated mind, I wish I had verbal diarrhea,” she begins.

The prurient attempt mirrors her crappy mood. She looks at the pathetic start with a mild disgust. Becca then rips the page, crumples, and shoots the ball into the circular file which others call the waste paper basket.

“She was in deep waters, when the leg cramp began."

Almost immediately, her hand stiffens. Then, another crumpled ball flies into the basket.

“The parents played with wooden blocks after the toddler fell asleep." However, she cannot get behind the perfection wall she has erected.

“The block is in my mind,” she acknowledges with self-awareness, but the dissatisfaction that follows is more toddler and less parent.

The next attempt does not satisfy as well. She crushes the snowy ball with frustration before throwing it in the bottomed hoop.

"Another one bites the dust," she wryly observes. The difficulty of coming up with an opening line puts her work in jeopardy. At this rate, this may be the closing line of the novel!

“Practice makes perfect,” she whistles, as the ball successfully lands in the basket. So far, she has not missed a single shot.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. She's only inches away from the deadline.

“The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog, and the canine bared his teeth and growled.”

She has pulled all the letters from the alphabet arsenal and then some. The beginning crashes and burns. The quick fox and the lazy dog predictably land together into the paper-lined trash can.

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She tries to usher in holiday merriment and a couple of gifts. "It was the first day, and her true love brought in a squawking partridge and a mini pear tree."

No matter how hard she tries, the first day does "turtle" dovetail into the other eleven. The infusion of jolly, merry, and happy does little to quell the growing Ebenezer Scrooge within.

Why is she having this much trouble getting started? Is this elusive beginning going to be the end of her burgeoning writing career?

There’s got to be a perfect one somewhere.

She sighs, looking at the contents in the waste bin. The whole thing looks like a snowy mountain.

She has the story in mind, but that one perfect opening line eludes, evades, and escapes from her. Perhaps she's too wrapped up in the story. She needs to put a bit of distance and take a break.

Becca stretches her hands, rotates wrists clockwise and repeats the motions in reverse. She rises from her seat, stretches, rolls the shoulders, and this loosens her some.

It is the same story when she returns to the seat. So, she gets in the kitchen to make herself a pot of black tea.

Before the kettle whistles, she gets her Eureka! moment. This opener is irresistible. It has the ingredients to lead her book to a best seller. She drops everything and runs back to write the words down.

She picks up the pen again to finally put down a very satisfying story starter.

'Tis truly a juicy, delicious start for the magnum opus soon to follow. From this opener, her whole work will make sense, and the transitions will seamlessly flow. Her readers will be hooked to know more.

Savoring each word, she puts down the opening sentence the book has been waiting for.

Last night, I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”

There, she did it, she found the perfect opening line for her novel.

Only, it isn’t hers!

Humor
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About the Creator

Eyekay

I write because I must. I believe each one of us has the ability to propel humanity forward.

And yes, especially in these moments, Schadenfreude must not rule the web.

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