Exposition versus Flashbacks
One of the writing issues I struggle with is the problem of revealing information that has already happened. I tend to get bogged down in long conversations where one character tells another character the story. I know this isn't the most enjoyable method, but I find including literal flashbacks to be even more difficult. Still, I'm sticking with trying to get better.
The Cat Who Came in From the Cold starts with Meagan returning home after a business trip two weeks after she's met Hyperion. I choose this starting point because I thought it was more 'straight into the action' rather than a chapter or two of slice-of-life dealing with two strangers who can't communicate, meeting on a mountain.
The problem quickly became that the non-primary characters in the novel immediately demanded to know how the two had met. Which resulted in a long 'as you know, Bob' recitation of those same facts.
I've re-written most of the first three chapters, removing the exposition, and replacing it with cleverly (I hope) dove-tailed flash-backs. I'm working on the final scene now where Meagan has brought Hyperion home and is in the process of dealing with the revelation that he is even more unique than she'd first supposed.
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Clean, dry, and fully dressed, Meagan opened her bedroom door and stepped out onto the balcony, ready to take on her inexplicable house guest and whatever insane events surrounded him. Only to find him missing.
The TV was still playing, but the lynx was gone, replaced by her cat, Maeve, who was curled up on the rug where he’d been just a few minutes before.
She cast a glance toward the kitchen, but the mudroom door wasn’t visible from this angle.
She leaned over the railing, scanning as much of the ground floor as she could. Still no sign.
She took a few steps towards the stairs and then froze as the sound of a toilet flushing filled the void. The seconds she stood frozen were sufficient for the lynx— Hyperion, she told herself again— to emerge from the downstairs guest suite. Even limping painfully, the cat had no problem returning to his spot on the rug, scooping up Maeve in the process and gently laying her down along his side after he’d stretched out. The house cat squirmed a little, but seemed quite content to snuggle in and go back to sleep.
The Cat Who Came in From the Cold starts with Meagan returning home after a business trip two weeks after she's met Hyperion. I choose this starting point because I thought it was more 'straight into the action' rather than a chapter or two of slice-of-life dealing with two strangers who can't communicate, meeting on a mountain.
The problem quickly became that the non-primary characters in the novel immediately demanded to know how the two had met. Which resulted in a long 'as you know, Bob' recitation of those same facts.
I've re-written most of the first three chapters, removing the exposition, and replacing it with cleverly (I hope) dove-tailed flash-backs. I'm working on the final scene now where Meagan has brought Hyperion home and is in the process of dealing with the revelation that he is even more unique than she'd first supposed.
------------------
Clean, dry, and fully dressed, Meagan opened her bedroom door and stepped out onto the balcony, ready to take on her inexplicable house guest and whatever insane events surrounded him. Only to find him missing.
The TV was still playing, but the lynx was gone, replaced by her cat, Maeve, who was curled up on the rug where he’d been just a few minutes before.
She cast a glance toward the kitchen, but the mudroom door wasn’t visible from this angle.
She leaned over the railing, scanning as much of the ground floor as she could. Still no sign.
She took a few steps towards the stairs and then froze as the sound of a toilet flushing filled the void. The seconds she stood frozen were sufficient for the lynx— Hyperion, she told herself again— to emerge from the downstairs guest suite. Even limping painfully, the cat had no problem returning to his spot on the rug, scooping up Maeve in the process and gently laying her down along his side after he’d stretched out. The house cat squirmed a little, but seemed quite content to snuggle in and go back to sleep.
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