Writing Exercise

The 2nd Annual Bad Backstory Writing Exercise

(You'll find the first in the archives January 11, 2009)

Sometimes backstory works fine at the beginning of a novel or short story. When it doesn't, there are several possible reasons, including:
The backstory is far less interesting than the current plot, so why are we getting it up front?The backstory is far more interesting than the current plot, so why didn't we start the book earlier and get it first-hand?The backstory is so detailed it's...