The overriding spirit is to be kind to the audience, to be helpful in their difficult job of getting imaginatively engaged with a story. “Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for” was one suggestion. “Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water” was another. Also, “Be a sadist. Make awful things happen to your characters in order that we can see what they are made of.” And, of course, “start as close to the end as possible.”
