Saturday, March 12, 2011

First Line Self-Indulgence

Elizabeth Bear does this thing on her blog occasionally where she posts the first line of all her works in progress. I've always thought that was pretty cool, but since I'm not Elizabeth Bear I've never done anything similar (that I recall). But I'm off work today and not sure what to do with myself, and our new neighbors are moving in next door and blocking the driveway so I can't go anywhere, and I can't turn on the TV because I'll get too overwhelmed with horror over Japan. So I opened my WIP file to work on Bloodhound, and noticed just how many WIP files I do have. Maybe posting the first line will help me focus.

First lines, in alphabetical order:

Adventures in Zoology
Of course I was prepared for the expedition. I'd been preparing for it my whole life.

Blood Drive
On Tuesday afternoons, Mama and Alessandra had their weekly appointment at the dressmaker's, followed by tea at one of the better tea-houses on Dawnowl Street.

Bloodhound
I arrived in the foreign city of Farlin via a goddess's spell cast by a murderer.

Charmed Circle
Dottie was living up to her name, as usual.

Darla Dare, Girl Detective
When I got the call from the temp service, my first thought was, "Finally!"

Little Sparrow
Sparrow had chosen the perfect night to change his coins into gold.

How Christopher Kaplan Learned to Lie
Chris found Ojo sitting under a forsythia bush one drizzly Friday afternoon.

"Rio Tesoro"
Isabella arrived in Rio Tesoro on her twenty-third birthday, on foot and carrying everything she owned in a saddlebag over her shoulder.

"Shades of Gray"
Mayra pulled her mule to a halt at the sight of the overturned wagon.

"The Shepherd's Apprentice"
The treeless hills looked like a newly shorn sheep's flank.

Stag in Ruin
My brother Gabe had fallen. He'd fallen down the stairs.

Tiger
A lalo had found Tea, and it wouldn't leave her alone.

All of the short stories and some of the novels will undoubtedly languish on my hard drive until I realize I'm never, ever going to finish them. Then I'll delete them, and they'll deserve it. But I fully expect to finish the rest. Eventually.

12 comments:

Richard said...

OMG, I want to read *all of these*. Posting the first lines is just cruel. :(

Fox Lee said...

First lines are always the hardest. I like yours!

K.C. Shaw said...

Some of them are better than others. Some of them will be changed before I finish, too.

Aaron Polson said...

Oh...Little Sparrow. I want to change some coins into gold, too.

K.C. Shaw said...

Hehe, he ends up with a lot of gold, too.

Paula RC said...

Your first lines are great. Good luck with all your writing.

K.C. Shaw said...

Thanks!

Danielle Birch said...

I love the Bloodhound first line, Little Sparrow as well.

K.C. Shaw said...

Those are both books I'm going to finish (eventually). Some of the others...eh.

Anne Spollen said...

Love the Adventures in Zoology
opening. Just great.

I thought I was the only one with all these starts. Most writers have one or two wips and stick to them.

Fun to read.

K.C. Shaw said...

I even left one out, because it's due to be deleted. I need to work faster!

K.C. Shaw said...

Richard--Not sure why your comment was marked as spam. Anyway, the first lines are the best part about some of these WIPs, which isn't saying much. :)