Sunday, January 31, 2010

Discussion Question: First Chapters

Last month we discussed first lines and for Rush of Wings I'd like to extend that out to first chapters. A first chapter needs to really tell the reader what direction the book will take and the first 12 pages of Rush of Wings really demonstrate all that a first chapter should be. Here are some of the topics I picked up when reading the first chapter:

1. We not only meet Heather, but we are allowed to glimpse her on a personal and professional level. She is dedicated to her job and catching the CCK seems to be her primary focus, but we know she has a conflicted family element as well. She recalls conversations with her father which leads you to wonder about their relationship. She also talks about her sister Annie and the issues she has.
2. Club Hell is briefly mentioned and we also get a peek at Dante and his band Inferno.
3. The anarchy symbol seems to be an important symbol as is the message left at the crime scene.
4. The chapter ends with Heather wondering if SAC Stearns is capable of sabotage.

That's a lot for 12 pages! A few elements struck me as being important to the upcoming story but instead of making each point a separate question I'd like to discuss which of these points grabbed you as being an important idea for the rest of the book? Which of these plot points did you find the most interesting?

2 comments:

Cyd said...

The most interesting plot point and important idea for me was if Stearns was capable of sabotage, Heather had been working on the CCK case for 3 years and if you can't trust the person who has been working along with you, then you on your own.

Jen D. @ Not Now...I'm Reading! said...

For me it was the message left at the scene and her flashbacks of her father that pulled me in. I liked how at the beginning Heather only sees black and white and looks down at her father seeing in shades of gray. She deals with so much that at the end she's the one seeing things in shades of gray.