Tuesday 19 January 2010

Teaser Tuesday

The day has finally come. The day I've been waiting for. Whew!

Okay, this is my first proper Teaser Tuesday, but unfortunately I don't have something that will blow your mind, literally, in terms of plot or action. I wanted to post snippets that contained intrigue or action or suspense or something really interesting, but then I concluded that that's not really the point of Teaser Tuesdays. Sure, the point is to tease, but I want you guys to get to know my story and my characters first and foremost. That way, when I do post the juicy bits, trust me, they will be very juicy. Cross my heart XD

Last week (I think it was last week) I talked briefly about my book, and I even wrote (in thirty minutes) a kind of synopsis, if you will. You can read that post here to get some background info on what my novel, The End is Where I Begin, is all about and how I intend to structure it.

If you don't want to go back and read all that background stuff, it's cool. I'll just reiterate a little.

The End is Where I Begin is about a group of teenagers (sixteen-year-olds) at their college first year in modern-day England who, after a seemingly harmless act by one of them, are thrown into the midst of a tactical and bloody warfare between two extremely powerful organisations.

I can tease you guys a bit by revealing that one of these organisations is actually the Knights Templar, but not the Knights Templar you think you know.

The book will hold three or four volumes, and each volume will contain four to six episodes. Episodes are chapters, by the way, in case you're wondering.

The piece I've posted below is from Episode 1: The Boy King. Now, if you're very clever, you might be able to figure out some of what this episode entails just by its title. For the next couple of Teaser Tuesdays I'll focus on Episode I.

Episode 1 takes place in the future of the book's story, at a time when the consequences of Giaan's action have reared their ugly heads and had their desired effect on pretty much every protagonist. It's not part of volume one (volume one actually starts with Giaan's story in Episode 2, and the plot goes on from there). Its main purpose is to play the role of the trick chapter, or in this case, the trick episode. What's a trick episode, you might wonder? Well, the book is called "The End is Where I Begin", right? Now, what does that even mean – the end is where I begin? Wait. Does it have anything to do with the fact the book begins with an episode whose events occur in the future, which in a way, is the end of the book? Lol no :) But nice try.

Actually, Episode 1 is my way of saying to my readers, 'Look, before you go in, there's something you need to know about my book's title. Listen carefully, cos when you're well into the plot and you've figured things out, you're going to open your mouth and say, "Oooooh, so that's what the title means".'

The title, "The End is Where I Begin," is more than just a phrase, my Teaser Tuesday friends. It's actually a plot device.

Lol I'll say no more.

Today's snippet showcases a rather unusual man, David Reilly, who isn't fond of his wife, Elle. David feels that his holiday plans have been totally screwed up by Elle and he's not happy about it. David is sort of my Easter egg character. He appears occasionally throughout the book, especially when something terrible is about to happen. Poor guy.


Snippet starts:

*snippidy snip!*

Snippet ends.


Before I end this post, I'll just like that add that Elle is in no way as unattractive as she is portrayed from David's perspective. It's a little thing I like to call, beauty in the eyes of the beholder. David obviously doesn't love Elle, and everything about her is just weird and ugly – her arms, her teeth, her lips – everything. Compare that to this snippet from episode 2 where Giaan and Julian run into the couple, who happen to be members of Julian's church:

*snippidy snip!*

Giaan sees Elle as pleasant and pretty. Trust me, if a guy like Giaan sees you as pretty, then you are pretty.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed my Teaser Tuesday. Until next time, folks!

PS: I don't know how college works in America, but in England, when you're sixteen, you can choose to go to college for your GCSE's and A-Level's, and then enrol into a university at eighteen. I just thought I should mention that in case the American readers amongst you guys thought, 'Hang on, how can the characters be sixteen and in college?'

14 comments:

  1. Great voice! I could feel David's perspective/shallow view of his life dripping through every sentence. I particularly liked "disgust lurking in the shadow of his sunglasses" and "clever man caged in a sixteen year old marriage". Excellent writing.

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  2. The voice is dead-on. Hope to see more of this soon! :)

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  3. Excellent writing! I wanted to smack David a few times. ;)

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  4. Great job! I felt like I really got inside of David's head.

    This line made me giggle :D

    And his yellow sun-dotted shorts, the one that came with matching underpants – what about those?

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  5. I love your characterization of David. He sounds like a character you love to hate. It all flows very well and the descriptions are great. Look forward to reading more next week. :)

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  6. Cool! This was most grumbly and perfectly written to capture that sense of AUGH HERE WE GO AGAIN. I also loved Elle's brother's threat.

    One thing though - the one boxing match (is it called a match?) you describe sounds more like the guy would be dead, not in a hospital and still alive. I've never done any official research on it, but having bone spurs shot into your brain seems like a pretty effective way to kill someone. It's a cool thing to have in there, and I definitely think you should keep it, but just tweak the description of that one hit, maybe?

    *will stop nitpicking now... my apologies. I do like it very much*

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  7. Thanks all!
    @ Caitlin, yes, someone who's had bone spurs shot into their brains should be dead. But that's the thing about David - he over-exagerates things, his wife's appearance and even what happened to people. I'll tweak it in a way to make people understand that that's not the real situation of things, but David's way of seeing too much into everything lol Cheers Glad you loved it

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  8. I loved the voice! Great writing too!

    Sorry this is super late!

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  9. Nah, no problem Karla. As long as the teaser's still on display, no comment is late :) Thanks

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  10. Voice=Perfect
    Descriptions=Perfect
    Snippet=Win!

    Wow sorry for the lateness too! Looking forward to more of your work :D

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  11. I always loved the play on beauty in the eyes of the beholder. Great teaser, and I'm already in love with your MC David.

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  12. Welcome to teaser tuesday :D

    And, I love that you have really gotten into your MC (main character's) head. I love that you really focus on his point of view, and his voice. Real great characterisation!

    Great teaser <3

    Look forward to more. And, you like Manchester United so you are made of win. Jus' saying.

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  13. Hah! Yes I love Manchester United! Love, love, loooove United! :)

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  14. I really like the rhythm of your style. Good work. :)

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Keep it clean and constructive. Thanks.