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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: The Writer's Challenge (NOT the FaithWriters Challenge) (06/10/10)
One of the greatest challenges to writing my first book, other than deciding on content inclusions and exclusions, was the opening sentence. Those first few words had to be just right. They must not only set the tone of the manuscript but also grab and propel the reader into a most fascinating world of words.

I had resolved the idea of a book for quite some spell, but the timing also had to be ideal. And I always put much thought and planning into everything I do.

It didn’t help that I had so many ideas in mind. I wanted to do something that had never been done before, so I decided to include a bit of everything. I wanted action and drama, but no fiction. I’ll leave illusions and fairy tales for someone else who is good at that sort of thing. It must be an honest account of good versus evil, where good triumphs and the bad guy gets what’s coming to him. And there should be accounts of ordinary people overcoming seemingly unbearable adversities against impossible odds.

I even wanted to incorporate some poetry here and there.

And a love story, there had to be a love story.

There ought to be a dash of sex and romance as well, but nothing gratuitous or distasteful.

And I wanted the reader to discover something new, to end each chapter having learned a valuable lesson or grasped a tidbit of wisdom they could somehow apply to their own life.

And all this must to flow together, not sounding like a haphazard mishmash of so much rambling.

The idea seemed complicated and challenging, but I knew I could do it once I put my mind to the task. So I made a goal, set a realistic time frame, and geared up to work.

I sat for what seemed like forever creating one idea after another.

Then those first words came to me and I realized they were always with me. The perfect launch into what I knew in my heart would become the most popular book of all time. And so I set off.

“In the Beginning…”
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Member Comments
Member
Date
Ruth Clowater
06/19/10
I never suspected till the end. It works! I think it could be even more powerful if the voice was a little less passive.
Joanne Sher 
06/20/10
Definitely a creative take on the topic. I never would have though of God as having questions like this (it bothered me a bit, but it could just be me). It made me think differently - and that is good.
mick dawson
06/22/10
Liked it; hope it sells lol