The Manuscript Flaw

Of the very little feedback I have gotten from agents, one has been recurring. Too slow, they have said, complaining about the opening. Hard to interpret the phrase, however, and even more difficult to figure out how to correct the flaw. Thanks to the snarky Miss Snark's recent postings, I might have my answer.

In a variation on a past theme, Miss Snark provides critiques for query letters and the opening pages. While there are countless places that look at the query letter, it is rare to get an agent's view of the first pages that must catch the eye to garner a request for more.

I have made what appears to be a common mistake, and one that I never noticed before. In the opening chapter, I repeated a theme. Once was enough to get the point across, but the same idea pops up twice in the beginning few pages. Of course the reader gets it the first time, and the author does not need to bring it up again. It was a case of getting caught up in the writing, the prose, that caused this flaw. Slow to start? Naturally, if something has to be delivered in a double dose. It takes time to repeat, and that time would be better spent in providing some incentive to the reader to turn the page.

When next I peruse the NYT Books section, I'll examine the opening chapters more carefully. The education continues, using any and all sources. Remarkable how many of those sources are available for free.