Begin with a hook, end with a cliffhanger

The title says it all -- if you begin your chapters with a catchy hook and end them with a cliffhanger, the reader will keep turning pages. I know it works for me -- at least that what you all are telling me. ; ) Jim Butcher's Dresden Files books are a great example. Snarky/catchy chapter opener, then the chapter moves like a speeding freight train, ending with Harry in hot water. It's a classic action/adventure formula, and it works. And you know what they say about something that works: if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Those are the kind of books I like to read (non-stop action and is next to impossible to put down), so those are the kind of books I try to write.

I try to start each chapter with something snarky from Raine (usually a smart ass comment on the trouble she's in at the end of the previous chapter). And I do not end my chapters with any kind of resolution. Quite the opposite. I like to end my chapters at the height of the action, or at what I like to call the "oh shit moment." This is when Raine realizes just how deep the doo-doo is that she's in. Ending a chapter this way also has an added advantage -- it makes starting the next chapter with a hook/snarky comment a breeze.

And to keep those pages turning, I constantly ask myself the question: "How much worse can I make it for Raine?" I've found that if I don't need a yardstick to measure the crap, then Raine isn't in it deep enough. And since I have an ensemble cast: Mychael, Tam, Piaras, and Phaelan -- I try to keep the boys in just as much deep doo-doo.

I've got a rule for Raine getting herself out of any sticky situation -- if she uses magic, it can get her out of that particular situation, but it gets her into more trouble down the road. I prefer for Raine to rely on her brain, not her magical brawn. And in each book, she's getting more magical mojo courtesy of the Saghred. There's the temptation (and need) to use it, but there's the greater need to not use it, and of course to get rid of it. And when she goes up against those who have more magical power/experience than she does, it's a blast to figure out a way for her to use brains and street smarts to defeat them.

Coming up tomorrow: I'll post a link to the review of Armed & Magical that will be posted over at Enduring Romance. And I'll blog on writer's weaknesses -- what do I go absolutely gaga over?

BTW -- I'm always taking blog requests. If you have a question, or topic suggestion, just respond to the blog that day, or email me at lisa@lisashearin.com

Lisa