Re-doing the Cards

After a really cruddy commute in this morning (a normal 45 minute-to-1 hour commute stretched to almost 2 hours - bah!), I contemplated not doing any sort of writing.

Meh.

Yesterday, I did write, re-doing yet again (for the last time, I swear!) the Chapter 3 ending. Now I've got it right. I'll have to fill in some more details, as I'm a minimalist writer in the initial stages, but I'm happy with what I've got now.

I did decide today to take stock of where the story is going. So far, so good. The beginning needs to be redone, as I liked the original I wrote much better. The second chapter is quite good and funny, and the third chapter's come into its own - finally.

Where I originally was going to take this was to have Jackie go to her mother's condo in Jersey City and, not finding her there, panic. Couldn't do that, as she'd have to leave her shattered apartment door, um, shattered. Nah. I just couldn't see her doing that; I mean, how many of us would leave our house door unlocked?

So I changed that card, to have her wait for the super and call her Mom. Then she'll call a neighbor and find out what the poop is. I'll have her change into her work uniform, but then, while she's waiting, she'll encounter an eccentric woman who lives on her floor...

She's not a major character, but she'll definitely propel the plot; she'll be quite useful later on. In the meantime, in this scene, she'll actually be reminded of her ex and his troubles. It's not too hard to explain, but I like to be a bit of a mystery woman...just ask my hubby! :-)

Suffice to say, this is something I've been thinking about for a little over a day, and I think it's headed in a more interesting, less boring way. (Although it probably sounds a little boring, because I'm just a-tellin' you this.)

No writerly-type advice or website today - work's been quite busy lately. I'll probably have something tomorrow where that's concerned, because something in a how-to book by Sol Stein really resonated with me.

Don't give up - keep writing!