My beginning (Julia)

It is a stormy day in the summer on 1997 as the gray clouds covered the beautiful blue sky, letting out its roaring thunder. The traffic's growing heavier and the sound of the wiper blades against the window is making me impatient and somewhat annoyed. A circle is formed as I wipe the window, yet all I can see are cars’ headlights becoming a blur and cars inching along the highway. As rain pours heavily, I look at my mom. Her eyes look a little tired, and I'm sure it's because she works all the time. It's rare that she's taking me somewhere, so I wonder where we are headed to.

I start the beginning by describing the place at that time. I want my reader to know what I'm seeing or where I am at first. I'm not sure if the first paragraph kept people's interest, but during workshop, I received good suggestions. Describing the place and putting as much details as I can is what I did. I think it helps set up the story, and help others understand more. It’s also a way for me to get the reader to understand where the story will take place, and what the surroundings of the place are. The ending was a summary about the relationship between my mother and me. Since the whole book is about what happened in my childhood, the ending is about how I felt about my mother, and the decision she made. I’m not that sure myself, if the beginning is a hook or the ending was how I wanted. I jammed a lot of what I wrote before the due date. With the giving time, I couldn’t edit or revise it as much, but I’m glad I’m done.