Plot Redux

50,000 words into the new book and I realized with some horror that a) the inciting incident doesn't really work and b) there is too long a gap between tense action scenes.

It is really the doctor's wife, Lisa Smiles asking for help that sets everything in motion. Grace's kidnapping, Signy's flight and the return of the Tracker would not happen if Lisa does not shown up at the shelter in need of assistance. That must be the inciting incident and it fits well with the overarching question of whether Signy will choose to save Lisa. 

With a lot of thought and a few tweaks I took the two main story lines (Signy hides the girl) and (Grace is kidnapped by Dr. Solomon Smiles) and juxtaposed them instead of allowing them to flow linearly. That way the action that occurs in both story lines happens at the same time - taking the reader on a roller coaster ride of ups and downs instead of a long slow train ride punctuated by the odd burst of tense activity.

I HOPE this works better now.

This novel writing business is NOT easy! It is like putting together a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle where every time you snap one piece into place it disrupts another on the other side of the board and you have to start all over. It is in turn frustrating and exhilarating.  

I often feel like I am being chased by demented puzzle pieces and I can't quite figure out which one is safe and which ones will lead to a storyline disaster.