TO backstory or not to backstory, that is the question:
Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to assume the reader
will figure the character out through bits and pieces
Or to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous critique asking
“Why, why did you bore me so?”
To rush to fix a sea of troubles with a “kill your darlings” red pencil
Or perhaps a section break.
(Sorry, Bill. Frustrated with a rewrite that cut too much.)
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Author: John Rogers
I have thought of myself as a writer for most of my adult life. In 2011, I became a fiction writer full time. I studied creative writing as an English major in college. Then came family and career. I worked in finance and biotech and did a wonderful stint in Vienna. Now, I have the opportunity to use those experiences as the substrate for my stories. My first novel takes on the world of Big Data and the very timely issue of cyber war. The second uses the manipulation of financial derivatives as impetus for attempted murder during a trip from Vienna to Budapest on the Danube.
I have taken writing instruction at the Cape Cod Writers Conference and from The Loft in Minneapolis. I am finding writers’ groups to be very helpful as concept editors, as well as practical advice from the published authors. I am in three such groups. I have taken writing instruction at the Cape Cod Writers Conference and from The Loft in Minneapolis.
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