Okay so I wanted to start on a story that I've had an idea for a long time but I suck at beginnings. Here's the summary of the story: Fifteen year old Violet Winchester’s family was never supportive. Not of her anyway but always for her older brother Luke who seemed to be better at everything than she was. However when her mother reads a love letter that Violet has penned to a girl in her ninth grade science class all hell breaks loose and violet ends up in foster care. However much to her surprise a woman who has already adopted a foster kid four years prior decides to foster her. Will her life finally change or is she destined to hide her true self for the rest of her life? Here's the summary of the first chapter: Violet comes home with a reward for attendance, her father smarts off about how things like that doesn’t matter. She leaves feeling hurt while they praise their son for his basketball trophy. Violet goes to her room and writes in her diary about a girl she likes in her class named Lena, she even goes as far as writing a love letter to her in her dairy. Her mom comes into her room while she is taking a shower and sees her dairy, flips through it and finds the note. She flips out tells her husband. Violet is interrogated, beaten and thrown from the house. Violet goes to school the next day in sweatpants and a black t-shirt. The teacher notices something off about her and then sees the bruises, he then calls social services. After the police come and talk to her she finds herself at a group home until she can be placed in a foster home. She is told that not a lot of people in the state want an lgbt child and where she is over the desirable age that she may not be adopted. The next morning she wakes up to find that they have found a foster home for her and that she will be leaving imminently. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Well, before you start, it's best to have some idea of where you're going. Not necessarily an elaborate chapter-by-chapter outline, just something to give it direction. As far as the actual writing, for me what's worked best is just sitting down and starting. If you don't like it, you can go back and fix it. Maybe you could open with the parents at home, a few minutes before Violet gets there?
Troof. No story maintained quality for more than a few chapters that didn't already have at least a vague end planned. It has been my curse for as long as I have written to have a cool idea and nowhere to go with it. So I'd strongly advise you to take Florestan's suggestion, except maybe even not necessarily have a middle planned; just the end. That's where everything in the story is played out to its conclusion and the brunt of the meaning is expressed (except for maybe the exposition lol). I like it though. Violet sounds a bit passive/generic unfortunately, as most of the description is about what happens to her and not what she does about it. The pitfalls of writing a realistic teenager X.X Maybe you can solidify her convictions by having not a simple love letter, but an exchange of letters or even a short relationship with a girl whom she doesn't only like or crush on, but really cherishes and cannot let go, no matter how steep the adversity. When her parents question her on it, she is basically given the opportunity to dismiss it as a joke gone too far, but she stands up for her gf and herself by saying they're in love, leading to her beating and disowning. Then just comes the task of connecting her love interest with the new foster parent and you have a good, tight setup.
I agree with what has been said here: Know where you're going and plan it out. HOWEVER. I do NOT agree with the tactic of not planning anything between the beginning and end out (sorry Argentwing). It may be difficult to do, especially for those who are more spontaneous than not, but you need to have at least the first chapter planned out (though it can be in a different format than by-chapter - in fact, I recommend shorter chunks of time, like days or weeks) when you begin, and you should continue planning up until the end. I know it may sound constraining and boring, but it's actually the opposite. After all, Morning Glories can't live and bloom beautifully without a frame. What I'm trying to say is that by having a general plan of major events, revelations, and other important occurances, you can write faster, easier, and better, and have even more room for creativity because your story will have support, which is very important. Well, it is four AM here, and I need to get up by noon tomorrow(/today) so... Bye. P.S. I hope I helped and FEEL FREE TO MESSAGE ME IF YOU NEED MORE HELP! P.P.S. This is completely off-topic, but I have been listening to Lenny Kravitz's "Strut" for the past half-hour and not only have I not gotten bored, but I also can't seem to be able to keep my clothes on my body... Damn you, Kravitz. Damn you.
Sounds like an interesting idea, and I can see where it is going! I have one tip that is pestering me to be said, and that is make Violet's situation clear. This is going to be a dizzying part of her life, and you may want to make clear her confusion and despair. What's going on in her mind the next day? Does that change when she goes into care? You've got a nice trope going on that it all seems hopeless, until she gets the foster home. The only other things are thinking about the brother's part in this (is he like the parents or sympathises with her sister) and what everyone else has said above of planning on what direction you want it to go. Good luck!
