We
were taught in school a three-part structuring tool: Tell them what
you're going to tell them, tell them, then tell them what you told them.
While this essay-structure helped me pass my high-school English classes, it never came in handy as I began writing books. In fact, I had to unlearn that tool, pick up completely different ones. No longer impressing a teacher, I had to impress my readers. And a reader's mind gets bored with knowing what's coming.
This is obvious in fiction and memoir--we want to dive into the story, be surprised.
While this essay-structure helped me pass my high-school English classes, it never came in handy as I began writing books. In fact, I had to unlearn that tool, pick up completely different ones. No longer impressing a teacher, I had to impress my readers. And a reader's mind gets bored with knowing what's coming.
This is obvious in fiction and memoir--we want to dive into the story, be surprised.
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