Trying to find the balance

Right now in my edits of Sundown chapter 2 (yes, I am stuck on chapter 2...which used to be about chapter 7, before the current editing revolution began) I'm struggling with finding a balance between giving enough information and giving too much. Naturally it's okay to give information if you're showing it, but even then there's only so much backstory you are supposed to pack in, especially to the first main chapter of your novel (which this one is).

To give some idea of where I'm at, these are some of the dramatic changes that have taken place since I joined AW and started sharing my stuff:

1. Instead of my heroine meeting her hero on page 57 or so, which is what happened in my draft (at least, in the proof copy I just received :D), she meets him on page 9 (size 11 font, Times New Roman. hehe)
2. Instead of a word count of 128k or so, I have a word count of 113,362

Okay, there are other things that have changed, but those are the major ones I can think of. Pretty major, in my opinion. Anyway, because of all the backstory I've hacked out, I now have the dilemma I mentioned above. I have thrown the reader right into the action, but there hasn't been enough build-up to make them care about it.

I'm working on it, and I'm very grateful to the advice I've received at AW. I do think this is going to make the story much stronger overall. But yeah, it's a struggle striking that right balance.

What a learning process!

Meanwhile, I wrote a quick little ghost story today. You can find it here. Titled "Lost, Then Found". It's definitely not my most special writing, but I like the story itself. At first I was going to have Ralph turn out to be a psycho killer seeking revenge. But then I thought better of that idea. Or different, at least. Some might say the psycho killer twist would've been better. And why the heck was the mother even at the school? Honestly, I'm not much bothered with the answer there. Suspend reality a little, I say!

Backstory

Here we are in 2011! So begins the year of the multiple writing goals. Bring it ooooon, I say!

Anyway...I want to talk about backstory for a sec, because:

Some of the advice I've got lately on Sundown has led me to believe (in something of a mini-epiphany, really) that what I formerly saw as great build-up toward the actual beginning of the story was in fact just build-up for me. I'm the writer who knows what she can expect, and enjoys working up towards those moments. But the reader is at a disadvantage: they've got no idea what's coming next; they don't know what they're in for, and I wouldn't want them to nod off before they get to the juicy stuff.

Hey, at least my backstory is nicely written, or so I'm told. There's always that. Still, it is backstory, and that's that.

So. New plan. Shedding the introductory info dump, then working it into the rest of the novel wherever it fits. Sounds pretty obvious, right? And I guess it should. But I know it's not a crime to be so close to your story you sometimes miss the obvious. That's what happened to me!

In short, I've had some pretty useful advice lately, and I am so very glad I joined the AW forums! I highly recommend them for anyone who hasn't signed up yet. Anybody who thinks they can handle the at times brutally honest feedback other members will give them on their work.