Here by the skin of my teeth this week thanks to wireless issues! Eeks! Happy Sunday! Welcome to my post on the Weekend Writing Warriors – a place for authors to come together to share 8 to 10 sentences of their current WIP. Check out http://www.wewriwa.com for a list of all the participants and the details on how you can get on next week’s list!
The past handful of weeks I shared snippets from my newly finished first draft of Rise of the Angerroots. I would love to say that rewrites are coming along wonderfully but that would be a lie. I’ve managed to add it to scrivener and that’s about as far as I got. It’s going to be slow going. In the meantime, I’ve hit the rewind button to start work on the prequel which will help to introduce my story world. It seems only fair that I begin share the snippets from this new project.
Meet Serena…
**
The shadows cut deep into the forest. Serena kept her cloak over her head to conceal her identity as she moved swiftly along the dark forest path, never daring to look around lest she meet the eye of one who might recognize her. Eventually she stopped outside a worn down old cabin with a broken window and hesitated before taking the crooked steps leading to the front door. Serena considered her mother’s warnings but these were desperate times, she decided, and her fate was already chosen. An old woman peered out the window before letting the curtains fall back into place and Serena felt chills travel down her spine. She could turn and go but she had already come so far. She might as well hear the old woman out.
Before she could knock, the door swung slowly open and Serena found herself face to face with a short, not entirely unattractive woman with jet black hair and crystal blue eyes.
“Raven?” Serena asked, even though there was no mistaking the woman’s identity.
**
That’s it… I look forward to your thoughts on my snippet. Next week I will share another peek into this novella and hopefully better news regarding my rewrite progress. As always, thanks for reading! See you next time. 🙂
Stephanie Ingram 
And who, I wonder, is Raven? I guess I’ll find out.
You have my sympathy about the rewrites. I’m in rewrite/edit hell myself.
You create an eerie scene through your word choices. Nicely done.
The scene as a delightfully eerie feel.
I love all the mystery surrounding Raven. 🙂 I’m working on the first draft of my project now, but I know I’ll be doing rewrites, too. All the best with them!
Great job conveying the sense of urgency as well as really placing us in the moment!
Lovely scene setting. I see it so well and can feel her fear and desperation. Great snippet!
Spooky! I liked it and want to read on…one minor nit: “…lest she meet the eye of one who might recognize her.” In a dark forest at night??? I could see her afraid to look around in case there were demons or wild animals, kind of if-I-don’t-see-you-you-can’t-see-me thing. That phrase did take me out of the story for a nanosecond. But then I was right back!
That was a fabulous scene.
So she’s gone into the woods… but will she like what she finds there? She’s already had one surprise!
The beauty of such a scene is overwhelming.
Man, you have my sympathies re: the troubles you’re finding with Rise of the Angerroots. It’s such an amazing tale, and the prose flows so easily that one assumes that the writing just spills out. Alas, this is not always the case.
Enjoyed this week’s snippet!! Paints such a vivid setting. Now, who is this mysterious Raven?
I enjoyed the echoes of fairytale woods and witch’s huts.
I’m sharing your stage with tedious re-edits.
Ack! Who is Raven. I might not like her! I think some caution needs to be exercised. 🙂
I can’t wait to meet Raven.
Very interesting– I love the mood that was set. Great writing!
Eerie and intriguing. Can’t wait to find out who Raven is.
Very mysterious and intriguing, I wonder what her mother’s warning was about?
Excellent description of the forest! Leaves us with a lot of questions to be answered. I’d stick around to find out!
Nice creepy-tense snippet! My only suggestion would be to take out felt in this sentence … “and Serena felt chills travel down her spine”, make it a separate sentence, and just say “Chills skittered down Serena’s spine.” Just a thought! I’m always trying to show and not tell. It’s a challenge 😀
Ooooh! What a mysterious meeting. And lovely world building. I liked this snippet a lot
Ooh, interesting snippet. I am a big fan of NOT listening to the advice others give the protagonist, so here we go, off on our own decidedly dangerous path. Excellent stuff. 🙂
Aren’t prequels fun to write? Love the eerie tone to this snippet, and great job generating curiosity about the old woman!