I’ve been rewriting the same first few paragraphs for over a week now. If I post them, maybe magic will happen and I can move on to the rest of the book. So here goes!
# # #
“No, no, and again no!” Nicole yelled over her shoulder.
The 22-year-old paused long enough to spear the irritating man following her on the jungle path with a glare, then stubbornly plunged forward. The path was not an easy one in the dark. Not when the jungle relished throwing every tripping hazard imaginable in her path. Finally, after she had bulldozed her way through the thick jungle brush and shoved her way over a clump of tall grasses, she stumbled into a clearing.
A surge of joy washed over her as, for the first time in over an hour, she was free of the jungle’s creepy crawlies. No vines to brush across her face. No giant insects to drop on her shoulder. No roots to spring up in the middle of the pathway with the sole purpose of snagging her feet and making her fall flat on her face.
She was free. She had successfully traversed the jungle. She could relax.
The moment of joy lasted exactly 2.5 seconds, then reality reared its ugly head. Sure, she had pummeled this jungle trek and beat it into submission, but unless she planned to sleep all night in this clearing, tentless, no less, she would have to make the return journey back to the hotel. Through that same jungle that had snagged her hair and tripped her feet and showered her with critters of all shapes and sizes.
# # #
There. I’ve released them into the wild. Unless they come knocking on my door begging to be let back in, my brain should be able to move on now.
Run free, little paragraphs! Run free!