Over summer, around taking part in all of my craftiness, I began planning and writing my first novel! (Exciting stuff but still a long way to go!) I have been debating sharing my opening with the world of blogging – my initial fears were to do with theft but I have done my copyright homework and know my rights so no pinching please! My second fear was criticism. Although I can’t do much about this, I am hoping that no one will be too harsh! I would definitely appreciate some constructive criticism as I know there are many established writers/bloggers out there whose advice I could definitely benefit from!

So here we go *deep breath*This scene is essentially a prologue or introduction before the main plot begins!

The air is completely still. The thickness of the forest is so dense that not even the slightest breeze can penetrate the stillness; not the slightest rustling of the leaves can be observed. It is a place of deathly silence. No birds chirrup cheerily from the branches or crow gaudily from the towering trees. The only animals that haunt the labyrinth are the ones who come and go silently; the ones who can observe without being observed. The minute you step into the forest you became enveloped in its branches. They close themselves silently around you, until the way back is a hopeless as the way forward. As soon as you step beyond the threshold, you belong to the forest. Only the forest decides who can leave alive and who isn’t so lucky. Shadows haunt your every move; silently watching, jumping and quivering to frighten and confuse you. No matter which way you spin, twist and turn all attempts are futile. You only have two options. Number one; you will stumble around blindly, hopelessly looking for an escape, trip, fall, scream. When you open your eyes you find that you have somehow reached the edge of the forest and scuttle away, having made the unspoken pledge to never to speak of your experience, or to return to the forest again. Or, the second option, you will suffer. You will be drawn in, curious, look where you shouldn’t look and unearth things that should never be unearthed. You will be punished for this. But the decision isn’t yours to make.

I’d love to hear feedback on this (currently my second draft so it is still in the very early stages!) so please share your comments below! They don’t have to be exclusively about this snippet, I’d love to here potential ideas for the whole plot or guesses as to what might happen! Also, if I get lots of useful feedback I may share future snippets also!

Thank you!