tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8753047208077056954.post2630726639811758268..comments2023-11-09T07:09:33.891-08:00Comments on Utah Children's Writers: Writing a Synopsis with VS GrenierSarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10166492055392141231noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8753047208077056954.post-16349759437760635392010-09-12T09:07:57.078-07:002010-09-12T09:07:57.078-07:00Paul,
I'm so sorry I'm just now getting t...Paul,<br /><br />I'm so sorry I'm just now getting to this. I never got an email saying there was a comment. Anyway, here are my thoughts. <br /><br />You hooked me at the very beginning, but then I started to lose interest about 1/4 the way through. Not because your story isn't interesting, but because you started giving away too much detail and subplot lines. Stick to the main plot keep it short. Only touch on the highlights. Think of a movie trailer . . . they only show you the best of the movie to get your attention. Do the same with your book.VS Grenierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00744216160236230482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8753047208077056954.post-74237171961721742182010-08-09T10:54:31.985-07:002010-08-09T10:54:31.985-07:00Well, OK. You asked for it, LOL.
I really appreci...Well, OK. You asked for it, LOL.<br /><br />I really appreciate your invitation to post my synopsis. Thank you. Any suggestions are more than welcome.<br /><br />--------------<br /><br /> BRIDGE TO DESTINY<br /> SYNOPSIS<br /> By Paul W. West<br /><br />It’s Christmas Eve, and seventeen-year-old MARK WILKERSON should be happy. Instead, he’s having words with his parents over his botched musical performance earlier that evening at a rest home. Driving across the fog-bound Carquinez Bridge, they are sideswiped by a hit-and-run motorist. Jolted out of the car, Mark survives the fiery crash only to watch his family burn.<br /><br />Mark moves in with his grandmother, near his cousin GARY JOHNSON, in the shadow of the bridge that serves as a constant reminder of his horror. Struggling with anguish and guilt for his angry last words, he vows to avenge his parents’ deaths.<br /><br />Gary helps Mark get oriented in his new school but he is an anti-Vietnam War activist, and he and Mark disagree on politics. Mark only wants a student deferment, but the school’s trouble maker, JEFF MARINO, berates him as a draft dodger in spite of it. Mark discovers a dent in Jeff’s car with paint the same color as Mark’s parent’s car, and suspects Jeff is the one who killed his family.<br /><br />Mark gains a reputation for guitar playing and dancing. At a school dance, he is tricked into performing. GENIE LOMBARDI a girl he likes is impressed. Mark dances with her and wins her heart. But he soon learns that love can come at a heavy price. Her date, Jeff, is obsessed with her and will do anything to keep Mark away. With the help of two buddies, Jeff attacks Mark and puts him in the hospital. The boys are caught and receive short sentences in juvenile detention. Jeff vows to get even when he gets out, and get Genie back any way he can.<br /><br />While Jeff is away, Mark and Genie fall in love. But when Jeff returns he lies to her that Mark is two-timing her. He has evidence that is hard to deny. Hurt and angry, Genie breaks up with Mark, then accepts a date with Jeff.<br /><br />The date becomes a drug party and Jeff tries to force Genie to take “speed.” On the bridge, Jeff’s best friend plays chicken with the traffic and is killed. The driver of their car leads the highway patrol on a harrowing chase, finally eluding the cops.<br /><br />Without his best friend, Jeff has nothing left to live for. He refuses to go back to juvie. He warns Genie not to talk about the accident, but she is angry that Jeff lied to her about Mark, and angry about Jeff’s abusive behavior. She talks. Knowing Mark still wants Genie, he plots a way to get even with both of them. He kidnaps Genie, then lures Mark and Gary on a car chase through dense fog that ends in another accident on bridge. Mark and Gary find Jeff holding Genie with a gun to her head. When he aims it at Mark, Genie jumps in front of the gun, taking the bullet meant for Mark.<br /><br />Mark wrestles the gun away from Jeff – finally he will get his revenge, but before he can pull the trigger, Gary tells him the truth about what happened. He was the one who caused the accident. Mark aims the gun at Gary but the gun is empty. Mark then drops to the pavement, realizing what he almost did. In the dark, Jeff escapes and jumps off the bridge, killing himself, before anyone misses him.<br /><br />Paramedics take Genie to the hospital where she begins her recovery. Mark asks why she sacrificed her life for him, but instead of answering she asks why he needs to ask. He then asks her to the next dance. She accepts, even if it's in a wheel chair.Paul W. West, Authorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09220698627730601499noreply@blogger.com