A personal example:
I was fortunate to be able to attend the #NebulaConference for the second time ever this June, and more fortunate still to be selected as a panelist for a live action slush event. Meaning, the four of us would give feedback on #fiction excerpts and explain why we would or wouldn't pass on a submission to the editors.
Nothing was said that I hadn't heard before, but a number of the works suffered from the same issue that my writing often does - the first chapter/scene being an exposition dump, rather than the actual beginning of the actual story.
Personal example - in an early draft, Cold Wind Blowing starts in SA Weaver's office when he receives the call to travel to the crime scene. In its final form, the book starts at the crime scene, which is where the story actually starts.
Anyway, the act of giving that advice helped me understand and internalize this issue in my own writing, and the next draft I began starts SMACK at the beginning of the story.
2/2
