The Early Works of the SJG

As any writer worth his/her dream of literary glory knows all too well, the opening sentence of any creative endeavor determines whether the reader keeps reading, or gives up and throws your long-gestating beloved oeuvre out the window, or worse, in the reject pile.  Whether you've spent years and years slaving over your masterpiece, what it comes down to is this:  nobody gives a mangled mandel bread.  You have one sentence to hook 'em, folks.  Just one.  Good thing I didn't know that back in 1969, when I cooked up two important works of fiction, published, I'm proud to say, by Bungalow Seven, Inc., an exclusive literary hut based on the campus of Warner Avenue Elementary School.

My first effort, "A Different Kind of Friend," is a riveting adventure tale of a girl obsessed with a horse named Soldier.  I was only 11, but already sensed that animals understood me much better than boys.   The first sentence did me no favors:  "Hey, Mom, could you come here for a minute, please?"  Hmm.  Not exactly an attention-grabber.  The best part is the final page. Turns out, the SJG had some noble dreams back then:

About The Author
Carol Starr was born on January 16, 1958 in Los Angeles.  She resides in Westwood, California, with her family, which includes her mother, father and two older brothers.  Her hobbies include horseback riding, which may have been the inspiration for this book, swimming, collecting pennies, reading and watching television.  Her plans for school include junior and senior high, and college, but she hasn't decided her major yet. She would like to travel and be a housewife and an on-and-off interior decorator. Her plans for writing another book are indefinite, but she does have several ideas on future projects.

An on-and-off interior decorator?  Such spooky accuracy.  Tomorrow:  "Harry Visits India."