Hey JustinRock  ,
I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page and thought I'd drop in to honor this occasion, your 10th WDC Anniversary!
I like your story but it does need some editing TLC. Your plot is excellent, why am I not surprised at who the culprit was all along? The flow is a little fast for it. It seems as if you have this whole story in your head and couldn't wait to get it typed up. I've been there, done that too.
It's obvious that Tom and the Mayor do not get along. I saw that in every bit of dialog between the two. In re-reading it, I think I should change that line about little fast to awfully fast. You left me with several questions and general comments.
General Comments:
Place your title, centered, at the top of your story.
It's not clear who is talking at first. It's not until Tom raises his hand (yeah, I realize it's the second line), that the reader knows who is speaking. Instead of jumping right to dialog, provide a little background to inform readers what's going on.
I won't change the rating of this now, I want you to do it. If I do it, it will lock your story at a 13+ rating. You can ask to have it unlocked in a forum, but I forget which forum that is. Hellbent is not an E-rated word. This needs to be rated 13+ at least.
The dialog turns into a shouting match between Tom and the Mayor quickly. Don't be afraid to provide build up here. Why does Tom get angry so fast? It would not be 'right' for the Mayor to start shouting in return. I know it's a small town, but even then the Mayor should show more restraint. He can end up shouting, but not immediately.
Specific Comments:
1. Tom speaks up, "you can’t just make up new rules and expect everyone to obey your wishes, just because you're the mayor.” You should be capitalized.
2. Now moving on to other business.” You need a comma after Now.
3. Tom not one for rules especially when they were coming from the mayor, stepped outside at 7:30 pm it was starting to get dark, but was still light enough to recognize someone if they weren't to faraway. There are a few issues with this line. The easy one is the word to. It should be too. As worded, it is not well written. Tom should have a comma after it. Also, it's a run on sentence. Please allow me to show you an alternate line. Tom was not one for rules, especially when they were coming from the mayor. When he stepped outside at 7:30 pm, it was starting to get dark, though it was still light enough to recognize someone if they weren't to faraway.
4. He started to take another deep breath and that's when he heard a noise. Overall, this line is okay, but if you were to add nearby in front of noise, it would help a bit.
5. Watch the video? What video? Where did it come from? I suspect it's the bank video that may have been running 24/7, but you don't say that. Tell us how Tom knew of the video and where its source. Maybe Tom is a former Bank employee who knew this, but lost his job when the alcohol became more important.
6. Discovering the missing townspeople was too easy if you ask me. Why was that boiler room searched in the first place. If Tom was a former bank employee, he might know that, but why was that boiler room searched? Did the Mayor confess everything that had gone on? If the Mayor had been sequestering the missing townspeople in the boiler room, that should be on the video also. Was no one checking the nightly video? See, you leave a lot out here, so add it in so we know!
Your idea for the story is excellent. You just need to fill in some gaps to make this a much better read. Thank you for sharing!
Sum1
WDC POWER RAIDER 
- |