I recently completed the introductory chapters to “Tales.” This was an important and difficult step. Consider how huge the following topics are: history of karate, history of America, history of trade in the East, history of Judo, history of martial arts tournaments…and a whole bunch more. I had to condense all of that into little consumable chunks so that readers would have a running start when getting into the interviews.
One thing that surprised me when writing this section was keeping myself succinct. I think I could have spent the next year just wandering off in different historical directions, providing information to readers but losing the momentum of the project. As I begin to edit this section, my goal will be to make it even more streamlined. That will mean cutting and angling, which will be difficult given the breadth of the topic.
Wish me luck! Up next will be writing the conclusion reflections. I’m really not sure how that will come out…but we’ll see.