Book 1, Chapter 2
Readers and Writers:
Someday, this will be remembered as a story “of the people, by the people, and for the people.” That’s how I’m going to remember it at least. You voted, and the winner was clearly Option 1—Alex calls Rafael’s sister to get more information. Thank you sincerely for your participation and contributions to this story. I’ve tried to do them justice, and I hope you can sense the full extent of my appreciation in this post.
Luckily for me, Option 1 was very fun to write. Along with the votes, several people submitted comments and questions that made me see things differently than I had before, and I’ll share some of those here (in a bulleted list, because there is no more captivating way to present or read information):
Sixty-three percent of readers voted for Option 1, with three providing comments on how to make it work best, while 13% voted for Option 2, 6% for Option 3, and 19% selected “I’ve got another idea”. Those other ideas providing mostly connected with a variation of Option 1, and I’ve done my best to incorporate them if they could fit and didn’t create a conflict within the plot.
One reader said that Option 1 was the only logical option, because Alex hadn’t seen Rafael in nearly two years and it was too drastic a choice. Funnily enough, Options 2 and 3 were my own intuitive choices, which probably opens a window into the chaotic and illogical nature of my life. My thinking was also informed by Alex’s statement at the end of Ch.1 that she wants desperately to act. So, I thought that might mean going to the center of the action.
Another reader thought the timeline for the sister having just received the package wouldn’t work because Chapter 1 said authorities had stopped looking for Rafael weeks ago. Coupled with the number of weeks they would have been looking for him, it means several weeks between being mailed from Peru and received in the U.S. This was an astute consideration of the timeline of events, which Chapter 1 sheds little light on. You get more details in Chapter 2, but generally, Rafael went missing about seven weeks ago. Authorities looked for him for around four weeks and then stopped the active investigation. That tracks with law enforcement practices and stats I researched which were that the vast majority of missing person cases are closed by the one-month mark due to either finding the person or leads have grown cold, although cases can be resumed if new information is identified. The timeline now clearer, that means it would have taken nearly two months for the package to make its way through the mail. The reader asked, “Is mail from Peru that bad?” to which I would answer yes, it is. When I lived in Peru in the 2000s, it could take several weeks to a few months for a package going from or arriving to rural areas of Peru. Many rural and remote towns, like Pichari, don’t have a dedicated post office, so mail is accumulated by a person or business and taken periodically to be mailed. So on that point, I think the package taking two months to arrive is plausible.
A reader also suggested maybe the package wasn’t sent by Rafael. That’s a good option depending on how the story and characters develop. At present, Chapter 2 just says the package was sent on a certain date from Peru and has a number of things that appear to be sent by Rafael, but we don’t know who actually dropped it at Serpost.
Another reader suggested the package received by the sister should have a letter or message for Alex. I hadn’t thought of or planned on that initially, and the only hitch I see is that if the sister had received a message for Alex, she would have already contacted her. As it is, Alex contacts the sister. But, it makes sense to me that he would communicate something to her, because a message or mention would strengthen Alex’s motivation to keep investigating. So, I’d like to use that tip for Chapter 3.
Finally, one reader questioned Option 3 and whether Alex could go to the U.S. Embassy for help. Again, great question. Alex could certainly reach out to American Citizen Services in the consular section and make an appointment to speak to an ACS officer. Particularly, if she has information that might help with finding a missing American citizen. the Embassy would be very likely to meet with her. That said, they wouldn’t be able to give specific information about him based on privacy policies. Still, it would likely be strategic to make connections with ACS if she goes to Peru.
Lastly, a reader asked whether I was going to edit as I go along based on feedback from readers. It’s a great question, and I’d say I’ll stay open to see how things progress. At present, I plan to wait to make big edits once there is a full first draft, but I may edit to fix errors like unintended discrepancies or plot holes. I also plan to compile and save feedback that might be used for redrafting or tweaking once the whole draft is complete. But again, let’s see how this goes.
The process of writing Chapter 2 with your input was so much fun for me, and I really hope you all can get even a fraction of the same joy our of reading it. Keep the ideas coming!
P.S. I’ve proofread the new chapter a couple of times, but there may still be errors my own writing eyes don’t see. Feel free to let me know if you see errors, such as wrong words or plot issues.
