2. Go to line 7
3. Copy down the next 7 lines – sentences or paragraphs – and post them as they’re written. No cheating.
Since the current project doesn't yet have 77 pages, I went to the 7th line of page 7, which was the start of a paragraph. Seven sentences brought me this:
I might be excited, too, if she hadn't already shown me lots of bits of stone and bone and shell that could have been anything and looked more like nothing--still, it's a chance to get back under shelter without her scoring any points. So I lift the crackling tarp and duck under the metal frame that holds it above the precious dirt.
"What?" I keep my voice flat, so she can't feel like she really has my attention--which is a waste of time because she doesn't notice. She's frantically sweeping the dirt away with a paintbrush, an artist caught up in a moment of frenetic inspiration, her nose inches from the handle's end.
"Shit!" she says. "It really is something!..."