Starting At The Very Beginning...

I've been giving some serious consideration as to where my story begins. 

I don't mean just chronologically. 

I mean the first sentence. 

How will I pull my readers in and hook them to carry on and read all of the sentences which follow?

I recently read a great post by AJ Flowers about making sure a book makes a good 'first impression', which started me thinking about how and where and when to start my story - because that will determine what will become the important first sentence.

In his article 'The Chain Of Awesome' in the July/August issue of Writer's Digest, Jeff Somers captures what makes a great opening line, what draws the reader in and makes them want to carry on reading the rest of the book. He talks about the need to create mystery, and gives some great examples of where that has been done well, and not so well.

So, whilst I'm still developing my own story, and I'm not even sure exactly which will be my opening scene, I thought I'd have a look at some existing openers, and see how other people did it. Some of these I have read, some I've not - but you can be sure that they're on my reading list:

Priestess of the White - Trudi Canavan
"Auraya stepped over a fallen log, taking care that no crinkle of crushed leaves or snapping of twigs betrayed her presence"
We have a name. We know that the owner of that name is doing something clandestine, that she is in an area which is wooded - or at least outdoors - that it is quiet and that there is danger that she might be heard. 
We want to know - who is this person with the unusual name? Where is she? What is she doing, and from whom is she hiding? Where is she trying to get to?

The Left Hand Of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin
"I'll make my report as if I told a story, for I was taught as a child on my homeworld that Truth is a matter of the imagination"
We know that someone has something to report - something has happened. We know that they are a grown up, and that they are from another planet. We know that their idea of 'Truth' may not be as clear cut as we would expect here. And we know that we are going to be told a story.
We want to know who the narrator is, where they are from, what has happened and who they are reporting to. We want to know more about this 'homeworld' - where truth and imagination are allies. Are they on Earth now, or some other planet?

Hold: Hold & Hide Book 1 - Marilyn Grey
"My sister would do better than me."
We know that the narrator has a sister, and that there is possibly some rivalry, certainly some tension. We know that the narrator has to do something.
We want to know who the narrator is, what it is that they have to do, what their relationship is like with their sister, and why they think their sister would be better than them at the task at hand. 

Last Tango In Aberystwyth - Malcolm Pryce
"The spinning-wheel that Sleeping Beauty pricked her finger on arrived in Aberystwyth around the middle of the seventeenth century"
We know that in this world, Sleeping Beauty and her Spinning Wheel are real, we know that Aberystwyth is likely to appear in this story.
We want to know how the spinning wheel is going to be relevant, we want to know what century we are in, and where about, and we want to know who is telling the story. Are we getting a fairy story?

Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
"It wasn't a very likely place for disappearances, at least at first glance."
We know that someone or something has disappeared - and that it was unexpected. Or was it? The line tells us that a mystery is about to unfold.
We want to know where the 'place' is, what makes it unlikely as a site for disappearances. What will we find out about the place if we look a bit closer? What or who has gone?


What all of these first sentences contain  - as Jeff Somers pointed out - is intrigue. They give you just a little glimpse of what's to come - the scene, the character, a hint at the plot - and then stop. Want to know more? Well, read on....