The Power of Your Novel's First
Sentence
by Joseph Suggs
Here's what happens (and I bet you do this too): a book jumps
out at you at the bookstore. It might be the colors, an image
on the spine, an author's name, or the title, but something
draws your attention and you single the book out of the masses.
You glance at the cover, turn it over and read a few lines of
the back cover copy. You open the book and read a little of the
inside jacket copy, then turn to the first page, and ... You
read the first line. Which sucks, so you close the book and
return it to the shelves. That's it. That's how much time you
have to hook the interest of readers today.
If your first sentence doesn't capture a reader's imagination,
that reader is off to the next novel. Of course, if you're John
Grisham or Stephen King, readers will cut you some slack and
stick with you longer. You've already gained their trust in the
past, so a poor first sentence is forgiven. But if you're just
starting out and looking to build an audience, that first
sentence is your calling card. It's your first, and often only,
chance to make an impression.
So what makes a great first sentence? Fortunately, you have a
variety of choices. The two primary hooks for a powerful first
sentence revolve around character or action. There are a
handful of others. However, for the purposes of this article,
we're going to focus on these two. Let's take a look at action
first. Action refers to movement. Tension, action, conflict ...
these are fairly interchangeable terms. The point with an
opening action sentence is to immediately grab your reader by
the shoulders and give him or her a shake. It's like the first
drop in a great rollercoaster ride ... there's no turning back
because you have your reader's complete attention.
Here are some samples:
The bomb went off under the table of the corner booth at
Mindy's Coffee Shop, where Judge Arnold Cummings ate breakfast
every morning at precisely 8:35. - Sheila Hamilton tugged
desperately on the reins but she'd already lost control of the
panicked Morgan and it was clear that something bad was about
to happen.
As the car flipped down the embankment, George Luther couldn't
help wonder what else could possibly go wrong today.
A moment before the lightning strike would change his life
forever, Malcom Zebrowski was celebrating his thirty-third
birthday with a group of people he'd never met before
today.
These samples immediately pull the reader into the movement of
the story. Your reader not only wants to know what happens
next, but in all likelihood, a number of questions have already
sprung to mind, begging for answers. For example, in our first
sentence ... was the bomb meant to kill the judge? If so, why?
Who planted the bomb? What lead up to this moment? These are
all legitimate questions that encourage your reader to keep
reading. And that's the whole point of a powerful first
sentence ... hook the reader.
So let's take a look at some character openings. These are
based in character descriptions that create curiosity. Your
reader finds this particular character so quirky or interesting
that he or she just has to learn more. Here are some
samples:
Emily Bauer was tiny in stature, standing only 4'-11", but she
feared no one and those who crossed her spent the rest of their
days glancing over their shoulders in dread.
Max Ristow spent most of his life coping with migraines, until
the day he met his dead sister on a beach in Monterey.
Howard Duncan dragged his right leg when he walked, the result
of an accident that had killed both of his parents when he was
six and left him with permanent nerve damage to the right side
of his body.
Some people called her a saint, some a sinner, but most people
considered Tammy Hathaway a woman of her word. Curiosity.
Wanting to know more. Wondering who this person is and how he
or she ended up here. These are all pieces of the character
puzzle that a strong opening sentence can kick into gear.
So there you go ... two opening sentence strategies to make
your novel irresistible to the casual reader. A good opening
can be your book's greatest champion. Give it the love and
attention it deserves.
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