tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post1239328824662893538..comments2024-03-17T06:03:00.362-04:00Comments on Fiction University: In the Beginning: Which Type of Opening Works Best in a Novel?Janice Hardyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02356672149097741248noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-43090395292534680572023-10-16T10:21:54.607-04:002023-10-16T10:21:54.607-04:00Hmmm, that was Janice replying. It seems my log in...Hmmm, that was Janice replying. It seems my log in has gotten messed up. Janice Hardynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-68952150936352033012023-10-16T10:18:20.522-04:002023-10-16T10:18:20.522-04:00Thanks for the bookstore-perspective there! I'...Thanks for the bookstore-perspective there! I've never bought a book that way, but every reader has their own preferences. I've never put down a book for a ho-hum first line or page, but I've certainly set aside ones that were horribly written.<br /><br />The way I see it, it's another opportunity to grab the readers and get them hooked on the book. Will every reader be grabbed that way? Of course not, but why waste the opportunity? A great first line/page/chapter sets the tone and the expectations for the whole book, and getting off to a great start just makes it more likely the reader will buy the book and enjoy it.<br /><br />Nothing about writing is set in stone or a rule that must be followed. It's a tool to help strengthen the story and improve the chances of hooking a reader, agent, or editor. <br /><br />If a writer doesn't think first lines matter, then they are free to do what they want with them--same as every other word they write :) Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-19710457226799518692023-10-15T16:35:55.443-04:002023-10-15T16:35:55.443-04:00I always find this topic befuddling. The fact that...I always find this topic befuddling. The fact that the very first sentence must hold the power of decision-making makes every other sentence so less important. Every sentence in a story holds equal weight at keeping the reader entranced, or should. What if the first sentence was a real ringer and the next a dud. Then does the reader have permission to quit?<br />I have worked at a book store and seen how the human animal interacts with the overwhelming choice of stories on the shelves. Most people flip to some middle page and find a voice, a tone they admire. Only nerdy bookys depend on the first line like it was god’s own hand writing. Isn’t dependance on the first line more of a marketing scholastic wonky thing imposed by literary professors and publishing houses? Isn’t it a thing for writers to blame if their book don’t sell?<br />I may be an outlier but I have never bought a book because of the first line nor put one down because of it. I give a book ten pages at least. And, I purchase because of the authors voice found some where in the middle. Better, I believe, for writers to give every line equal effort, and give the poor first line a break.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-35727741796120854162012-08-05T21:27:26.580-04:002012-08-05T21:27:26.580-04:00I decide on instinct, but openings are easy for me...I decide on instinct, but openings are easy for me. It's keeping the story going that gets me. I am a visual writer, so typically I have the entire scene pictured in my head so vividly it's simply a matter of describing it.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01899031495802835361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-56132683711030294802012-07-30T19:15:59.715-04:002012-07-30T19:15:59.715-04:00I don't really get the issue with dialog leavi...I don't really get the issue with dialog leaving the reader ungrounded and confused because there's no context. In the examples given for internalization and description there's no more context than with the dialog. There's nothing indicating who is thinking, punching, getting punched, describing the sky, whatever. <br /><br />I see the lack of context in any of them as stimulating curiosity to find out what the context is, if it's done well. <br /><br />There's only so much context that can be put into the opening line anyway. Surely even today's impatient readers will allow you a few paragraphs to develop the context.R. E. Hunterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14439979667806333429noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-4416898053867201532012-07-30T16:36:29.518-04:002012-07-30T16:36:29.518-04:00I've seen it done effectively all three ways d...I've seen it done effectively all three ways depending on the story. For me, I don't write description well so know I probably wouldn't start a story that way. Thanks for the tips.Natalie Aguirrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03756087804171246660noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-40241572574050468542012-07-30T16:16:07.388-04:002012-07-30T16:16:07.388-04:00Wow, it's like you read my mind! I've bee...Wow, it's like you read my mind! I've been getting conflicting opinions on this. I started my novel with internalization and was then given advice to start with dialogue, so I changed it. I didn't like it enough, so I changed it back. This writing business is NOT as easy as those outside of it may think! lol<br /><br />Since this is my first novel, I want to make sure it's as perfect as it can be before submitting. As a result, it has taken me MONTHS to edit and re-edit. By now, I'm sick of reading my own story! :)Dawn Dixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03476466437552136087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-76268975607088599152012-07-30T14:55:12.159-04:002012-07-30T14:55:12.159-04:00When I first started writing, my natural inclinati...When I first started writing, my natural inclination was to open with dialogue, but I tend to open with description now to set the tone.<br /><br />My favorite opening sentence with dialogue is from Ender's Game: "I've watched through his eyes, I've listened through his ears, and I tell you he's the one."<br /><br />One of my other favorite openings actually comes from a book I dislike, Catcher in the Rye. Although I find Holden tiresome at best, the opening capture's the character's voice so well: "If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth."Lindshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16018358111540493236noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-85684073799788486862012-07-30T10:34:07.549-04:002012-07-30T10:34:07.549-04:00Two of my opening lines that work rather well acco...Two of my opening lines that work rather well according to my writing group are dialogue and internalization. I didn't really consider which type of opening to go with for either. The scene just sort of determined it.<br /><br />For the dialogue opening, I already knew the MC in my head and the scene I wanted to introduce her in. So I chose to hint at what she'd been putting up with for awhile by having insults shouted at her and then showing her reaction. Plus the insults also hint at her description, saving me from having to work it in elsewhere.<br /><br />For the internalization, that was pure instinct. I didn't even have a story yet. The line popped into my head while trying to come up with a story for a contest and bam! I had an MC, her mental attitude, and her situation and setting.<br /><br />I don't really have a preference in reading on what type of opening to use. It just depends on the story and how it's written. I've read good and bad examples of all three types. But in writing, I lean more to dialogue and internalization. Description is my weak area.Jaleh Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02467289924719654371noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901370917824739259.post-19609253563923053732012-07-30T09:34:05.778-04:002012-07-30T09:34:05.778-04:00For me, first drafts are written by instinct (beca...For me, first drafts are written by instinct (because I don't know enough about the story yet). Later drafts the opening gets a lot of thought. <br /><br />I think my favorite opening line is from `The Changeling Prince' by Vivian Vande Velde: 'Weiland woke up naked, in the snow, in a part of the forest he didn't recognize, with blood in his mouth.' <br /><br />You can tell right away that something is seriously wrong, the story is going to be a dark one, this character is in danger. I love when the opening tells you exactly what kind of story you're getting into.Chicoryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16504144663440678542noreply@blogger.com