Great First Lines of Novels
Problems and Questions Make Compelling Openings
A great opening will pull readers into your novel and not let them put it down. Here are ways to develop problems, questions and "uh-ohs" in your first lines.
As novel writers, you have only a few pages to grab your readers’ attention. When you can hook them with the first paragraph, it’s even better. Here are some great openings from various genres, some bestsellers or award winners, some not. This article focuses on setting up the plot with problems, questions, and the “uh-oh” factor. You can also Write Compelling Opening Lines using the deeper layers of character, setting and mood.
THE UH-OH FACTOR:
This is your chance to hook your reader with a single, bold statement, usually one that has some shock value. Whether your readers laugh or gasp or worry, it usually makes them say “Uh-oh” and need to read more to find out what happens.
“He should never have taken that shortcut.” (Michael Crichton, Timeline)
“It wasn’t a very likely place for disappearances, at least at first glance.” (Diana Gabaldon, Outlander)
“I don’t think my stepfather much minded dying. That he almost took me with him wasn’t really his fault.” (Dick Francis, To the Hilt)
“The second time Ian Dunne came into my life, I was trapped under a pile of bodies, behind a sheet of plate glass.” (Lee Nichols, Hand Me Down)
“On the morning of her ninth birthday, the day after Madam Francoise Derbanne slapped her, Suzette peed on the rosebushes.” (Lalita Tademy, Cane River)
THE PROBLEM:
This opening takes more than a single sentence, but sets up the story’s problem immediately. You may develop the setting, character, or mood at the same time, but the main thrust is to show a character in trouble, pulling your reader in for more.
“The gale tore at him and he felt its bite deep within and he knew that if they did not make landfall in three days they would all be dead. Too many deaths on this voyage, he thought, I’m Pilot-Major of a dead fleet.” (James Clavell, Shogun)
“Three days ago Emily Thompson had been Southside’s heir apparent. Every soldier in the city had been hers to command. Now the guards outside her door were the only people she had seen since her arrest.” (Sean Stewart, The Night Watch)
“He hardly felt the hit, but he heard it. The muffled roar shook the stick slightly, and he looked out to see the end of his right wing shatter and flake away.” (William Diehl, Thai Horse)
THE QUESTION:
If your story doesn’t lend itself to starting in the middle of the action, try setting up the situation while leaving your reader with unspoken questions.
“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you’d expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn’t hold with such nonsense.” (J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone)
“I woke this morning with a stranger in my bed. The head of blond hair beside me was decidedly not my husband’s. I did not know whether to be shocked or amused.” (Tracy Chevalier, Falling Angels)
“You weren’t supposed to have favorite children. If there was one thing Margaret Porter knew, it was that nothing could divide a family faster than showing favoritism, even in the most minor circumstances.” (Luanne Rice, Dance with Me)
These paragraphs go on, but the reader is already hooked: What strange or mysterious thing is going to happen to the Dursley’s? How could the woman not realize she was sleeping with a stranger, and why didn’t she know how to react? Why did Margaret secretly have a favorite child, and what happened because of it?
Make that first line a real attention-grabber, and let details of your plot and setting wait for the next few paragraphs. You’ll have a great start on your novel.
