How To Begin Your Story

So, you read my last post and have outlined, prepared, set time aside, and now you are ready to begin writing your story. Imagine this:

You’ve completed your first novel, and it’s sitting on the bookshelf of a local bookstore. An avid reader approaches your beautifully curated book cover and opens it up. She wants to see what the book is about. She reads the first page and…

You decide what happens next. A typical reader perusing books will move on if they aren’t immediately hooked.

You’re a writer. You want readers to be interested in your novel and owe your reader a solid story—beginning with page one.

This means you, Madam/Monsieur writer, need to set the tone of your story early.

It doesn’t matter how you start but make sure you hook your reader from the beginning. To help you along, here are a few tips to help you develop a solid beginning to your novel:

1. Begin in the Middle

   Not literally. But begin your story with something happening; or something that just happened.

   For the love of all things literature, don’t start with someone dreaming or a flashback. Make your reader feel like they are in the middle of something interesting. It will make them want to find out what happened.

   Layer in descriptions and settings as you go, but don’t start there.

2. Tell us about your protagonist early.

   Introduce your main character as soon as possible and tell us their name. Give enough information that the reader is intrigued and wants to know more. Tell us who he is, and introduce us to his problem right away.

3. Layers, please.

   Resist the urge to describe the setting. Be creative with your writing and layer in descriptors.

   This allows the reader to perceive your setting while focusing on the characters and plot. Show don’t tell. Weave in sound, smell, and texture while concentrating on the plot. Your readers will love you for it.

4. Be true to your writing style and voice.

   You can only be you. Write in your authentic voice. If you need help figuring out your writing voice. Download my free writing guide.

Write on,

Tamika