#Writers Page 1 of your book: “Open,” say’s me! – Part 1a

Why do I think a two-part blog post on the opening of your book is worth posting? Just how important can the first page be?

The power of the opening line or paragraph cannot be overstated. These are the first words a reader will see, so that paragraph can serve many purposes, like introducing the world, characters, or plot while giving readers an attention-grabbing taste of your writing.

http://authornews.penguinrandomhouse.com/what-our-editors-look-for-on-an-opening-page/

That answer is from What Our Editors Look for on an Opening PageBy Phil Stamper-Halpin/July, 2016 on Penguin House Publishing’s website. The emphasis is mine. The “cannot be overstated link” should take you to “53 of the Best Opening Lines in Literature.” If not, try this version of the link: https://goo.gl/SsgfhH. 

Since the goal of most writers is to have their book published, it makes sense to pay attention to what publishers have to say about what they look for in the books they accept.

This blog post gives you a chance to “play along” by writing an opening based on an opening line. I’ll provide. But first, see how another blog post “Why Editors Focus on Page One” (https://www.janefriedman.com/why-editors-focus-on-page-one/)deals with this issue. This was posted on June 10, 2013 by Darcy Pattison.

Here’s an opening from the memoir Breaking Night by Liz Murray.  

I have just one picture left of my mother. It’s 4 x 7, black-and-white, and creased in different places. In it, she is seated slightly hunched, elbows touching knees, arms carrying the weight of her back. I know very little about her life when it was taken; my only clue is written in orange marker on the back. It reads: Me in front of Mike’s on 6th St. 1971. Counting backward, I know that she was seventeen when it was taken, a year older than I am now. I know that Sixth Street is in Greenwich Village, though I have no idea who Mike is.

What do you know about the story from just this much text?

Place: New York City
Time: 1986
Tone/Mood: Reflective, remembering, possibly nostalgic
Point of View: First-person narrator 16-years-old, assumed to be female
Content of text: It’s about a black and white picture of the narrator’s mother.
Genre: Mystery. Who is Mike? Why is there only one picture of her mother left?
Audience: Young Adult/Teen to Adults

Is there any place where the reader is confused? No, it’s clear.

Is there an information dump? There is a lot of information here, but it doesn’t feel like a dump—yet—because we are also getting a feel for the character of the story. That gives the author some leeway to put in lots of information, while still keeping everything balanced.

The articles referenced above echo the same message. 

How well do my books fare on the list from Darcy Patterson’s article?

I’ll answer the questions for one sample and you can do the same for the second sample.

Sample 1.

INSECTICIDE – A Science Fiction Thriller

Among the hundreds of trillions of stars in the tens of billions of galaxies in our universe, there are millions of planets. All have a history. Few have records of their existence. Bafwique is one of those few.

Cor’a of Bafwiquefrom 

Early History of The Reunited Planet

Interlude 1

In the Recent Past

Intergalactic Alliance

Intelligence Report

IAC3Date: **/**/**.**

Subject: Planet #Da-586.0-GMC-boo0E

Local Designation: Blue Planet

Partial Transmission intercepted by surveillance probe ******** 

Do you have a report?

Yes, Sir. The blue planet, *** one we’ve been approach*** for several light years, we **** a preliminary report on *** *iomass and species composition.

Good work***artic***rly from this distance. Those **difications to the scanners you developed ...

Translated by universal translating software 

developed by the Intergalactic Alliance

3   Dates on all Intergalactic Alliance reports are from the Intergalactic Alliance Calendar (IAC) and are redacted as part of the Author’s permission to access their databases. IAC protocol mandates truncating/redacting most documents, as is this Intelligence Report, when they are declassified.

The clicking sound echoed through the ship, although the crew couldn’t “hear” it. Organisms without ears don’t hear in the human sense. In spite of that, the Captain turned toward his Science Officer as she approached.

Place: Somewhere in space
Time: ??, probably doesn’t matter
Tone/Mood: A bit of tension, but nothing stands out as the prevailing mood.
Point of View: Third person. Additional information is provided by a cited reference source
Content of text: Space explorers.
Genre: Science Fiction
Audience: Young Adult/Teen to Adults

Is there any place where the reader is confused?I don’t think so. The sample ends with an obvious plot point set up.

Is there an information dump?The information provided leaves the reader wondering about what will happen next.

It’s okay if you don’t agree with me, although I hope you do, at least in the answers to the two questions at the end. 

Now it’s your turn. I chose this sample because it’s the same genre as INSECTICIDE.

Sample 2.

The Observers – A Science Fiction Odyssey

The Observers - Prologue

Let the Games Begin

THE BURST OF laser fire scorched the wing of the Glieseian spacecraft as it made its retreat.  The two Glieseians inside the craft breathed a collective sigh just before their communication system crackled to life.

“I know you two under-bodied, oversized-brainiacs can hear me, probably without this comm setup,” Haa-Ringg growled. “If you think you’re lucky I missed you with those laser shots, think again! That was a warning. Come poking around our planet again and we’ll vaporize you. 
”Zerpall, the ship’s pilot, stole a quick glance at Mxpan, his Supervisor, in the seat beside him. Mxpan’s two large eyes stared straight ahead, oblivious to the pilot’s action. Zerpall skillfully manipulated the ship’s controls with his tiny, trunk-like arms, replacing the random zigzag pattern he had been employing during their escape with a more direct trajectory toward his home planet.

“If you, or any of your brainiac buddies, return to TauCeti, rest assured there will be no close misses of the craft in which they will die—vaporized in the vacuum on space—with no survivors to mourn the loss of their pitiful lives! Remember, we have your DNA.”

There was a sharp click. Sepulchral silence crept in and filled the void.

“I don’t think our mission ended well,” Zerpall offered after what he felt to be an appropriate interlude.

“Your gift of understatement is legendary,” Mxpan retorted.

Place:
Time:
Tone/Mood:
Point of View:
Content of text:.
Genre: Science Fiction
Audience: 

Is there any place where the reader is confused?

Is there an information dump?

You’ve seen two examples and evaluated another. It’s your turn to write your own opening. 

1. Select any of the following versions of the prompt below. All versions have the same focus. There is a difference in degree.
2. Write the rest of the opening to a story.
3. Any genre.
4. Write 150-750 words.

The front door wasn’t latched.

The front door was open.

The front door wasn’t closed tight.

The front door was ajar.

“The front door’s open.”

I wrote an opening to the bolded prompt below. I’ll post it in a blog post on Saturday, April 6.

First line. The front door was open.

• What’s next?

You write the action. My first version is 361 words.

• First version?

I’ll explain in the next #Writers post.

The next blog focuses on another aspect of this topic. At the end of that post, I include the opening to a second story in a different genre. 

SEO: book opening, opening line, set the stage, introduction

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