Writers and readers alike pay a great deal of attention to the first sentence of a novel, and with good reason. For although this sentence is just 1/4285th of your novel (based on a 60,000 word novel with avg sentence length of 14 words) your first sentence gives your reader a first (and therefor weighty) impression of your novel. And just as first impressions go with people, if your reader doesn’t like what they see and hear in your first sentence, they’re likely to lose interest. So how do you create an interesting first sentence that really draws the reader in? Well, below are a few general ideas to get you going, along with some inspirational and famous first sentences from some of the best known and talented writers.
How to Make Your First Sentence Stick
1) Cause a Reaction – Many readers (particularly those who favor drama, mystery, and horror) want to be affected by their reading material- either emotionally or intellectually. When choosing their reading material, they are looking for something to entertain, shock, or even scare them but definitely to affect them in some way. So it only figures that one of the first things your average reader will be looking for is whether or not your first sentence affects them. Does it make the reader jump? Pause? Scratch their head? Any of these are fine, as long as the words provoke the appropriate reaction from the reader.
2) Open with Action – Now you don’t HAVE to do this and in my opinion I think this device lends itself to cliche too easily, but opening with action is a better way to get your reader’s attention than opening with a lengthy internal monologue. Common actions include: running, falling, stealing or taking an object, pushing or getting pushed by someone, escaping from a vehicle or building, injuring someone / being injured by someone, or kicking off a bout of hot, steamy sex.
3) Zoom In – If you want to start with a description (which the “action first” people will tell you not to) try a zoom-in beginning. You’re probably more familiar with seeing this sort of thing in the movies than on paper, so let me clarify how it works. Try and describe with your words what you’d see in a film that opens this way, starting with the big picture- an overall view of the setting- then closing in on your main characters (or at least the main characters of the opening scene). Some questions to answer: Where are we? What’s happening? Who’s there? What do they look like? What are they saying?
4) Dialogue – Opening with a bit of dialogue can be a great way to draw a reader in. The same folks who like to read about people are often the same folks who like to eavesdrop on people, so your reader will naturally be interested if you open with a conversation. However, (and this is very important) there are a few things to stay away from when opening with dialogue. First, try not to open with a mundane sentence like, “I’ll see you later.” This is not very interesting as it fails to give the reader anywhere to go. Try to choose something odd, awkward, or non-obvious that provides intrigue. Ambiguous details, tone, and flavored diction can help with this. “Give me back that key!” is better than the first because it creates questions for the reader: Why is this person shouting? What is the key to? Why was it taken? If your narrative is in first person you can also use a line of internal dialogue on behalf of your character which sets a precedent for your character’s views, tone, strengths, and flaws.
5) DON’T Start at the Beginning – Contrary to what Julie Andrews might have to say on the subject, the beginning is not always a very good place to start and in writing it is usually a terrible way to kick things off. Why? Because most of the time the beginning is not as interesting, or even necessary, as the bits which come later on in the story closer to the climax. Your reader doesn’t want to hear the long, drawn-out story of how your character lost their job. They might want to be there for the actual firing (a dramatic event) or the messy aftermath, but certainly not the normal 9-5 M-F work week where nothing happens. Most readers want to be thrust into a story that is already happening. This allows them to participate in the story, uncovering the details of the past slowly just as they would if they were thrown into a real life situation that was already in progress. So how do you know where to start then? Well, if you’ve already written a draft then re-read your story and pinpoint the part where things start to get interesting, where your attention perks up. Then chuck out the previous paragraphs or pages (I know this may seem difficult) and see if you need to modify anything you have left (chances are you won’t). If you haven’t written your story already, try to think of a scene before the climax where some kind of action is involved, preferably some of the rising action that foreshadows or hints at the more difficult overall situation your character has to deal with when they come to the climax later on. Now, this may take some tweaking, so don’t put off writing because you don’t know where to start. Start and then edit it back if you need to. Most importantly, keep yourself writing, even if you end up chucking out a lot of it at first in the editing process until you get the hang of things.
Famous First Sentences
All this happened, more or less. – Kurt Vonnegut Slaughterhouse Five
It was a pleasure to burn. – Ray Bradbury Fahrenheit 451
You better not never tell nobody but God. – Alive Walker The Color Purple
If I am out of my mind, it’s all right with me, thought Moses Herzog. – Saul Bellow Herzog
We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold. – Hunter S. Thompson Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Mrs. Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself. – Virginia Woolf Mrs. Dalloway
I write this sitting in the kitchen sink. – Dodie Smith I Capture the Castle
“It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.” – Sylvia Plath The Bell Jar
“It’s one thing to live in a small country, but the country of Inner Horner was so small only one Inner Hornerite at a time could fit inside, and the other six Inner Hornerites had to wait their turns to live in their own country while standing very timidly in the surrounding country of Outer Horner.” – George Saunders The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil
“Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun.” – Douglas Adams Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Feel free to leave your own favorites in the comments! Happy writing!
