“It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.” –The Bell Jar by Silvia Plath
“It was a bright, cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” –1984 by George Orwell.
“My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973.” –The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold.
Opening sentences: a reader’s very first introduction to a text and everything it has to offer. They hook the reader, generate intrigue, and provide the framework your first scenes will rest in. In fact, some authors write such impactful first lines that they make on it the proverbial list of the best literary quotes of all time (think “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” from Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities).
The opening for your book is also vital to gaining approval from an agent or literary editor when you’re ready to publish.
Suffice it to say there’s a lot hanging on the words you choose for the first line of your book.
Where in the stars are authors finding such incredible opening sentences?
They aren’t looking for them—they’re writing them. Just like every other writing skill, opening sentences aren’t just lucky happenstances that bless random authors at will. First lines are a teachable, refinable skill that many great authors have honed—and you can too.
Why are opening lines so important?
The answer (or answers, rather) may seem obvious, but, just like in every other aspect of writing, you need to know what your goals are as far as the effect you’d like your book to have on your reader.
When I think of my favorite opening lines, I usually think of how they made me feel (it’s one of my favorite thrills of book reading).
Have you ever read the first sentence of a book and immediately been assured that it was going to be a good one? A great one even? Did it shock you, confuse you, pluck a heartstring you thought only you had? Those are the kinds of feelings you want to lend to your reader.
This is useful from a marketing standpoint—especially in an age of increasingly-shortened attention spans. The sooner you can pique your reader’s interest, the better. This is useful for readers who’ve already purchased the book (for most authors, writing isn’t just about making a sale but getting their voice out there!), but many potential readers and book-buyers will pick up your book and scan the first line to help determine if they’d like to read it.
“Writing a book is a long process, and, as you make your way through it, you’ll probably end up changing aspects of your book.”
Your first line can also carry a lot of weight with an agent or press, especially since their first glimpse of your work will rarely be a full manuscript—it will come in the form of a proposal and/or sample chapters (usually the first 1-3). Furthermore, bigger presses and agencies often have hundreds of submissions to sift through. If your book isn’t reading well early on, it may be rejected before an editor or agent reads through the rest of the sample.
Agents and literary editors are people, which means a great first line that intrigues readers is likely to intrigue them as well.
As far as publishing standards go, whether or not your book needs to have a punchy first line (or first chapter) has ebbed and flowed over time (currently, it’s trending up), but having a great hook to your book can never hurt your chances of getting a deal.
What makes a great first line?
It’s a part of your book’s framework
First and foremost, the first line of your book is, of course, a reader’s introduction to your book. The beginning of your book is intentional; your first chapter introduces your character(s), establishes the book’s setting and timeline, and some of the initial conflicts of your exposition.
Your first line needs to contribute to that. You can use it to set the general tone or mood for the book, or it may even do some foreshadowing. Essentially, your first line will set your reader’s perspective up for the rest of the book. They should learn something from this line
It packs a punch
A great first line isn’t shy about drawing the reader in. The examples above all use a sort of “shock factor” that makes the reader’s head immediately start spinning with questions (Why on earth would a clock strike thirteen? They did WHAT to the Rosenbergs? Who are they? I’m reading a book narrated by a dead girl?)
This generates the reader’s interest for obvious reasons; the questions that they now have spinning around in their head will guide them down the page as they search for answers.
Of course, this “shock factor” is not the only way to generate interest for your reader. Take the first line of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, for example:
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”
There isn’t much about that sentence that’s shocking and surprising relative to the examples at the top of this post, but it still leaves the reader with a series of questions.
Is it really universally acknowledged? Do I agree? Who is the man in question? What exactly do we mean by good fortune?
The point is that each of these starting sentences leaves the reader with more questions than they started with (and wondering where the book will take them next).
It’s framing
A successful opening sentence doesn’t just generate interest, though. It’s not just the reader’s first exposure to your book—it’s their first exposure to your story. And just like every other component of your writing, it should be intentional.
Use your opening line to start reeling your reader into the world of your book, whether it’s introducing them to the setting or tone, or hinting at the book’s conflict. Essentially, your first sentence should do something to help the reader get a feel for the book. Let’s pull some information from some of the examples we’ve been using:
“It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.” –The Bell Jar by Silvia Plath
Plath’s opening line establishes that the protagonist is in New York, perhaps after a major life change or otherwise unexpectedly. It also sets up a very poignant tone for the book.
“It was a bright, cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” –1984 by George Orwell.
Readers are intrigued by Orwell’s shock factor (the fact that clocks are somehow striking thirteen), but its matter-of-fact tone lets the reader know that, in the setting of the book, this is a normal occurrence. 1984 has been around for a long time, but, around the time it first came out, it would have been a quick hint to the reader that we’re in a dystopian novel.
It fits
It’s worth saying that, while your opening sentence carries a lot of weight, it should still have a seamless transition into the rest of your book. If the style of your book is more academic, your first sentence shouldn’t be too casual. If you’re attempting to emulate a certain style, you shouldn’t deviate from it in your first sentence.
For example, let’s pretend the text following Plath’s opening to The Bell Jar
sounded something like:
Sun shining. Central Park. I thought of where to go. But I couldn’t think of anywhere.
Of course, you’re allowed to vary your sentence structure, but several short sentences in a row right after Plath’s more complex opening sound oddly abrupt. The lines above also just don’t have the same ebb and flow and emotion that Plath’s does.
The bottom line: don’t try so hard to make your first line stand out that it does so—but not in a good way.
How to write a good opening line
Now you know what makes a great opening line. But writing one is easier said than done. Luckily, I’ve got some tips to get you started.
Wait until the end
It may seem counterproductive, but you’re probably not going to write the perfect first line as you’re just starting to write your book. In fact, some writers choose to begin writing in chunks that will make up the middle or end of their book. Others alternate between writing in order and focusing on chapters that they feel the most comfortable with. That’s normal!
Furthermore, no matter how you write your book, the book you have in your head may not be the one you end up with. Writing a book is a long process, and, as you make your way through it, you’ll probably end up changing aspects of your book.
Go ahead and take a stab at your first line when you get to it. But wait until you’ve finished writing at least the bulk of your book to go back and edit, rewrite, and revise it.
Write and rewrite
Just like anything else you write, attempting to complete the perfect first line on the first try is a lot of pressure—and unlikely. But it’s also just another part of the creative process!
Have fun with it. Don’t be afraid to try new and different things. You can also have several different versions of your first line handy so you can exchange them out as you’re deciding.
You can also recruit a trusted friend, family member, or writer group to see what they think. You spend many long hours working on your book, and you’re attached to it in a way no one else is. Someone with fresh eyes may have a better time deciding what sounds best.
Rules are made to be broken
In the writing field, we have a lot of conversations on what “works” or “doesn’t work.” This is to say sometimes a piece calls for an unconventional take. Sometimes a very simple, subtle line packs all the punch your piece needs. Maybe it even takes on a different style than the rest of your book.
Take for example Sebold’s The Lovely Bones. Imagine pitching to an agent or press that your book is the story of a fourteen-year-old’s murder from her own post-humous perspective. I would imagine that would make most people shudder, but the book did so well it was even made into a film starring Saoirse Ronan.
In conclusion, your opening line carries a lot of weight for your book. But, as long as you stick to your skills and what you know about your book, you’ll be able to find the line that works best for you. And, if you’ve tried a lot of directions that still aren’t working, maybe even try something unexpected.
