Writing Fantastic First Lines

Have you ever been hooked by the very first line in a book? Have you ever marveled at the opening lines best-selling authors write? Today, we’re going to examine several first lines and discover what secret (or not-so-secret) ingredient draws the reader in and never lets them go.
 
 
 
Opening lines and quotes from books

The first question I want to ask here is: Why? Think of some of the questions you ask yourself as you read these other opening lines. And I know I included two sentences there. Occassionally, I will, because second lines can be very important too.

Opening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from booksOpening Lines and quotes from books

Some of these opening lines are short and snippy, others long and lyrical. Some instantly start with dialogue, others don’t have dialogue for pages. So what do they all have in common? Where’s the Wow Factor?

Each and every one makes you ask questions, but not mundane questions like: What will Sally cook for dinner? The intriguing questions presented in these opening lines practically demand to be answered.

“They all end with an invisible question mark.”

-K.M. Weiland in Structuring Your Novel

Something else that most of the opening lines imply is that something’s amiss. Either something has gone wrong or possibly will go wrong, though there are a few exceptions such as in Perfected and The Selection. Nothing appears to be wrong, but there is something life-changing that’s about to take place.

In the comment, try to write your own opening line. Here are a few I came up with:

Opening Lines for Writers Opening Lines for Writers Opening Lines for Writers Opening Lines for Writers Opening Lines for Writers

(No, I did not make all of these extraordinary pictures myself. I used

a fantastic program called http://www.quotescover.com)

What are some of your favorite opening lines? What other elements do you try to include in your first lines when you’re writing?

Recent Comments

  • Laurie Lucking
    March 16, 2016 - 8:34 pm · Reply

    Fun post, Liz! One of my favorite first lines is from Ella Enchanted (shocking, right?!): “That fool of a fairy Lucinda did not intend to lay a curse on me.” I love that it gives Ella some spunk right in the first line and gets the reader asking so many questions.

    One thing that bugs me about some books, though, is when they try so hard in the first line and then fall a little flat afterwards. For instance, I can think of a book where the first line or two sounded really exciting, but then it turned out the main character was in the middle of a fencing lesson. It felt very contrived to me, and in cases like that I think I would prefer a less interesting first line that’s more consistent with what’s actually happening in the scene.

    • Elizabeth Newsom
      March 28, 2016 - 4:17 pm · Reply

      Thank you! 🙂

      I know what you mean. I suppose the rest of the story has to live up to the first line.

      Thank you for the comment!

  • Hannah
    March 19, 2016 - 4:59 am · Reply

    I agree with Laurie that first lines have to be good hooks, but they also have to follow through. Honestly, I know this is something I really have to work on for my story.

    • Elizabeth Newsom
      March 28, 2016 - 4:18 pm · Reply

      It can be hard. I mean, you want to have an awesome, riveting first line, but then the rest of the story has that standard to live up to.

      Thank you for your comments, Hannah! I love reading them 🙂

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