Ho-hum - huh? Orwell’s opening line creates a slight but immediate discordance that sets you up for an unsettling experience. “It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” - George Orwell, 1984 The stage is set for an unhappy beginning, middle, and ending. Somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning - and maybe the bed’s shoved up against the wall, and that attitude is a permanent condition. “Justice? - You get justice in the next world, in this world you have the law.” - William Gaddis, A Frolic of His Own The author of the Chronicles of Narnia no sooner introduces by name a new character in the latest installment than, in just five more words, he succeeds in telling you everything you need to know about him. “There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it.” - C. A spot-on metaphor expresses the story’s nihilism, letting you know what you’re in for and lugubriously inviting you in. Oh, by the way, just in case you missed the forecast? Don’t expect any fluffy bunnies or fragrant blossoms or dulcet giggles to show up in this seminal cyberpunk story. “The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel.” - William Gibson, Neuromancer Chesterton, The Napoleon of Notting HillĪstute observations accompanied by a implied sigh of disgust are tricky to master, but Chesterton, one of the most multifaceted men of letters, lights the way for you with this sample of the form. “The human race, to which so many of my readers belong, has been playing at children’s games from the beginning, and will probably do it till the end, which is a nuisance for the few people who grow up.” - G. “‘Take my camel, dear,’ said my Aunt Dot, as she climbed down from this animal on her return from High Mass.” - Rose Macaulay, The Towers of TrebizondĪre you in the mood for amusement? This opening line makes it clear that farce is in force.
Here are some strategies, accompanied by exemplars from literature, for making the first line of your novel or short story stand out so that the reader can’t help but go on to the second and the third and so on to see what else you have to say: 1. 20 Great Opening Lines to Inspire the Start of Your Story By Mark NicholĪs Glinda the Good Witch says in The Wizard of Oz, “It’s always best to start at the beginning.” That’s where editors and literary agents generally get going, so perhaps you should, too.