Hooking the reader:
This is an example of and opening
line in a first chapter—the hook:
The
captain stood on the deck of his ship in torpid heat, slowly whipping his wife.
This was an example given to me
years ago by a publisher, and I use it all the time. A number of things cause the
reader to want to read—things that hook them.
1) What era is it?
2) Torpid heat? Where is it happening?
3) Why is the captain whipping his
wife? More curiously, why is he whipping her slowly?
The reader wants these things
answered. They are almost compelled to read on. Hook your reader in one or two sentences.
Don't confuse this with a tagline. That is the line that goes on your blurb and grabs the essence of your book in one or two sentences. It's the one thing that will make your reader want to buy your book.
Example of three great movie log lines/taglines:
Erin Brockovich – She brought a
small town to its feet and a huge corporation to its knees.
Silence of the Lambs – To enter the
mind of a killer, she challenged the mind of a madman.
Bonnie and Clyde – They're young,
they’re in love, and they kill people.
Hit the ground running:
The first paragraph is the next most
important thing, then the first page, but having said that, if the first five pages
aren't fantastic you will lose the reader. Most certainly, you will lose the
publisher or agent. They are very busy and can tell in the first paragraph if
they want you or not. Then they are more convinced when the first page is
great. However, that interest wanes if the second page doesn't deliver, but
they will probably forge on for another page. After that, it’s all downhill and
your MS ends up on the slush pile.
First thing:
Under “Chapter 1” put in the era or
year and location of the story in italics. It just grounds the reader, lets
them know where they are.
Put in the date you start the book,
for your own interest. (To be removed later.)
Make a Story
Outline:
This is a new file you open called
Story Outline for Concoctastory. (J
Bet that had you running to the dictionary)
Name of hero/heroine – hair and eye
color, height, build, defining features, age, scars, deformities, habits,
twitches, tastes, occupation, likes, dislikes, traits—good and bad, ambitions,
goals, obsessions, status in society, domicile, marital status.
In fact, anything you may need to
remember as the story unfolds. This will change as time goes on, but the
physical traits will probably remain the same.
As you write, add each character’s
name and physical appearance. It’s all too easy to forget that Joe had blue
eyes. One often errs and gives characters brown or green eyes later in the
book.
Minor characters, like a barmaid or
footman, don’t need a name if they only make one or two appearances. In fact,
it’s better to keep names to a minimum. Only add a description if you gave them
a specific thing like eye or hair color.
The names of ships, streets,
buildings and places must also go into this file as they crop up in the story.
Make a note of things like Elvis
borrowed $50,000 from Danny the hobo, or he gave Leonardo da Vinci a $1 tip for
opening his chariot door.
Be very careful to keep names
varied—don’t have Joe in love, working with or related to Jasmine, or worse,
Josephine.
Keep another file of cool male,
female, dog, cat or bird names. I make a habit of putting the alphabet in a
list form and use only one letter per memorable character—lesser characters
aren't important, unless their relationship is too close to the character they
relate to.
The author bio, query, synopsis, letter
for agents/publishers, plus back cover blurb and tagline go in another file.
All these files go into a folder
with the book title.
Writing needs preparation like anything
in life. There is only one problem, a story can take on a life of its own and
change direction—just go with the flow and enjoy the ride.
