How the Opening Scene Can Make or Break a Book

Have you ever read a book that grabbed you from the first sentence and never let go until “The End?” Have you ever been so captured by the opening scene that you reread it? Those are books with good hooks.

I’ve often read that an editor will decide whether or not to acquire book based on the first page. Some say the first five pages; some say the first five paragraphs. The point is, the opening scene can make or break a book’s snagging that longed-for contract.

The same buy-in is true for readers, although I believe most readers give authors a better chance than the first five paragraphs.

At a writers conference I attended a couple of years ago, there was panel of editors who read along as someone read aloud the opening scenes of several manuscripts . As each was read, a panel members would call “Stop” at the point where he or she would reject the story. Then they would tell why. If the reading of a work-in-progress (WIP) made it to the end of the page, the hopeful author was jubilant.

Most weren’t.

Here are opening lines featured in the blog 83 Opening Lines Of Famous Books That Will Make You Want To Read Them Now:

(In today’s industry, I believe Nabokov would have the edge.)

This is why the importance of the first scene—even the first line—is so crucial. Editors look at countless manuscripts from countless hopeful authors every day. An author has to grab the editor right away with a powerful hook.

Okay, I’m going to make a confession here. Writing the first scene is one of my biggest weaknesses. Of the six books I’ve published, I want to rewrite the opening scene of two of them. No, I won’t tell you which ones LOL.

Based on feedback from my two writer friends, Annie O’Rourke and Linda Fletcher, and a one-on-one critique with New York Times bestselling author Cindy Dees, I’ve totally revamped the opening scene of my WIP Exposed. (That’s currently the working title. Titles matter, too.)

These days, time to spend with a book is precious, so my opening scene better have a hook that grabs the reader and makes her/him want to stay. But a good opening isn’t only to grab a reader, it’s the foundation of the rest of the story.

Writing an opening scene is choosing the right color for your front door. I want it to beckon, to invite, to seduce. But it’s also like laying the foundation so it’s sturdy and holds up the rest of the house.

Perhaps all I can do is this:

The examples I’ve used for opening lines are from classics. But good opening lines can be found everywhere.

What is the opening line from the book you’re reading right now?

What is a favorite opening line from a book you’ve read?