Elliot Kessler

Writing the beginning of a story can be challenging, but there are some methods to help make it easier.

The beginning of a story can be tricky to write. There are many expectations that the reader has for the first chapter. They need to be hooked, they need to have intrigue, and they need to be immersed. That’s a lot to ask the author to do in one chapter. It’s a challenge. You’re introducing the reader to a new world (whether that world is an actual world, a setting in the real world, or a historical town) and new characters, and the reader expects both of them to grab their attention by the throat.

But how does one write a beginning that gets noticed by readers? It’s challenging to stand out among the crowd with so many books saturating the market. How can you promise your audience that your book is different and something worth reading?

Here are some tips I have found helpful for writing the beginning of a story.

Start Fast, Slow Down Later

I have read too many books that show the main characters’ dull, daily lives. Part of the basic, story-circle plot structure is to show what normal looks like in your world and for your characters. But that doesn’t mean it has to be boring.

Look at “The Commuter.” The opening scene communicates to the audience that the main character leads a dull, ordinary, almost meaningless life. But it isn’t communicated by the main character going through a regular work day, complaining about how dull his life is. It’s communicated through a montage, showing days throughout the main character’s life. Everything around the main character changes, but his life remains the same.

It stands out among most beginnings because, before anything else happens, we learn about our main character and the world he lives in during a fast-paced, quick montage.

But don’t go too quickly. It can be easy to lose your audience by going too fast during your opening. Whenever I recommend the book “Dune” by Frank Herbert to any of my friends, they often reply by telling me that they tried getting into it before but couldn’t get past the first chapter.

I don’t think “Dune” has a bad opening. When I read it, I was hooked, and I couldn’t stop reading. But there were a lot of things happening that would confuse audiences. There were tons of made-up words spoken without giving the readers a definition. Characters were doing things that didn’t make sense to the readers. Everything was moving so fast that the readers felt lost.

I did not experience this with “Dune.” I thought the mystery added to the intrigue. But most readers felt confused and dropped the book after the first chapter.

Going fast is a good thing for beginning a story, but ensure your readers follow at the same speed. That doesn’t mean they need to be spoon-fed exposition. It only means that the audience shouldn’t be given too many mysteries at once.

Start in The Middle

Another tactic I see many stories use is starting in the middle and going from there. One example is “Ender’s Game.” In the book, we open with Ender getting his monitor taken out. We have no idea what the monitor is or why he had one in the first place, but that’s where we start. It’s a great first scene, giving us a character to take us through a world we didn’t know much about.

As the chapter progresses, we see Ender going through his routine at school. Orson Scott Card used the made-up term “third” in this scene to not only help us get to understand the world but also to help us understand Ender. It was a brilliant move, showing that we are set in the future where the population is peaking, laws keep parents from having more than two children unless permitted by the government, and Ender is an outcast, shunned by this future society.

It creates intrigue, a world to explore, and a character to take us through, all because we began in the middle of Ender’s life. Not when he got his monitor, but when it was taken off. It was the end of his old life and the beginning of his new one.

Begin With a Short Story

Beginning with a short story as the first chapter can also be helpful. Think of “The Batman.” Does it start with the montage of crime in Gotham on Halloween night with Bruce Wayne narrating? Does it open with Batman going about his daily routine beating up bad guys? Nope!

We open with the Riddler stalking the mayor of Gotham, waiting for the right time to strike. During this sequence, we learn about the story’s world, the city of Gotham. We learn about the Maronie drug bust, and we learn about the upcoming election. We also learn about Bella Reál and her goals for Gotham if she is elected mayor. A lot is happening in this scene, but it plays like a short film.

We get a POV of the Riddler stalking the mayor through a pair of binoculars. We then see the mayor alone in his house, watching the news. We hear about the Maronie drug bust during a debate between Bella Reál and another candidate for mayor. The mayor mutes the TV when he gets a call on his phone. As he begins to pace the room, the Riddler is revealed to be standing in the shadows, waiting silently behind him. After the mayor finishes his call, the Riddler pounces, killing his victim.

This scene alone could have been an excellent short film as it establishes Gotham, its history, and its conflict. It also shows the audience that the Riddler is a real threat who isn’t messing around. We learn more about him, but not enough. He’s going after the mayor because he is trying to send a message. That much is evident in the scene.

Short stories are challenging because they force the author to fit an entire narrative into a small space. This is precisely why they make good openings for stories. If the first chapter of your book is a short story, the readers will understand what to expect for the rest of your novel. It brings intrigue and curiosity to the reader and quickly establishes the atmosphere. Because of their small word count, short stories are forced to get the readers invested in their characters quickly. If the same goes for the first chapter of your novel, then you should have no problem bringing your readers into your narrative.

Conclusion

While writing the beginning of a story is complicated, these tips should make it much easier. However, easier doesn’t mean easy. Finding the perfect beginning to your story will still be challenging. But keep at it! You will eventually come across something that works perfectly for your story.

Thanks for reading! Have a fantastic day.