How to Begin Your Novel
Key takeaways:
1. Your novel's beginning should include: POV, Protagonist, Theme, Setting, Mood, Hook, and Momentum.
2. The protagonist has a desire; an external force threatens it, prompting the protagonist to act.
3. Blend craft elements to create a compelling invitation for readers.
Writers are expected to include so much in their openings. It’s daunting. At the beginning of a story, within the first chapter, the writer must establish:
POV
Protagonist
Theme
Setting – Time and Place
Mood
Hook
Momentum
In Techniques of the Selling Writer, Dwight V. Swain offers the following insights on story beginnings:
- Concerning the “function of your story’s beginning…there’s going to be a fight…”
- “The beginning highlights three elements: desire, danger, and decision; what the character desires, the danger that threatens the achievement of this desire, and the decision the character makes.” The more intense the desire and the greater the danger, the higher the stakes, resulting in a more compelling opening.
- Initiate your story with change. First, establish the protagonist's status quo, then disrupt it. The repercussions of this disruption ignite "a fire that he can't put out," compelling him to take action.
- The inciting incident serves as the first domino in the sequence of external plot events that will drive an internal transformation in the character.
Let's assemble this concept. Initially, present a protagonist in their current situation. The character has a desire or goal deeply connected to the story's theme, and it often embodies the "lie" or misconception that the narrative will transform into the "truth." Failing to attain this goal carries significant consequences. [We all like to hold onto our lies; change is hard.] An external force endangers the protagonist's ability to hold onto that lie. This change disrupts the status quo, jeopardizes the goal, and compels the protagonist to make a decision. The inciting incident sets off a sequence of events (the plot) that drive the character's transition from lie to truth.
In Blackthorne’s Bride by Shana Galen, a novel nominated for the Best Long Historical Romance Rita Award in 2008, the opening line accomplishes several key objectives: it establishes the genre and setting, introduces the protagonist, defines the point of view, sets the tone, builds momentum, and suggests the theme.
“Lady Madeleine was going to make the best of this night, even if it killed her.”
Genre & setting: “Lady Madeleine” suggests a historical romance, likely set in England.
Protagonist: Lady Madeleine is an aristocrat.
POV: This novel is delivered in third person.
Tone: A driving tone promises a fast pace.
Momentum: Readers want to know why this night might kill her, and how she will make the best of it.
Theme: When faced with a difficult situation, our character vacillates between a negative and positive mindset.
This is all established in the first line. We don’t yet know what she wants, what threatens it, or what decision she makes when faced with that threat.
As a child, Lady Madeleine (Mattie) has an adventurous experience with her cousins and makes a pact never to marry. Years later, avaricious men court her, greedy for her dowry. She is a dedicated philanthropist. They want to marry her for her money; she wants her money to go to a good cause. Sure she will never marry for love (lie), she decides to marry for a shared purpose (goal). She meets a fellow philanthropist, a widower who needs a mother figure for his children. Mattie, whose unmarried time is running short (danger), wants to avoid avaricious suitors (desire), become a mother (desire), and partner with a like-minded philanthropist (desire). Certain she will never find love, she decides to escape the marriage mart, elope with a man who supports her endeavors, and nurture two motherless children. So she and the widower embark on a clandestine trip to Gretna Green.
Nothing turns out the way she expected. And, guess what, she meets and falls in love with a man who reciprocates her love, and they live HEA.
Another way to put it is that at the beginning, you must ground the reader by establishing the genre, tone, and setting. For example, a historical romance set in 1812 London immediately places the reader in England—flora and fauna, ballrooms, aristocracy, proprietary expectations, primogeniture, clothing styles, cuisine, the antebellum Napoleonic Wars—whereas an urban fantasy set in NYC with vampires demands a completely different set of images and expectations. Ground the reader by establishing genre, tone, and setting.
Establish the main character as interesting, engaging, and appealing, with a fatal flaw and a goal. Threaten the goal. The inciting incident must prompt a mental shift and spur the protagonist into action. At this point in the novel, recognize that the protagonist is making decisions to defend and perpetuate the lie.
Momentum, a driving force, propels the story forward, and the reader wants to ride that river. Hook your reader early, or risk losing them. Your best chance to invite the reader into your story world is the inciting incident: the event that pushes your protagonist to embark on the adventure the novel promises.
The elements of a strong opening may seem like individual ingredients, but they blend to create a delicious final product. All-purpose flour + eggs + sugar + butter + vanilla extract + baking powder + salt + milk = cake. Sitting down to eat a bite of cake feels very different from sitting down to eat a spoonful of vanilla extract. Blending these ingredients together creates the desirable final product. Some ingredients are used in greater proportion than others, but alone, they don’t make a cake. Some ingredients are used in smaller proportions, but without them, you won’t get a delicious result. Use good-quality ingredients, mix them in the right proportions, and handle them with care—no eggshells, please, because nobody wants to bite into baking powder.
Comments