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A Novel Beginning

Svrtnsse

Staff
Article Team
I'm now quite glad I'd already pretty much made up my mind about rewriting my first few scenes/chapter. I'm very guilty of a few of the "mistakes" mentioned. ;)
 
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Chessie

Guest
Thank you for sharing this. I'm glad to see the things they dislike are consistent. And I also didn't realize pastoral scenes are that common...I've only read one fantasy book in where a girl gathered apples in an orchard.
 

T.Allen.Smith

Staff
Moderator
You may start them any way you please. It is after all, your book. 8) Just don't expect literary agents to line up outside your door, according to this article....
 
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ThinkerX

Myth Weaver
This is the advice the literary agents give...

...yet decades ago, many of these openings were common (accepted), and...

...the big 'names' still use them or close varients thereof.

Deck be stacked against beginners.

That said...I've a couple of tales that start off in a battle, one in the middle (the action afterwards is the tale proper), and another at the beginning.

Empire starts off in a downpour...in daylight, with the characters looking for shelter. Not sure if that is too cliche' or not.
 
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GeekDavid

Auror
This is the advice the literary agents give...

...yet decades ago, many of these openings were common (accepted), and...

...the big 'names' still use them or close varients thereof.

Deck be stacked against beginners.

That said...I've a couple of tales that start off in a battle, one in the middle (the action afterwards is the tale proper), and another at the beginning.

Empire starts off in a downpour...in daylight, with the characters looking for shelter. Not sure if that is too cliche' or not.

Of course it's stacked against beginners. We can't have undesirables contaminating our nice comfy world of traditional publishing with their newfangled self-publishing ideas, can we?
 

Addison

Auror
Great article. True they're experienced agents, they've seen, read and done a lot. But I believe we've all found that in this job there's no real rules, not counting plagiarism. There are guidelines, nothing is set in stone.
 

brokethepoint

Troubadour
I thought the article was pretty good, although like everything else the rules can be broken. The thing is it is a matter of skill, I think someone with skills can take a cliche and really make it work.

Now if I was a crime writer my challenge would be to start a story with someone squinting into the sunlight with a hangover and getting killed in the first chapter. :D

I thought the first article listed below it was really interesting. What Does a Literary Agent Want to See When They Google You?
 

GeekDavid

Auror
Great article. True they're experienced agents, they've seen, read and done a lot. But I believe we've all found that in this job there's no real rules, not counting plagiarism. There are guidelines, nothing is set in stone.

And one of the guidelines seems to be that "big name" authors can get away with what gets a beginner a rejection letter.
 

Addison

Auror
Yea. With story beginnings I think, when you get experienced and well known, you can do more of whatever you want in the beginning because readers know your story is what they're looking for.
 
More established writers have the readers' trust to get away with more, sure.

But also, there's some assumption that if a pro uses a "cliche" he knows how to make it distinct, or even plans to subvert it. But the quickest sign of a newer writer is letting tired ideas slip into their story by accident-- and quick signs must be what those busy slush-pile-readers are desperate to find. Unfortunately, that means a tale that transcends a familiar start looks a lot like one that doesn't, at first.

Moral: if you're a no-name and want to play with those expectations, get your punchline in there almost before the setup. Open with "What, you thought I'd kill the dragon?"
 
Moral: if you're a no-name and want to play with those expectations, get your punchline in there almost before the setup. Open with "What, you thought I'd kill the dragon?"

This is pretty good advice even if you're experienced. Offer signs from the start that you're doing something different.
 

BWFoster78

Myth Weaver
And one of the guidelines seems to be that "big name" authors can get away with what gets a beginner a rejection letter.

A new author is searching for an audience. Every line has to compel a reader to move to the next line.

An established author already has an audience.

When I stumble across a random author on Amazon, I:

1. Read the description
2. If I like the description, I read the sample.
3. If I like the sample, I buy the book.

If I don't like the description, I'm off to the next author. When I'm reading the sample, I quit as soon as anything bothers me, and I'm off to the next author.

When an author who I read has a new book out, I buy it. The opening line doesn't matter. If I like the author enough, the topic of the book doesn't even matter.

Bottom Line: It's more important for a new writer to do everything "right" than it is for an established author.
 
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Chessie

Guest
^^ True. I select my books the same way. Its because an established author has already proved to us what they're about. I'll take Indie author Lindsey Buroker as an example. I came across her works on Amazon and downloaded "Flash Gold", the first book in her Steampunk novella series. Fell in love. I have not hesitated to invest in her other works since then, even though I bought the first book alone.
 
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