In a post on the Novlr blog, Kim Montgomery emphasizes the importance of a great first line. “People enjoy books best when they are invested, hooked, and intrigued from the start,” she says. “Nobody wants to work at ‘getting into’ a novel. You also really don’t want people feeling ‘meh’ after the first couple of pages and flipping back to their Kindle home screen to try another sample.”
Montgomery suggests nine ways to open your novel, including:
- Introducing your narrative voice
- Introducing your theme
- Opening with something odd or curious
- Setting the scene with immersive description
- Setting the mood
- Setting high stakes
- Shocking the reader
- Creating an emotional connection
- Being funny
