|
|
|
"Writing a Winning Beginning" Few things in your writing life will frustrate you more than having a compelling story to tell and feeling unsure of where to begin writing. So you stare at that blank page. And stare. And stare. Sometimes it might help to write the story middle first. According to rumor, Truman Capote wrote the last chapter of a book first so he would know exactly where his story was going. But no matter where you begin writing, sooner or later you’re going to have to face writing that first page. Most readers ask themselves the following questions before they begin reading a story or a book. So before you begin to write ask yourself these questions. 1. What is the story type? 2. Is it set in the present, past, or future? 3. Where does the action take place? 4. Who are the characters? 5. How long will this story be? What type of story do you intend to write? Make that clear right from the start. A romance fan will be disappointed to find he’s purchased a hard-boiled mystery. And a mystery lover will be irritated to have picked up a romance, or a sci-fi by mistake. Play fair. Let the reader know right away what type of story you’ve written. Most readers assume a story is set in the present time unless you tell them differently. If you set your story in the past or the future, indicate that by giving a date or some other time-revealing clue. Where does your story take place? Sometimes readers search for stories or books with settings that whisk them to a different environment. Maybe they want to learn more about Alaska. Or South America. Most readers want to be lifted from their ordinary habitat. My mystery novels are set in Key West and I consider this an asset. At a writer’s conference, a man approached me with 3 copies of Conch Shell Murder, wanting my signature on each copy. “I buy every book I can find with a Key West setting,” he said. “I love them and I give them as gifts.” I refrained from pointing out that there were still 5 copies left on the table. So, writers, choose your setting carefully—especially if there’s a chance you may be starting a series. Right at the beginning, your reader will want to know about the characters he’ll meet in your tale—all of them, if possible. Impossible, you say. No, It’s possible, but you must plan for the meetings carefully. You needn’t have every character appear on scene during the story beginning. However, you’ll have a better chance of drawing your reader into your story and holding him there if you show off-scene characters by referring to them in dialogue. This prepares the reader to meet all characters, and this mini-introduction adds to the suspense of the tale. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule. Sometimes if a plot starts to lag, you can revive it by introducing a character the reader hasn’t met before. Use this technique when and if you need it. Maybe the most difficult part of writing a winning beginning is to do all the above mentioned things in the first fifth of your story. In a novel, the first chapter is considered the beginning. In a short story, the beginning is calculated by figuring the total length of the story. How many words to you intend to write? If you’re aiming at 3,000 words, divide that by 5. You’ll need to work the story-beginning requirements into 600 words. If you’re writing 1,000 words, then you have only 200 words to work with for a beginning. The shorter your story, the more of a challenge you’ll face in writing the opening. These rules, as all rules, are made to be broken. Consider them guidelines. Use them to help you get your story started. Check some published short stories to see if the author has conformed to these suggestions. If not, ask yourself if perhaps he had a good reason for ignoring some of the rules. Then ask yourself what his reasons might have been. Good luck!
Dorothy Francis © 2006 |
