Best of the Archives. Getting There From Here: 5 Ways to Jump-start That Opening Chapter

This post by Glynna Kaye first appeared in Seekerville on October 24th, 2012. Comments are closed today to catch up on our writing and reading.

Glynna here! This is a post I wrote almost 5 years ago, just as my fifth book was coming out. I’m working on #14 now and this topic is STILL a critical reminder for me with each and every book.

 

You’ve finally finished the book and are eager to send it to an editor or agent. But you rein yourself in, deciding to run your opening chapter by contest judges or a few trusted friends for feedback. Who wouldn’t relish the opportunity to bathe in the oohs and aaahs your masterpiece will elicit?
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But then...
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“The opening didn’t grab me.”
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“This is a sleepy first chapter.”
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“I don’t like the heroine/hero.”
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“I was confused.”
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“It wasn’t clear what the story is supposed to be about.”
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OUCH! That’s not at all what you expected.
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As you’ve probably heard many times, an editor or agent can often tell within the first five pages--and certainly by the end of the first chapter--if a book has what they and their readers are looking for. Yes, sometimes a rare editor/agent might request a full manuscript based on a query alone and “soldier on” through a lame opening, be delighted with the story, and offer a contract contingent on the author working with them to give the opening chapter a major makeover.
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But more often than not, few in the publishing industry will have the opportunity, time or desire to view your completed work of genius if it’s hidden behind a less than stellar opening chapter. Most ask first for a query. If the query’s concept grabs them, then they ask for a first chapter or maybe a proposal (3 chapters and a synopsis). Only if the opening catches their interest will they ask to see the entire manuscript. First chapters must GLOW.
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So today, let’s chat about FIVE ways to “get there from here” -- how to impart fresh or renewed energy into that opening chapter. 
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“The opening didn’t grab me.” Go to Walmart or Barnes and Noble and pull a few books off the shelf. Take a look at those first lines. Do some invite you to read on? Do you stifle a yawn as you place others back on the shelf? “Well,” you might say, “so-and-so-bestselling author doesn’t have great opening lines.” True. But most of us aren't yet in competition with that bestselling author whose loyal readership trusts they’ll “get to the good stuff” soon enough. You’re in competition with other aspiring writers to grab an agent’s and editor’s attention. They receive THOUSANDS of queries and submissions a month. Take time to make that first line and paragraph stand out from the crowd.

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“This is a sleepy first chapter.” Many times it’s because, well, nothing HAPPENS on the page in front of us. I don’t mean that you need to blow up a car, sweep through town with a tornado, or have someone pull a gun on your heroine. I mean that the characters aren’t engaged in dialogue or an activity that holds reader interest. The reader isn’t plopped into the middle of a conflict as the story opens. Instead, they’re watching the heroine gaze out the window as she ruminates, page after page, on what has led her to this very moment. Nothing slows down your opening chapter like a lengthy walk down memory lane. Keep it short and sweet--just enough to clearly anchor your reader. Sprinkle it in gradually on a need-to-know basis throughout the book. You may be surprised to learn that the reader doesn’t need to know every single detail of your character’s past that you do.
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“I don’t like the heroine/hero.” Very likely it’s because we haven’t laid the groundwork for our hero or heroine to elicit reader empathy. We haven’t made them three-dimensional. We may have an irritatingly angry heroine on page one, but haven’t slipped the reader into her head to hint at the whys of her behavior. We haven’t shown her doing something kind or considerate for another. We haven’t seen her from another character’s point of view who understands, likes and admires her. We haven’t given her a goal or motivation that readers can relate to.
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“I was confused.” Sometimes we know our own stories so well and have so much of it “all in our head” that we forget the reader doesn’t have that advantage unless we’ve plainly put it down in words. Make a point of establishing time and setting. Take care not to let your dialogue be reduced to “talking heads” without description, motion or emotion. Make it very clear, through deep point of view techniques, which character’s eyes we’re seeing a scene through. Don’t throw too many characters into the opening chapter so that readers have difficulty distinguishing between all the names and faces. Introduce them gradually.
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“It wasn’t clear what the story is supposed to be about.” You’ve heard of GMC, right?

Goal. Motivation. Conflict. What goal/dream is this character out to attain? What motivates them to work toward this goal? What stands in their way of achieving it? These questions are critical to an opening chapter, even if the initial GMC changes as the story gradually unfolds. You don’t have to fully disclose the deepest motive that will be revealed further along, but you can hint at it or provide a current motive that the reader will empathize with. Perhaps the hero himself believes his goal is one thing and he’ll later learn that it’s another. Or the opening conflict might only be the tip of the true iceberg. But that opening chapter needs to pose questions in a reader’s mind so that they are assured the story has a point and that it’s not going to wander aimlessly. They want to cheer on the hero and heroine and be able to recognize when the goal has or has not been achieved.
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What unexpected feedback on an opening chapter have you received from contest judges or a critique partner? What did you do to fix it? What other ways might you jump-start your opening chapter?
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By the way, I’ll let you in on a little secret... ALL of these points are comments I received from judges when, years ago, I first started entering contests for feedback!

Glynna

GLYNNA KAYE treasures memories of growing up in small Midwestern towns--and vacations spent with the Texan side of the family. She traces her love of storytelling to the times a houseful of great-aunts and great-uncles gathered with her grandma to share candid, heartwarming, poignant and often humorous tales of their youth and young adulthood. Her Love Inspired books--Pine Country Cowboy and High Country Holiday--won first and second place, respectively, in the 2015 RWA Faith, Hope & Love Inspirational Reader’s Choice Awards. “The Nanny Bargain” is on the shelves now, and coming in October is “Mountain Country Cowboy.”

The Nanny Bargain. Concerned for his orphaned twin brothers, outdoor-gear shop owner Sawyer Banks urges new employee Tori Janner to apply for the nanny position their grandparents are advertising…and spy for him. With plans to start over in Hunter Ridge and dreams of reviving her quilting business, Tori takes the job—but refuses to report to Sawyer unless the boys' welfare is in danger. But soon it's her own heart that's in jeopardy. Because after spending time with the committed bachelor, she starts to see the depth behind his easy charm—and begins to imagine herself as his wife…  Order Here!