How do you make your first chapter interesting?
These writing tips will help you push through the block and ensure that your first chapter as rich and engaging as possible:
- Establish the tone. The first page of your novel should give the reader a sense of your story’s tone.
- Determine your point of view.
- Make sure your protagonist has a clear goal.
How do you start the first line of a story?
Learn how to hook your readers from the first page of your novel.
- Don’t start talking about the weather.
- Draw your readers’ attention.
- Put something in motion.
- Use short paragraphs and direct sentences.
- Set the time and space coordinates.
- Specify the rules.
- Leave the backstory for later.
- Learn from the best.
How long should your first chapter be?
From these numbers, we can establish some guidelines: the average word count of a chapter typically falls somewhere between 1,500 and 5,000 words, with 3,000–4,000 being the most common sweet spot. Does this mean that every chapter must end up somewhere in this range?
What should be included in a first chapter?
An ideal first chapter should do the following things:
- 1) Introduce the main character.
- 2) Make us care enough to go on a journey with that character.
- 3) Set tone.
- 4) Let us know the theme.
- 5) Let us know where we are.
- 6) Introduce the antagonist.
- 7) Ignite conflict.
How do you start off a chapter?
Here are some tips to help you begin chapters:
- Begin with action. When in doubt, begin the opening scene of a new chapter with action.
- Try a new point of view.
- Reveal new information.
- Include sensory details.
- Jump through time.
What is the first paragraph of a story called?
About Ledes. The introduction to a news article is called the ‘lede’ and is usually in the first paragraph as in an essay. The ‘lede’ is a deliberate misspelling of ‘lead’ to prevent confusion in the days when printing was done with lead type.
Can you start a chapter with dialogue?
The short answer is yes, starting your novel with dialogue is a viable option. There are many ways to open a story, and that’s one of them. But you want to do it in a way that helps the reader understand the story and its characters. You want to do it for the right reasons.
How do you introduce the main character?
How to Introduce Characters in Your Writing
- Don’t get bogged down in physical appearance.
- Give your character a memorable character trait.
- Start with backstory when appropriate.
- Introduce a character through action.
- Introduce the main character as soon as possible.