How to write Introductions!

This is probably the biggest obstacle to writing.

How to start.

....

So anyways, here we go!

There's no second chance to make a first impression. You want to engage the reader right off the bat because you only have a few sentences to interest them before they decide your book is boring and put it down. Here's some ways to avoid this:

Start with tension

Now many writers misinterpret this with "start with action." But in reality starting a book with action when characters and motivations haven't been established, give the reader no reason to care why the actions is happening. A better way is to start with tension.

Tension is when your character is obstructed in some way or in simpler , is presented with a problem. Many great selling and well versed books start off the first few paragraphs with the main character experiencing a problem they can't solve, or a situation they failed to fix or prevent. This establishes a characters goals and what that character hopes to achieve by the end of the story. The reader doesn't care about your character achieving their goals at the beginning, because then theirs no point of reading the rest of the book.

Posing a question

This ties in with the theme of your book.

(Here's a link to a post further explaining that: Themes post! )

When posing a question to the reader, I don't mean having a question literally be your first line. But instead, describing something in a way that makes the reader ask a question. This is especially useful in the first line of a story.

For example: "My name is Sarona. I have an older brother, but people like to call him names like "soulless" because they think he's weird. But the only things that are around that are actually soulless are golems. Golems are monsters that rise from the grave."

See how flat that sounded? It's just listing facts of the story. Lists are boring. Stating facts early on are important, but not to the point that you give them an instruction manual before the story starts. The premise may be interesting, but the way it's worded won't hook many readers. But if you change it to something like this:

"I had heard the term 'soulless' used whenever my brother was around, but he hadn't died and risen from the grave like a golem would've."

Questions arise without actually asking a question in the intro. Who is her brother? Why do people refer to him as soulless? What are golems and why do they rise from the grave?

While doing this it's important to show signs of the theme in the first few lines to give the reader an idea of what they're getting into. The previous excerpt is the first line from a story that heavily revolves around death. Rising from the grave is mentioned in the first line as well as the main characters relationship with another big character in the story. She mentions how people treat her brother, but it's implied by the way she phrased her statement that she doesn't feel the same way and holds him to a higher regard. The way she casually mentions golems rising from the grave shows that this is a common occurrence that will likely be happening at several points throughout the story.

Presenting characters/ scenes

Now you undoubtedly want to show who your main character or characters are early on. But one way to NOT do this is having a wall of description. It's the same thing as making another list. lists are boring. That's an instant turn off and should be avoided at all costs, especially early on. Try to only focus on the most noticeable traits that will immediately be important.

For example: If your character has green eyes and that's the main way people identify her as being related to another character, then mention it right away. Is her hair color important? Not really. But don't focus on mentioning it right at the beginning of it's never relevant. Work it into different parts of the chapter little by little so not to overwhelm the reader. Also try to avoid starting with description alone. The first thing you describe your characters as is the way your readers will see them. Having your character look in a mirror and describe what their appearance is in the beginning, gives the impression that their looks are more important than their goals. This is because you as a writer decided it was more important to describe their appearance first, so readers will assume that's the most important thing about them.

Settings are like characters themselves, so you also don't want to have a huge wall of text to describe them. (Here's another post that helps further explain it in detail: Settings post! )

Describing them outright is the easiest way to clutter up your intro.

When describing a scene try to not be too blunt. Look for creative ways to describe color and linking visuals to metaphors and similes.

Metaphor- a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

"I had fallen through a trapdoor of depression,” said Mark, who was fond of theatrical metaphors"

Simile- a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (e.g., as brave as a lion, crazy like a fox )

This is the first step to setting up a scene. Wether it's a horse chase through the old west, or a crime scene a detective is getting ready to investigate.

"Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass."

– Anton Chekhov

Five types of openings

These are the five main types of openings seen it literature. All have been used successfully and unsuccessfully. Try experimenting with different openers for your story and see what works the best for you!

1. The teaser-

Only giving some information about the story ahead foreshadowing an event

2. The autobiography-

Starting with facts.

Ex:"I was born in 2341..."

3. The talker-

Starting with character dialogue

4. The announcer-

Starting in third person voice (she,he,they)

5. The scene settler-

Start with a scene description