First Lines



The question that often plagues beginners is how to start a novel? Where do you begin? What is the first line?

Graham Greene said it best in The End of the Affair ‘A story has no beginning or end; arbitrarily one chooses that moment of experience from which to look back or from which to look ahead.’

This is a good starting point. One thing you can be sure of as a writer is that the first line you write now is going to change many times before you are satisfied. It will evolve with time. As the novel progresses you will discover your voice, you will find what it is that you wish to tell the reader. What is the essence of your novel? What is the fundamental question? It has to be a hook that will draw the reader into your story.

Tip: Get books off your bookshelves and read all the first lines of the novels you like. At the very least they will inspire you. No one can come up with your first line, but it helps to be inspired.

My favourite first lines:

A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth

‘You too will marry a boy I choose’ said Mrs Rupa Mehra firmly to her younger daughter. (Who says you can’t start a novel with dialogue?’

The Outsider by Albert Camus

Mother died today.(Keep it simple. Go straight to the point)

The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai

All day, the colours had been those of dusk, mist moving like a water creature across the great flanks of mountains possessed of ocean shadows and depths. (Experts say - Never start with the weather- wrong!)

The classics are full of famous first lines:

‘It was the best of time, it was the worst of times’ (A tale of Two Cities Dickens)

‘It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must in want of a wife.’ (Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen)

 Be inspired. Write. Make a start. Today!!

Please share your favouritte first lines or comments below.

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