Guide to Writing

Writing Tip 8: Introductions

Chapter written by AliciaM21

Many struggle with trying to start a book; whether it's just length, greeting characters, or where to start.

Before you begin writing, the best way to start is by thinking of how your story will begin. Usually start with the basics by asking yourself some questions such as the following:

Where are the characters? How are they reacting to the current situation? What is happening? When did this happen? Who is there?

Asking yourself some basic where's, how's, what's, when's, and who's will help you build up what the chapter is about.

Then you figure out how to start it by trying to put these together.

The best way to begin a story is with some action - no, it does not have to be explosions or gun shots or something of that kind. It has to be some sentence that grabs your attention; the very first sentence and paragraph is very important to start. It can be a single word that is powerful, it can be a sentence that makes you wonder what'll happen, it can be a quote of some kind, or it can even be a question.

But it needs to start with something that grabs right at you. The rest of the story needs to pull you further into it.

Greeting characters
Try to avoid too much detailing of the character, such as describing their appearance or back story in a big sum. You can say who they are and a part of what they look like, but saying a whole lot about their appearance and back story makes it an info-dump and doesn't grab readers because it gets boring.

So maybe say that Sarah has dirty blonde hair in chapter one, and bright green eyes in chapter three, and she has pale skin in chapter four... you see? Same thing with other characters, too.

And you don't have to detail it when they're looking in a mirror or something like that. For instance, if Sarah is looking at her friend, Josh, she can say: "Josh continues to spike up his pink hair with the hair gel."

Length
Many people like short chapters; however, having short chapters in the beginning of the book doesn't always appeal to readers because it can end too abruptly. You can try to make the first few chapters "short" by making it around three or four pages, but in general, chapter length is different for all books. This is because of genre - a science fiction novel might be shorter than a fantasy novel, and stories in these genres are typically longer than a contemporary romance.

Nonetheless, it will not make a difference if the author chooses to write something longer or shorter - the judgment is from the author themselves for preference and what they think is best for their book. Try not to focus on quantity. If you make a really good and compelling work and your readers like it enough to continue, they will want more. They won't care how long it is if they like it. Focus on quality because that will make your readers want to read more.

What others have had to say
xFakingaSmilex "Break down your description and slowly mix it through a chapter. It's better to have short details that are prompt throughout the story than one lump sum. People tend to forget specific details or skim over them.

Write what you feel is best and worry about the word count later. If you push yourself to meet a certain criteria, it could affect your story in the long run." 

ViktoriaRay "When introducing a character, give the details you would notice if you were standing face to face with them. You wouldn't know every little inch of their life, but certain physical traits and some personality traits would definitely stand out. As you continue your story, you can explore the deeper layers of your characters." 

Ammelia11 "When introducing a character, point out the things that the character would find relevant. If you yourself just meet someone, then what are the details that you notice? The more you get to know them, then the more you'll notice things. Describe meeting a character in the same way.

When starting a story, try and skip the boring details. What keeps you hooked an interested is the action in the story, so start your story right in the heart of things!"


Hopefully this will help you all with your intros! What's your advice on starting a story?