Last week, I mentioned slow beginnings and how editors are quick to send rejections if a story has one. These beginnings keep readers from exploring the setting, character, and conflict you want to show them. You know, the actual story! But how do you avoid them and start a story off right? Read below to find out!
What Are Slow Beginnings?
What do I mean by a slow beginning? To recap from last week, a slow beginning includes the following:
1. A bunch of exposition that lets everyone know what the story is about and who is important. (That gives everything away and doesn’t allow readers to get invested in what’s happening.)
2. A story that provides a lot of details about who the character is or where the story takes place. Readers can learn throughout the story! (Imagine a story that goes “Bill lived in Denver, where it rained most of the time. Also, he worked for an insurance company, and today in Denver, it was raining….” Let readers learn about who the character is and where he is through description and action. And move the story forward at all times!
3. Philosophical musings. Sometimes, writers start preaching sermons about their work and its importance. (Think lines like “They were in love, but in the end, love was not enough. This is a story of love and despair…” and then the story begins. Readers recognize what a story wants to talk about when they read. Focus on creating a plot, then let everything else unfold.
So if you want to avoid a slow beginning, AVOID ALL OF THESE.
How to Start A Story Off Right
To avoid a slow beginning, you need three things:
1. A character (preferably the protagonist) who the story is about
2. A setting so readers know where the world is and what new and exciting things to expect
3. The character’s conflict, or the main problem of the story
Take a look at an older example, Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka:
“As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect. He was lying on his hard, as it were armor-plated, back and when he lifted his head a little he could see his dome-like brown belly divided into stiff arched segments on top of which the bed quilt could hardly keep in position and was about to slide off completely. His numerous legs, which were pitifully thin compared to the rest of his bulk, waved helplessly before his eyes.”
So in this example, we have 1) the character/protagonist – Gregor Samsa, 2) a problem – who woke up one morning to discover he’s now a giant insect, and 3) the setting of a bedroom. The bedroom setting, in particular, comes from the detail of the quilt. The rest we imagine ourselves; it’s not super important to the conflict at hand. Also, focusing on the imagery of a giant insect in this opening means we have a clear idea of what Gregor now looks like. Lastly, the conflict advances when Gregor tries to move but can’t do very well in his new body. So in this section, we have all three working together (along with a good dose of imagery) right from the beginning. Kafka doesn’t waste time, and it gets us invested.
So here are some tips for introducing a character:
1. First, show their personality through actions or their headspace. Gregor flails about as a new bug, which gives us insight into how he’s going to tackle the main conflict.
2. Second, make sure you actually introduce the character. In the beginning, don’t waste time on theme or explaining the world. That comes later. Instead, get to the heart of the story by giving us the character at the heart of the story.
Also, here are some tips for introducing the setting.
1. Settle on one or two specific details only. Don’t describe everything about the room your character sits in, or the sight out their window, or every room in the castle they live in. Instead, land on what’s most important and let the reader fill in the rest.
2. Have the character interact with the setting. It might be a character touches their bedroom quilt or looks in their cracked mirror. Allow those details to come to life.
Lastly, here are some tips for introducing the conflict:
1. Put the character in the middle of it. What just happened to your protagonist? How do they feel about it? Then go from there.
2. Escalate the conflict. Once you introduce the conflict, up the stakes. The problem needs to get bigger and bigger so the protagonist can’t ignore it.
Including all of these in the first paragraph of your story will give you a leg up when it comes to the slush pile. Keep these tips in mind as you work on your next story. Happy writing!
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When I first started my book, I started the telling in the middle of her life. The feedback I got told me “no one really knows who she is, so why would we care?” I think that really stuck with me. I started over and gave her a backstory, but it gave my book a really slow beginning.
I think sometimes we have to remind ourselves that slow starts can be a good thing. We live in a time where everything has to be ‘right now’ and we as a people sometimes forget that sometimes we need to slow down.
This is an excellent point! Yes, novels especially need that kind of slowness, and it’s good to have the right backstory for the character you want to focus on.