

Thursday, January 1

The Line Forms Where? Knowing Where to Start Your Novel

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy

Openings are critical to get someone to read our book, but how do we know where to start? The old "start with the action" has frustrated many a writer due to its ambiguity, and even when we think we've done it all correctly, beta readers can still feel the opening isn't grabbing them. Openings are hard, especially if you're not sure if you're starting in the right place. The sheer amount of "is this opening working?" submissions I get in Real Life Diagnostics is testament to that.

I've talked about first lines and first pages before, so today, let's focus on figuring out where to start your story, and how to diagnose it if you're worried you're starting in the wrong place.

First, analyze your current opening, either the first scene or the first chapter if it's only one scene:

Describe how the story opens in the first few pages.

Does it start with description, internalization, action, etc? What's the first thing readers see? Try to sum up your opening in one or two sentences and capture the essence of what it's doing. For example, if I described The Shifter, I'd say it opens with the protagonist, Nya, musing on the difficulty of stealing eggs vs. chickens, then getting caught stealing those eggs.

Describe the goal in the opening scene.

What's the character in this scene trying to do? Even if the scene has nothing to do with your core conflict, the protagonist should be acting in some way or trying to achieve something. For Nya, her goal is: Steal eggs for breakfast.

Describe your conflict.

Goals don't mean a lot if there's nothing in the way of getting them, so who or what is keeping the character from what they want to do? What type of conflict is creating the tension in this scene that will hook readers? For Nya, she wants to eat so she doesn't starve, but the owner of the chickens doesn't want to lose his eggs. 

Describe your stakes.

What risk is the character facing? No matter how small the goal, there should be a consequence for failing that will keep readers interested. If the character isn't the one at risk, who else might be? For Nya, the stakes are getting caught stealing eggs.

Describe in one paragraph or less what happens next in the scene.

How does this moment move the story forward? A short description will force you to really look at what's going on in that scene and help pinpoint the goal-conflict-stakes structure. For Nya, she tries to talk her way out of the egg theft, but she can't, so she runs for it. During her escape she's forced to use her pain shifting ability to get away.

Describe how the first scene or chapter ends.

This event transitions into the next scene or chapter, and is the "oh no" moment that will hook the reader or not. How did the previous events in the scene get readers to this moment? Where will the story go from here? For Nya, she gets seen shifting pain by people who will definitely expose her secret, which will eventually get her noticed by the bad guy.

By now, you should have a solid feel for the opening of your novel. Next, step back and look at the story as a whole to see how this opening connects to the rest of the book:

1. What is the core conflict of your novel? 

This may seem like a strange question to ask about a beginning, but the beginning is all about getting your protagonist to this core conflict. If you don't know where they're going, it's harder to know where they start that journey. Consider both the internal and external conflicts, as the opening scene might focus on the character arc first (internal conflict) and introduce the external conflict in a few chapters. For The Shifter, Nya is trying to save her missing sister, and having to decide how far she's willing to go to do that.

(Here's more on internal and external core conflicts)

2. When is the first moment where something happens to bring your protagonist into this core conflict? 

It can be small, and it can be something they don't even know connects to it yet, but there's a moment where if they turned left instead of right, they never would have had this thing happen to them (the inciting event). That moment is when they made a choice or acted in a way that sets them on the plot path. This is the bridge moment that connects the opening to the rest of the novel. For The Shifter, it's when Nya gets caught using her shifting ability. Had that not happen, the rest of the novel would have turned out differently.

(Here's more on the inciting event)

3. What's happening when they trigger that moment and step onto the plot path? 

Stories typically start in the normal world of the protagonist's life, so odds are your protagonist will be doing something normal that doesn't go as it usually does. What normal part of their life are they doing when this plot path moment occurs? For Nya, it's stealing food to survive.

(Here's more on writing the opening scene)

4. How does this event connect to your core conflict? 

There's a reason this moment puts your protagonist on that plot path. You should be able to make a step by step list that shows how this event leads to the end of the book (if you can't, that's a red flag something is off). What is that reason? In The Shifter, shifting pain exposes Nya to the two power groups of the city who want to use her and her abilities, and they are the people involved in her sister's disappearance.

(Here's more on keeping your plot on target)

Finally, look at all your notes and ask:

Is your opening the same as #2 (The moment the protagonist is nudged toward the core conflict)? 

YES: Odds are you're starting in the right place.

NO: Odds are you're starting too early or too late in the story, so it's either dragging before it gets started, or starting so fast readers feel lost and can't connect to the protagonist or problem enough to care about what's happening (even if it's exciting in a general sense).

If no...

Try rewriting the opening scene so it somehow gets the protagonist started toward the core conflict. 

If there's a scene that does this later is the story, consider starting the book there, even if you have to cut or move some scenes around.

If yes, but something is still not working...

Look back at your opening analysis.

Is there anything in the opening scene analysis you didn't answer, or answered weakly (be honest)? If so, this is likely the problem. Answer those questions again with the core conflict in mind. If not, and everything looks good but something is still off, look at...

The first few pages: What is your protagonist doing on page one? Are they active in some way or is it more description or narrative that sets the scene? Perhaps there's too much setup and that's bogging the scene down. Try making the protagonist active and give them something to do.

Opening scene goal: Is the goal apparent from the first page, or is it a goal that actually appears later in the scene or chapter (or several chapter in)? Sometimes the protagonist is doing something unrelated at the start of a novel to set up the scene, then the real goal is mentioned several pages in, delaying the actual start of the book. Try showing the goal right from the start and have it clear what the protagonist is trying to do.

Opening scene stakes: Even if it's clear what the protagonist is doing, if readers don't care if that character succeeds or not they won't be curious enough to keep reading. Are the stakes worth worrying about? Even a mundane scene can have meaningful stakes if the protagonist cares enough about the outcome. For example, not buying milk when a character know it'll cause a huge fight with the spouse matters, even if it's just about milk. But stopping off for a latte that has no repercussions at all doesn't give readers a reason to stick around.

The middle: If you've hooked readers with the opening pages, do they follow through with that promise? Just because they're hooked doesn't mean we can step back and add a lot of description, backstory, and infodumping we cut out of the first few pages. Build off that opening hook and really make the reader invest in the characters and their story. Ask yourself...
  • Does the chapter feel like it's going somewhere?
  • Is there a mystery or story question the reader wants to see answered?
  • Is there a suggestion or anticipation that something is about to go wrong?
  • Is there humor or examples of the protagonist exhibiting likable or interesting qualities?
  • Do the stakes escalate?
  • Does this middle connect the opening goal with the core conflict "first step on the path" goal?
The last few pages: The end of a scene is the payoff for reading that scene. If everything else in the opening is working, but beta readers are still not wanting to read on, look at the end of that scene. Is the final hook something that the scene has been building toward that also moves the plot forward? This is often the culprit in a "something's off" opening that starts where it should. The plot event is right, but the author is unsure how to get the protagonist from their day to day life to that event. You might also consider looking at when your protagonist encounters that event, and seeing if they got there by their own actions or if it suddenly happened to them.

Things do happen unexpectedly, and some stories are about the protagonist getting a call that changes their whole world. If this is the case in your story, think about that opening and how the protagonist's day to day life lays the groundwork for that unexpected moment. If things change, perhaps contrast the life to the change. Pick a goal that will be the most affected by that surprise so the unexpected does more than just pop up unexpectedly.

Openings can be challenging, but the closer you begin to the moment when things change for your protagonist, the more likely it is to be the right opening.

Have you ever struggled with where to start? If so, did you start too soon or too late? Or totally in the wrong place? How long did it take you to find the right spot? Did you find the right spot?

Looking for tips on planning and writing your novel? Check out my book Planning Your Novel: Ideas and Structure, a series of self-guided workshops that help you turn your idea into a novel.




  1. What timing! Yes, I've struggled big time with where to start. I thought I had it, but now I'm not so sure.

    I think I struggle most with deciding between the external and internal conflicts. Initially, I opened my MG WIP very close to the inciting incident for the external conflict. I participated in an online workshop where I got to show the beginning to an editor, and she said things were happening too fast, before she got a chance to care about the MC. I had to agree.

    Now I am starting where the internal conflict begins - the MC's best friend (and really only friend) moves away, and this shatters the MC. In order for her to succeed with the external conflict, she needs to get over this and believe in herself.

    This first chapter is a bit flat so far. I think I just need to keep writing through it to find the spark. And I'll work through the questions you have here and see if I DID find the right spot to start.

    Thank you!!

    -- Amy

  2. This is timely for me too! Boy am I struggling with this! I started with some action that did get people intrigued, but after living with it for a long while, I've realized that it just doesn't have anything to do with the rest of the novel. It's a throwaway dramatic entrance. My inciting incident is when my heroine accidentally wishes herself back in time (it's a time-travel romance), but I think if I start right with the wishing, no one would really care yet. She's at a reenactment ball that is not being taken seriously by most of the attendees and she's feeling disappointed and dorky. So I guess I'm starting with her internal conflict which directly leads to her making the wish... I still don't know if it's the right spot, but it's where I am right now. This post will definitely help me analyze it more, thanks!

  3. Great post. Mine is the second problem; figuring how to connect my terrific opening to the story's middle. It's taking a little too long to get there.

  4. I usually start too late...but I don't usually know that until I finish the book and am working on revisions. By then, I really know what my core conflict is and where everything's going, which makes it possible to get the beginning right. I love the flow chart!

  5. Angela, mine is the same sort of thing. My MC made a wish in the first chapter initially, and, yeah - who cares at that point?? I'm hoping stepping back a bit gives us a little more time to get to know her so we'll care when she wishes herself away...
    Here's hoping our wishes work out better this time! ;-)

  6. Love this! I stuggle with where to start...I'm getting closer with each book, but this will help me nail it, first time, and save lots of time!

    Thanks so much.

  7. Khanada, that's not an uncommon problem actually. We have "start with the action" drilled into our heads, and start too soon without giving readers a chance to get to know and care before things get crazy. Starting with the internal conflict can work well, as that's the start of the protag's emotional arc. It'll also connect to the external goal in some way to help tie the story together. Good luck with that opening!

    Angelaaquarles, I agree, starting with the wish will probably feels too rushed. Starting with why she makes the wish sounds like the right spot to me. :)

    Chicory, have you tried looking at both the internal and external conflicts? Sometimes you can use the character arcs to bridge those gaps.

    MK, beginnings often change after you see the end :) Probably better too late than too early though. Not as much writing to cut out, hehe.

    Laura, most welcome!

  8. Hmmm... I may have to think about that one.

    My problem is that I'm writing a mystery with a ton of suspects, and I'm trying to introduce a lot of (I was going to say people, but creatures would be more appropriate) characters, along with their clashing motivations.

    I think I'm getting the hang if it, but re-writing these opening chapters feels like it's taken longer than writing the whole first half of the book on my original go-round. Oh how I do hate re-writes, let me count the ways!

  9. Great tips! Writing the beginning is often the hardest part of any story whether it is flash fiction or a novel.

    I have had success starting my stories with a hook an ending the first chapter with the inciting incident. My first chapters are very short. I include just enough info for readers to get to know the protagonist before the character's life changes completely.

  10. This is timely. I'm restarting my draft so I can write scene by scene and get it right this time.

    However, I'm still not sure how to deliver the conflict in the first scene. (You had seen the earlier version of this scene). I have the narrator (Bryan) and his father exchanging a few jabs before the co-protagonist (Finn) stumbles into the scene. However, I'm not sure how to handle the Bryan vs. Dad conflict and the Bryan vs. Finn conflict, considering that the latter is the core of the story.

    What Dad and Bryan were arguing over was the fact that despite being divorced, Dad sleeps with Mom every time he visits, and Bryan's afraid this might weird off the exchange student. Problem is, I'm not sure how to shape this into a first scene conflict that unfolds realistically--and not have the readers expect that Bryan vs. Dad will be a main conflict.

    Should I just scrap the Dad altogether and just have Bryan's Mom pick Finn up? But I'll have to think up a new conflict.

    Help, please?

  11. Oh, sorry for rambling on, but I do know the end result for the scene. I want Bryan to be both intrigued by Finn yet uncertain that they'll be able to form a friendship. I don't want him to get all angry, or that might blow away audience sympathy. I want Bryan want to help Finn.

    So perhaps end with Bryan unsure whatever he wants to figuratively strangle Finn? How would I achieve that result? Finn is an extremely intoverted person. What remark would make the scene end in disaster?

    Talking this out like this helps me.

  12. I'm bookmarking this post for when I go back to my YA fantasy. The beginning in that one needs so much work to set it at the right point.

  13. Yesterday I watched "Die Hard" twice. It was so well plotted, for sure! His #2 was when he decided to take that plane to see his wife, after six months apart. Right? (He "went left," to San Francisco, instead of "going right," and staying in NY.) We needed the time, short as it was, when he was with his wife before the Big Conflict began.

    Thanks for another great post! This blog site is so helpful!!

  14. This was great advice! Reading through the analysis questions, I'm actually surprised (and glad) to say that my wip is probably starting in the right place.

  15. Chicoy, that happens more often than you'd think :) Actually, if it's a mystery you're opening is fairly easy. From what my mystery friends tell me, the body needs to show up in the first chapter. (if it's not a murder mystery, then naturally that changes). Perhaps introduce your protag first, then let the other characters come is as your protag discovers them.

    Haley, sounds good to me :)

    C0, you might try seeing how the Bryan vs Finn conflict is affected by the Dad conflict at the start. Use the Dad one as the bridge to help get Bryan to the core conflict. Maybe Bryan is scared/embarrassed over what might happen when Dad spends the night and this makes him act a certain way toward Finn.

    If Bryan has his own conflict with Finn that's separate, you might want to just scrap Dad and start with Mom at the airport. The Dad issue could be something that happens later to make the Bryan/Finn conflict worse.

    What issue does Bryan have about Finn coming to live with them? That's probably going to drive that opening scene. His worst fear could be something he's worrying about at the end of the chapter. It doesn't have to happen if that doesn't fit the story, but he can worry it will, and see all kinds of hints as to why it might in Finn. He can be wrong, and discovering that might be what helps drive the story moving on.

    Talking scenes out helps me too :) I spent hours on the phone with my crit partners.

    Jaleh, good luck!

    Patti, exactly. That's such a great example of the "normal world" right before things go crazy. And thanks!

    Laura, oh good!

  16. Excellent, analytical article - thank you! I just finished writing my first novel, a literary thriller titled Opium, and it took multiple drafts and mega guidance from my agent, Jenny Bent, for me to find the right opening scene. Opium starts with the protagonist - an investment banker who goes to Burma to raise a fund - trying to flee the nation after she realizes the dangerous predicament she's gotten herself and her fiance into. I tried starting at the linear beginning of the story, but the stakes weren't high enough; and at different points within, which gave away too much or was confusing; but when we hit upon the current opening, it suddenly flowed like honey. Or at least Jenny and I think so! Next stop, publisher submissions, gulp. Fingers and eyes crossed.

  17. Ashi, great story! I bet a lot of writers have gone through that same process to find their right opening (I know I have). And when you do find it, it does flow :) Best of luck with yours, and I hope it sells quickly.

  18. Excellent post. Very helpful. Thanks

  19. My inciting incident is a near-rape scene, in which the antihero intervenes (his first appearance). That doesn't seem like the kind of thing I should start off the first few lines with. Is it really that bad to start with something a little more mundane, like the errand leading up to it, or the time she gets bullied before she's sent on the errand?

    1. No, it's not bad at all, and that's a common way to start a novel. Being bullied is a good example, as that shows conflict, a problem, and something the protagonist has to deal with that could hook a reader, and transitions well into the much more horrific "bullying" near rape. It would be even more impactful if the bullying is what put her in the bad situation to almost be raped in the first place. Cause leads to effect.

  20. There are great things I can take away from this, but I'm still running into the issues of making my character interesting/distinct enough for readers (this is a GOT style multi viewpoint story, with each chapter about a different character) and ending the chapter well. There isn't a build up like you mentioned, I have the main character going outside to her garden at the end. I defiantly describe my main character's life and show what one of her goals is:feeling/being safe. This worry for her own well being and inability to protect herself physically makes doing the main goal (she is the heir to the throne of the kingdom and has to reclaim the throne) more difficult, and it causes the story to unfold, since her only protector is taken hostage the next time I visit her character. Also, later in the book, we see she is more concerned with others than herself.

    I'm concerned because I don't people to know who the main character is on page one, but I do want them to keep reading. I want people to see her actions and what she experiences through her eyes, and then learn that it is her and that her main goal is to retake the kingdom in order to save all of the people she's just come into contact with in the first few chapters.

    Any advice? Maybe have her go outside and then include...and then continue her story a bit more?

    1. That's a tough one since anything that feels too detached might risk losing them.

      I just started reading something that might help you. The Good, the Bad, and the Infernal. It's mostly third person multi viewpoint, but there's a first person viewpoint as well, and so far, this person feels like maybe they're central to everything.

      If you did that one POV in first person, you could avoid using the name and any details that would give the person away, but still let readers see that they're supposed to follow and care about this person.

      It's a tricky POV, but maybe something like that could work for you?

      I think it would depend on how long you want to hide the identity of the character. If it's only a few pages, some clever narrative and internalization can hide it. But if it's longer, you'd need something else.

      Hope that helps!

  21. I started in the wrong spot I went too far ahead and confused people. Yes I'm backwards. XD