Thoughts on coming up with first lines of your novel

Robert Bacon, who blogs at Selling Books, has thoughts on first lines.

Nothing is more critical than the first few lines of a story, since this will often influence whether or not a reader will continue with a work. And a great opening is never more important than for a non-established writer who is trying to garner an audience or the budding author who is trying to acquire an agent or publisher.

Writer’s like Dickens and Woolf Provide a Lofty Pedestal

It would be wonderful if lines like “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” or, “Mrs. Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself,” were on the forefront of our thinking when we first sat down at a keyboard. The reality, however, is that this is not how it plays out for most of us. But there are ways to attract a reader without having to conjure up the catch phrase of the century.

Read the rest.

Meanwhile, does anyone have favorite opening lines to share? If so, comment below.