I Would Stop Reading Your Book on Page One
But here’s how to make me read on
Since in September I’ll be moving into literary agenting (see last week’s post if you missed my news!), I’ve been thinking a lot about reading submissions. In my publishing days, I worked for imprints that took submissions direct from authors as well as from agents, plus I interned at a literary agency when I first graduated and helped manage the submissions inbox, and so I am very familiar with sifting through the slush pile looking for gems.
Sifting through the slush pile is really like an intensified version of how readers choose what to buy or read: if a book doesn’t capture your attention immediately, you’re going to move on to something else. That’s why publishers spend so much time on titles, covers and descriptive copy, and why it is so incredibly important that your first page, first paragraph, first sentence, grab readers’ attention. If not… they’ll move on to something else.
Here, then, are some tips on making every word count in that vital first sentence, first paragraph, and first page.
Literally make sure that every single word does count. No filler, no unnecessary description. Every word should be hooking the reader in. That’s not to say that there can’t be any description in there. Of course there can! But make sure it’s there for a reason. Make it punchy. Make sure it’s telling us something deeply important about the characters or the world or the story you’re telling – don’t describe things just because they’re there, or dump tonnes of info on us. There’s space for all that later: here, prioritise. What is most likely to get readers to read on?
Tell us what the story is about as soon as possible. Maybe that is literally telling us what the plot is – that your main character’s father has just died and now they’re king; that war has just been announced; that a body has been found. But it doesn’t have to be specifically about the plot; we just want to understand something integral to the story right from the beginning. Maybe you’ll tell us something about the setting in time or place that is deeply specific to your story. Maybe you’ll tell us something about the main character, about who they are or how they feel. Maybe you’ll tell us something about the story’s themes. Every book will be different, but we should know something about it immediately – so if your opening sentence or paragraph is generic enough that it could begin myriad different stories, it’s worth looking at ways to make it more individual.
Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash Capture the tone of your novel. If your novel is funny, add some humour or quirkiness to the first line. If it’s emotional, add some poignancy, or if it’s a murder mystery, capture the intrigue. It is deeply disconcerting to start reading a story which feels like a light and entertaining read and then flips into a dark serial-killer thriller after a chapter or two. Sure, if no one has died yet you don’t have any murders to describe – but we can still feel a subtle tension and foreboding in the air, even before anything gruesome happens. If I want to read a thriller, I want to be reading a thriller from page one.
Don’t confuse us. Building intrigue is ideal; sowing confusion is not. If we overhear half a conversation, make sure we know enough that we understand why what we’ve overheard matters. If your character is in a moment of high action, give us enough cues to know at least some of the what, when, how and where. Above all, make sure we are left wanting to know more – not trying to work out what’s happening. This is not the place to show off your complex semantics; this is where your cleverest writing is needed, the kind that makes it look like it was easy.
Lay your bait. Pose a question we’ll be desperate for the answer to. Make a promise of what’s to come. Start the momentum building from the very beginning by making sure it’s clear what we’re working towards: what does your character want, or need, or what situation are they in from which they need to get themselves out? Your first page isn’t about setting the scene by describing where we are or world-building. It’s about setting the scene by telling us what’s happening which is going to spark the rest of the plot.
I cannot tell you enough how much your first page matters. Whatever you’re planning to do with your novel – query agents, self-publish – your first page matters enormously. Unless you’re never going to let anyone else read your novel, this is the most important part. It’s your chance to hook readers in, but also to make them a promise: this is what my novel is. This is key to reader satisfaction! If your novel promises one thing but then turns out to be another, readers will notice. They may well love what your novel turned out to be – but if it wasn’t what they were expecting from the first page that will still impact how they feel about it.
I am a big advocate of getting your book written before you start editing – so if you haven’t written ‘the end’ yet then your first paragraph can wait. But as you are finishing your novel, think about what your novel actually is: what it’s about, what happens in it, what the key moments and themes and turning points are. What journey your main character goes on. And then when you’ve finished writing, go back to your first page and ask yourself if that first page matches what your novel is. I am not saying you should say what the twist is on page one, or give away the ending, or tell the reader anything you don’t want to! But your first page and the rest of the novel should feel like one coherent whole. And the likelihood is that somewhere during the writing process things have changed – if nothing else, you will be a much better writer for having written c80,000 words! – and so I would put quite a lot of money on your first page not really doing your book justice anymore.
And if that’s the case, then you should spend a bit (probably quite a lot) of time editing it before you send it to me or anyone else to read. You don’t want us to give up on page one.
Want to make sure your first pages really shine? Here are some posts to help:
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If you’re currently looking for an agent and would like to submit to me at The Ampersand Agency, you can find the agency submissions guidelines here, and my manuscript wishlist on my website.
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Thank you so much for reading, commenting, liking and sharing. As always, please do let me know in the comments if there’s anything in particular you’d like me to write about – or head to the chat to talk about your current projects, ask questions, and get advice!
Happy writing!
Abi
What a delight to find someone in the publishing business who wants to be helpful to writers! This is the first time I’ve read tou Substack and I immediately wanted to support/subscribe.
Appreciate your excellent advice. I pay attention to openings and they make or break my willingness to read on. However, I have read many amazing openings, only to discover that two thirds of the books could not bear the weight of the hook. My goal is to write a first page that lets the reader know I have this book under control. I did say “goal” right, because so far that has not happened. There are many writing days when I feel like the bar always gets a little higher than my talent.