Refining your Opening Chapters

Or, how to use your first 10,000 words to hook a reader, agent or editor

Welcome to the first blog in my new Path to Publication series.

You’ve heard it before. Every writer is told that it’s critical to get your opening chapters right in order to hook your reader:

• You must have a killer first line that grabs your reader’s attention.

• You must have the perfect first paragraph that sets the scene, the tone and the feel of the book.

• You must have an immersive first chapter that throws the reader right into the action, that gives them questions to ask and a desperate need to keep reading.

But flip that coin and your opening chapters are also the first chance your reader has to stop reading, put your book down and never look back.

So how do you turn Chapter 1 into ‘just one more chapter?’ Let’s take a look…

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Why are the opening chapters so important?

Opening chapters are the first thing anyone reading your book is going to see:

• When you’re writing your book, your first five-to-ten thousand words are your means of testing your story: the concept, the feel, the voice.

• When you’re trying to get your book published¹, it’s your showreel; the way to show off your story and your writing ability, and demonstrate your understanding of the industry and the expectations of your genre.

• When the book is on the shelves, it’s the way you get a reader to part with their hard earned cash by choosing your novel over the hundreds of others on offer.

At every stage, it is these opening chapters that need to do all the heavy lifting.

You may have been told that your opening chapters have to give readers reasons to keep reading, but it might help to think about things from the opposite point of view: your opening chapters must not give readers a reason to stop.

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What can go wrong with opening chapters?

Opening chapters tend to be the ones you write first. It’s an exciting time, where you start seeing the idea in your mind becoming tangible on the page. But it’s also the time when you’re still telling yourself the story because you’re not yet sure what is going to work (if you’re a planner) or where it’s going (if you’re a pantser).

Most early drafts (and mine are no exception) start too early. They have too long a lead into the action, with a lot of scene-setting and backstory that could rightfully be kept until later. Early drafts also tend to be overly descriptive or full of information that you’ve spent weeks researching but isn’t actually needed in the narrative.

As a result, opening chapters often feel too long, too slow, a little hesitant and — while often beautifully written — full of darlings that need to be killed.

The solution? Editing, and a lot of it.

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Feedback on my opening chapters

I’m currently editing a crime fiction novel that I hope will be traditionally published and the start of a series of books. Below are key points of feedback on the opening chapters of my second draft:

• The novel started a bit slowly – might there be a way to tighten up the pace?

• Get that opening scene as efficient as possible (possibly moving a few details a little later on to aid the pace)

• You might just start the novel (after the Prologue) on [main character’s] first day at [her new job]?

• With the cut off point, identify all the possible juicy cliff hangers/reveals. A few more cuts could be made or details moved later to bring something earlier.

• I love the backstory but it’ll work better to let this unfold a little later and a little more drip fed.

With this feedback (plus much, much more!) I reworked the opening chapters, cutting four chapters and starting the narrative 6,000 words later at a point of immediate action. I cut so much description and exposition that the pace improved greatly, which allowed a rich, distinct voice to emerge. This is what my agent had to say when she read the next draft:

You have done a great job. It all starts so much faster now, we are in the thick of it and so is [main character] – I can’t wait to read on. Well done! 

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Top tips for refining your Opening Chapters

These are my top tips, based on experience and curated from a range of writing sources:

1. Read the first 10k words of other books that are comparable with your own. See what works (or doesn’t) and develop a template you can apply to your own book.

   1. I read Clare Mackintosh (crime in Welsh setting), Elly Griffiths (civilian main character), Sarah Pearse (crime series debut) and Mick Herron (ensemble cast).

1. Start with a cinematic, active opening image that the reader can visualise: hook them with immersive mood, emotional conflict and sensory details.

   1. If you struggle with this, find a film or TV series that is similar to your story idea and watch the first 10 to 15 minutes. Emulate this in your opening 10,000 words.

2. Introduce a relatable (or hateable!) character who moves from their ordinary world to a whole new world, via an inciting incident.

3. End your opening chapters with a cliff-hanger: a point of no return that leaves questions unanswered and your reader wanting more.

4. Think about ‘consideration span’ (how much time someone will consciously give you to interest them) instead of ‘attention span’ (time before they get distracted).

   1. I learned about this from author Rachel Blackmore, but there’s a several good blogs about this, including one from Sneaky Artist that you can read here.

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Hopefully that’s given you a few pointers as to how to improve your opening chapters.

Remember, there’s no substitute for getting feedback from trusted readers and/or industry professionals, making several rounds of edits and reading your work aloud to see how it sounds. It’ll all add up to opening chapters you can be proud of!

Coming next on September 1st:

• One Year of Substack: what I learned from writing 24 blogs in 52 weeks

1. Agent 1-2-1 sessions will often ask for your first 5,000 words. Agent submissions will often ask for the first 10,000 words / three chapters / 50 pages (whichever is more appropriate). Novel competitions can vary, but 10,000 words is pretty typical.