How to Write a Killer FIRST PAGE

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I learned so many great things at the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Iowa conference in Cedar Rapids a few weeks ago. One of my favorite sessions was called, “First Pages.” During this session three experts in the author-of-children’s -books-field analyzed pre-selected first page of a work-in-progress from conference attendees. (On an anonymous and voluntary basis, of course.)

The expert panel included Jill Santopolo, editorial director of Philomel Books, and author of several children and young adult novels, including, The Light We Lost and the Sparkle Spa series, among others. Lisa Cron, motivational speaker (my definition of what she does) and author of Wired for Story and Story Genius, and Calla Devlin, author of Tell Me Something Real and Right Where You Left Me.  Big guns, let me tell ya.

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The moderator read the first page of each piece and the experts talked about what sounded good/promising and conversely, the red flags or problems that stuck out in the beginning of these stories. Industry experts always say they can tell if something has potential as soon as reading the first page, so that page has to be good to keep them going! This was my chance to see it in action.

The first story was about a teen named Rose who was wearing a hippie costume and waiting for a ride. After the first page was read, I could just tell the story didn’t have IT. I couldn’t say what was wrong; I just knew it wasn’t ready to be called finished.  I was anxious to hear what the pros had to say.

They said the first page had no context of Rose’s issue, and we have no idea of what’s going on. Also the experts said not to worry about sensory details, (sights and smells, etc.) they pull away from the story you’re trying to tell. Additionally, the story must ground the reader right away. The opening paragraph is the author’s pact with the reader and we have to let the reader know what’s at issue right away.

Problems that arose in other first pages included the reader not knowing who was talking and what the speaker (narrator) had to do with the story. Another story’s character had too many issues, and the story moved too quickly to be understood. The writer needed to figure out what was the most important thing and focus on that only. 

Another story had a lot of stuff happening but gave no reason why. There was a fight scene but since, we, the reader didn’t know the character yet, we had no investment, no reason to care about him/her. Yet another story gave to many details about a car. Doing that takes the reader out of the story-something a writer never wants to do.

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The stories that held potential on their first page had, as you can imagine, the opposite of the above pages going for them. I also instinctively knew they were good starts…

The sun peeking through the shade woke the main character. He let the dog out and saw a teen girl passed out on the lawn. Right away, we, the reader, know something is wrong. The character was scared because he knew who girl on the lawn was and went into backstory (a good technique) about his brother being in jail and how the brother knew her. As readers, we’re sucked in to this story on the first page because we need to know what was going on. 

The experts recommended to the writer that the reader should know a little more about the kid who let the dog out and tell more about him. Such as, was he scared because he was only 17? Or was he 25 and on probation?

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The experts continued to discuss how writers need to make sure the issues of the story are set up right away. They said to start with the overarching conflict then tell the story through layers. Also, make sure your characters are believable and talk like real people. Too many writers get carried away with flowery or complex language. Additionally, make sure you’re showing some emotion. Stories "in a void" are not going to be read. 

Image courtesy of Pixabay.

So to recap:

Let the reader in on what’s at issue right away- don’t hold off for a “reveal.” No flowery language. No super detailed descriptions. Let reader know who is telling the story. Stick to one main issue. Use emotion to grab the reader.

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Seems so easy. But it’s not. It takes some self-education and awareness, a lot of practice, a lot of re-writing and a heartless eye to cut out the crap to get a story whittled out of a stump. But if you keep at it, layer by layer, your story will emerge.

What are you working on getting better at? Keep going, my friends. We'll get there together! 

Until next time,

Be Good to Yourself.

~Nadine