Yuffie's Writing How-To's

More on FIRST CHAPTERS

Previously, I talked about different ways to open a story and the pros and cons of each. Here is a bit more of my ramblings on the question: What makes an interesting first chapter?

For a first chapter, I think it's imperative (usually) for it to include the inciting incident of the story. I don't want a long, drawn-out chapter of how wonderful their life was (or how terrible). I just want to know who the MC is and what their personality is, what their comfort zone is. Once that's established (for me personally, that would usually be within the first page or two), then I want to see the author brutally hurl the character out of their comfort zone and watch them squirm.

To me, that would be the perfect first chapter.

However, there are cases where it's impossible to have the inciting incident in the first chapter. This is the case with some high fantasy/dystopian/sci-fis where you're building a brand new world, society, and technology. Sometimes, you need to establish that first for the inciting incident to even make sense. But even if this is the case, remember there still needs to be some CONFLICT. It may just be a personal problem of the MC unrelated to the main conflict, but there has to be some hint of conflict within the first couple pages.

But, as with everything in writing, this conflict "rule" has exceptions. If you can write a scene that is just so badass, mindblowing, or fascinating that we can't look away, even if there's no apparent conflict, that could still work as a great opening.

The real thing to keep in mind with first chapters is that they hook us and force us to keep turning pages. Really anything goes if you can accomplish that. The aforementioned things^ are just a few ideas of how you can make it more intriguing, but those aren't the only ways, and even those can be boring if written poorly.