Hooked
Write Fiction That Grabs Readers at Page One & Never Lets Them Go
Hooked
Write Fiction That Grabs Readers at Page One & Never Lets Them Go
by Les Edgerton
Writer's Digest Books, 2007
ISBN 978-1-58297-457-6
$14.99 paperback, 256 pages
Read an Excerpt
Not sure how to get your story started? In Chapter 2, Opening Scenes: An Over view, learn the 10 things that every opening scene must have. From creating a story-worthy problem to foreshadowing, get the tools it takes to hook your readers from page 1. Plus, download a PDF of the Table of Contents and Chapter 2.
About the Book
The road to rejection is paved with bad beginnings. Agents and editors agree: Improper story beginnings are the single biggest barrier to publication. Why? If a novel or short story has a bad beginning, then no one will keep reading. It’s just that simple.
In Hooked, author Les Edgerton draws on his experience as a successful fiction writer and teacher to help you overcome the weak openings that lead to instant rejection by showing you how to successfully use the ten core components inherent to any great beginning. You’ll find:
- Detailed instruction on how to develop your inciting incident
- Keys for creating a cohesive story-worthy problem
- Tips on how to avoid common opening gaffes like overusing backstory
- A rundown on basics such as opening scene length and transitions
- A comprehensive analysis of more than twenty great opening lines from novels and short stories
Plus, you’ll discover exclusive insider advice from agents and acquiring editors on what they look for in a strong opening. With Hooked, you’ll have all the information you need to craft a compelling beginning that lays the foundation for an irresistible story!
About the Author
Les Edgerton is the author of Finding Your Voice (Writer’s Digest Books). He also writes short stories, articles, essays, novels, and screenplays. His fiction has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, O. Henry Award, Edgar Allan Poe Award (short story category), Jesse Jones Award, PEN/Faulkner Award, and the Violet Crown Book Award. One of his screenplays was a semifinalist for the Don and Gee Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Program, a finalist in the Austin Film Festival Heart of Film Screenplay Competition, and a finalist in the Writers Guild’s “Best American Screenplays” Competition. His short fiction has appeared in such publications as Houghton Mifflin’s Best American Mysteries of 2001, Kansas Quarterly, Arkansas Review, North Atlantic Review, Chiron Review, and many others.
Table of Contents
FOREWORD
The All-Important Beginning
INTRODUCTION
Why a Book on Beginnings
Beginnings Defined
CHAPTER ONE
Story Structure and the Scene
The Evolution of Story Structure
The Modern Story Structure
Scene Basics 101
Opening Scenes vs. Non-Opening Scenes
Prologues
CHAPTER TWO
Opening Scenes: An Overview
The Components of an Opening Scene
The Goals of Openings
Why Potentially Good Beginnings Go Bad
CHAPTER THREE
The Inciting Incident, the Initial Surface Problem, and the Story-Worthy Problem
The Inciting Incident
The Inciting Incident as a Trigger
Story-Worthy Problems vs. Surface Problems
Creating Your Story’s Problems and Goals
How Many Problems Should Your Novel Contain?
Your Character’s Awareness of His Own Story-Worthy Problem
Inner Demons: Mining for Story-Worthy Problems
CHAPTER FOUR
The Setup and Backstory
The Setup
Backstory
Balancing Setup and Backstory in Your Opening
CHAPTER FIVE
Combining the Inciting Incident, Story-Worthy Problem, Initial Surface Problem, Setup, and Backstory
Fitting the Pieces Together
Deconstructing a Brilliant Beginning
Putting It All Together in Your Own Work
CHAPTER SIX
Introducing Your Characters
Establishing Character From the Start
Opening With Unusual Characters
Opening With Your Character’s Thoughts
CHAPTER SEVEN
Foreshadowing, Language, and Setting
Using Your Opening to Foreshadow Your Story
Economizing Language in Your Openings
Introducing Setting in Your Openings
CHAPTER EIGHT
Great Opening Lines
CHAPTER NINE
Red Flag Openers to Avoid
Red Flag 1: Opening With a Dream
Red Flag 2: Opening With an Alarm Clock Buzzing
Red Flag 3: Being Unintentionally Funny
Red Flag 4: Too Little Dialogue
Red Flag 5: Opening With Dialogue
CHAPTER TEN
Opening Scene Length and the Use of Transitions
Determining the Right Length for a Story Opening
What Any Opening—Long or Short—Requires
Using Transitions to Anchor Your Opening Scenes
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The View From the Agent’s and Editor’s Chair
The Power of Bookscan
Publishing: An Evolving Industry
Agents and Editors Speak Out on Beginnings
EPILOGUE
Play the Game Forward
INDEX
Les Edgerton is the author of Hard Times (Bronzeville Books; December 8, 2020), as well as more than 20 additional books, including Hooked: Write Fiction That Grabs Readers at Page One & Never Lets Them Go (Writer’s Digest Books; 2007) and numerous short stories and screenplays. His work has been nominated for or awarded the Pushcart Prize, O. Henry Award, PEN/Faulkner Award, Derringer Award, Spinetingler Magazine Thriller of the Year, Jesse Jones Book Award, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Violet Crown Book Award, the Nicholl Foundation Script-Writing Awards, and the Best of Austin and Writer’s Guild screenwriting awards.
