By Irene Hannon, Author of Starfish Pier
I
was recently asked by a fellow author for one piece of advice she could share in
a writing workshop she was leading.
After
fifty-seven novels and a multitude of years in the publishing game, I’ve
learned a lot—so it took a bit of thinking to cull through all the tips stored
in my brain and pick out just one nugget of advice. Here it is.
Start
your story in the right place.
Where,
you may ask, is that? Simple. It’s the moment when everything changes for one
of your main characters. When the world they know has shifted, and nothing will
ever be the same again.
No
matter the genre, our job as writers is to convey that life-altering moment in
a high-impact opening. One that grabs readers and lets them know something big
is at stake. That leaves them with questions—and eager to read on to find
answers.
So
how does this work in practical terms?
