What Editors Look for on an Opening Page

July 12, 2016 D. H. McKee

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This is an interesting article for me, as I’m reworking the first chapter of one of my books. I had what I thought was a great opening scene, but it lacked any kind of interest and urgency; it was basically two guys talking in a coffee shop. I changed it so that the first scene was the main character delivering a monologue to the reader, but that didn’t seem to be a good opening either. I finally changed it so that it looked as if the main character was investigating a crime scene … and he was the murderer. Worked much better, and I hope it’s something that will get more reaction for the reader.
Here’s an example of good first opening page:

A Powerful Opener
The power of the opening line or paragraph cannot be overstated. These are the first words a reader will see, so that paragraph can serve many purposes, like introducing the world, characters, or plot while giving readers an attention-grabbing taste of your writing.
For example, the opening lines of Kerry Kletter’s The First Time She Drowned use unique imagery and prose to suggest a deeper emotional storyline: “My mother wore the sun like a hat. It followed her as we did, stopping when she stopped, moving when she moved. She carried her beauty with the naïveté of someone who was born to it and thus never understood its value or the poverty of ugliness.”

(via authornews.penguinrandomhouse.com)

D. H. McKee is a writer and contemporary abstract artist.

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About This Site

As a guy who occasionally curates art shows and wrangles artists together, I often have to edit and post artist bios, profile pictures, and artwork images. This can be a problem, since many artists and writers aren’t used to selling themselves. Artists rarely know how to present their art for display in a brochure, and writers aren’t used to writing about themselves.

Writers often treat the bio like it’s an interview or something. Maybe like they’re having a conversation with you, the reader. While it may work sometimes, the most common way to write a bio is to write in the 3rd person.

I’m like those writers, and I’m talking to you directly, unlike the common way to do a bio. You should see my About page. It makes sense to me, since this is a bit which describes my blog’s website. When I get famous enough that I don’t have time to talk to you, I’ll have an intern write everything in 3rd person. Until then, you get to talk to me.

Like blogs of old, this one is a personal document of the comings and goings of me. Articles I’ve written, links I’ve posted, videos I liked, etc. Here, a first-person perspective is the way to go, at least for now. So, this is my site. I’m D. H. McKee, a sometimes artist, sometimes writer. Mostly just a guy on the internet.