First Page Tips

On Sunday Susan O’Keefe wrote an article on what it is like on the other side of the fence at a First Page Session.   Today, Eileen Robinson has sent two tips to creating An Engaging First Page.  Then I throw in things I have observed while in First Page Sessions.  

But first here is Eileen:

First pages can sometimes make or break your chances with an editor.  And it is one of those things that challenge authors the most.  Having trouble with your first pages?  Here’s two tips:

1.  Start with the moment the character’s life changes, start with the action.  Although it might not ultimately be where your story begins, it will give you a different perspective. 

2.  Read your first pages till you come to a point where you get excited or your interest peaks.  Be honest.  Listen to your gut.  That’s a clue to where your story might begin and the rest is probably just back-story.

Thank you Eileen.  I look forward to receiving more tips from you.  Here is Eileen’s link: http://f1rstpages.com/

It has become clear to me that an author needs to approach the First Page Session and their first page as though that is the only thing an editor will see.  A first page in a First Page Session differs slightly from what you would submit in that the text starts at the top of the page, instead of halfway down the page as you would if you were sending in your full manuscript. 

Why does this matter?  Well, unless your text is so bad that the editor can’t get through the first few lines on your submission, they are going to turn the page.  In a First Page Session they can’t turn the page and read more, so you better grab them.  Many people I know have gotten contracts because they piqued the interest of the editor.  So here are my tips:

1.  Look at your first page knowing that the second is not there.

2.  Rewrite your first page making sure you have set it up to get attention.

3.  Take out anything that slows the story down.

4.  Make sure the first page is about your main character and not secondary characters.

5.  Think Suzanne Collins and Hunger Games.  End that first page like she ends  her chapters.  She nails chapter endings.  I actually learned to stop reading in the middle of a chapter just so I could go to sleep.  If you read to the end, you have to read the next chapter.  Try to end your first page the same way.  If you are successful doing that, the odds are good that the editor will ask me after the session to let them know who wrote that page. 

6.  Remember less is more.  Many authors try to squeeze in as much as they can on that first page.  That is a mistake.  Make sure you have enough white space.  Sometimes it is hard to sit and listen to someone reading a long first page.  If you are boring the audience, you probably are boring the two editors, too.  When you include too much, this is the result. 

7.  Get in and get out quickly.  Only include the interesting and important points – things that move your story forward.  Read every sentence and ask yourself if you really need that line.  If not delete.  If it is an important point, does it have to be on the first page?  Would it fit in later on in the story.  Are there words in the sentence that are not needed?  If not delete.  You want that first page to be tight and easy to read.

8.  So even though I am telling you to rewrite for the session, what you end up with may benefit your book and you may end up seeing that you really didn’t need all the other stuff you stuck into that original first page.   

Here are some things I have heard from editors during these sessions:

1.  Get in the name of your main character on the first page.

2.  Establish the age of your main character.  It doesn’t have to be the exact number, but include some clue to this and the story setting.

3.  Don’t weigh it down with exposition.

4.  Don’t overuse dialog.

5.  Establish your characters voice.

I think if you start thinking of your first page as a stand alone piece, you will start writing first pages that jump out at the audience and the editors.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy