Have you ever picked up a book and known from the first line that you just had to read it?
That’s every author’s goal, to grab the reader from those first words and never let go. But there are a lot of ways to do that, from a catchy one-liner to asking a question or just jumping in right in the middle of the action.
Our Inspy Romance authors have used these techniques and more to create some powerful openings you won’t be able to resist. See for yourself:
CATCHY ONE-LINER
Is there life before death?
-from Spring’s Promise by Marion Ueckermann
“I hate Valentine’s Day.”
-from A Love Song for Kayla by Kimberly Rose Johnson
Fear can really do a person in.
-from Love, Lies, and Homemade Pie by Sally Bayless
Why were there always weddings?
-from The Cowboy’s Belated Discovery by Valerie Comer
It was still dark out.
-from Finding Love for the Loner by Laurie Larsen
DIALOGUE
“Put the coffee pot on, Dahlia. We’ve got a wedding to plan!”
-from Finding Love for the Matchmaker by Laurie Larsen
“You can’t be in grad school forever.”
-from Know You More by Jan Thompson
“Mama, why don’t you live here anymore?”
-from Dancing at Daybreak by Valerie Comer
“You did what?”
-from A Heart Restored by Elizabeth Maddrey
“Oh no. Hurry, Heather, before she spots us.”
-from A Husband for Holly by Marion Ueckermann
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ACTION
Sitting in her car at the curb was not going to get Kenna Johnson this position.
-from Lavished with Lavender by Valerie Comer
On the banks of the mighty Zambezi that grief-filled morning, Simon Hartley buried not only his wife—he buried his faith, as well.
-from Orphaned Hearts by Marion Ueckermann
Peyton wiped her frosting-smudged hands on her apron and eased the kitchen door open to peek into the empty ballroom.
-from Not Until This Moment by Valerie M. Bodden
DESCRIPTION
Cyan Hewitt stared out at the waves of the Pacific Ocean.
-from Hope for Christmas by Elizabeth Maddrey
Feet dangling off the jetty’s edge, Taylor Cassidy gazed across the dark waters of Puget Sound toward Mount Rainier.
-from The Other You by Marion Ueckermann
Cameron Kraus gazed down the long petal-strewn grass aisle between rows of finely dressed guests seated in padded folding chairs.
-from Rooted in Love by Valerie Comer
Spencer paced behind the park bench, tipping his head toward the gray clouds swirling above him.
-from Not Until Forever by Valerie M. Bodden
CHARACTER’S THOUGHTS
Byron Moss had called that woman Veronique in a singsong fashion, and that had rubbed Tina MacFarland the wrong way.
-from Smile for Me by Jan Thompson
Tess Palmer didn’t need to be perfect. She only needed to get every detail right. Every time.
-from Love at Sunset Lake by Sally Bayless
Life—a nightmare I couldn’t wake from.
-from The Truth About Fame by Toni Shiloh
Darren Spark never imagined that one person could make him feel so happy and sad all at the same time.
-from At First Spark by Liwen Y. Ho
No parent should ever have to bury a child, let alone all of them.
-from That’s Amore by Marion Ueckermann
Red. Why had she chosen red?
-from Not Until This Day by Valerie M. Bodden
QUESTION
“Just how stupid do people think I am?”
-from In an English Vintage Garden by Marion Ueckermann (published in Before Summer’s End anthology)
How had she messed up again?
-from Not Until Us by Valerie M. Bodden
TEXT MESSAGE
Help! There’s a goat on the roof!
-from Counting on the Cowboy by Shannon Taylor Vannatter
I’d love to hear what you think about the first line of a book. How important is it to you? Are there any first lines that have stuck with you over the years?
Valerie M. Bodden has three great loves: Jesus, her family, and books. And chocolate (okay, four great loves). She writes emotion-filled Christian fiction that weaves real-life problems, real-life people, and real-life faith. Her characters may (okay, will) experience some heartache along the way, but true to her tendencies as a hopeless romantic, she will always give them a happy ending. Valerie is living out her happily ever after in Wisconsin with her high-school-sweetheart-turned-husband and their four children. Visit her at www.valeriembodden.com to get a free story.
First lines ,and indeed first pages, are incredibly important. I want to be drawn in from the beginning.
Actually I can’t remember the last time the first line or few pages drew me in. If by the end of the first chapter I’m not captivated I stop reading and maybe come back to the book at another time.
Hi Valerie! Interesting blog with great first lines. For this retiree after 147 days of sheltering in place, my concentration is waning and I have been reading more historical fiction and cozy mysteries. After skimming some first pages from CCR books, this first line from Laurie Larsen Meet the Moms (Matchmaking Moms of Oceanview Church Book 1) had my attention. Chapter One: New Friends; The alarm shrieked in the darkness and Lily Adams jolted awake, gasping. – Enjoy your weekend.
If I was given an arc, I will read the entire book, even if I am not into it at all.
For pleasure, I read 20-25% of the book, if by then I have not enjoyed it, I either stop or jump to the last couple of chapters to see what finally happens.
First lines are important but for me it’s the first paragraph that really gets me hooked.
I love the book This Present Darkness, and I’ve read it two or three times now. However, it always takes me about 10 chapters to really get into the book. Then, I don’t want to put it down!! I don’t let any other book have that long to get me involved in it! If I’m not grabbed in the first chapter or two, I skip ahead to see if the rest gets better! If it does, I’ll go back and force myself through, unless it’s an ARC, and if I still can’t get into it (which only happened one time) I email the author and tell her. I don’t review the book, either. I struggled with one book through 61 chapters, and when I finished, I still felt cheated, as the book left too many unanswered questions, and there was no sequel.
So true! I want to be hooked pretty quickly too. The best is when I’m already wondering what will happen next from the first page.
It’s good to know you give the book a whole chapter to hook you—sometimes it takes a little bit of a buildup to get there. I’ve been known to put a book down if it doesn’t hook me by the end of that first chapter (sometimes sooner) too.
Another great first line by Laurie Larsen! Thanks for sharing it. :) And for your count of how many days this quarantine has been going on—I’ve been afraid to keep track!
It’s awesome that you keep going that far to give a book a chance—I confess I am guilty of stopping much sooner (though thankfully I haven’t come across a book I couldn’t finish in quite a while).
True! Sometimes that first line needs the context of the first paragraph to make the hook (actually, I left a couple of my opening lines out of this post for that very reason!).
Oh wow, giving a book 10 chapters would take patience—but since it’s a book you know you love, I can see giving it that long. You know the good stuff is coming! But I’m with you in that I’ll usually stop after a chapter or so (maybe less) if I can’t get into it. Too many good books out there to spend time on one you may not enjoy as much—I’ve learned that lesson after struggling through some long ones too. :)
I love to be captured right from the beginning of a book, it’s the first sign of being well written! I haven’t really ever paid much attention to specific lines though. I just want to keep reading more. When there is a book that doesn’t hook me right away I almost always keep reading though. Most of the time I will become more interested as the story progresses. The only reason I will stop reading is if there is content I don’t like and I don’t often have a book slip by without knowing it’s not clean.
I read mostly Christian books and like to believe if I was led to read then there is a message I need to learn from it if I keep going. Maybe it is just that I hate to not finish some too! 😊
I love a first line that can hook me! These examples would make me want to find out what happens next, where the story is going and what the characters do.
My motto: if a book can’t hook me by the first chapter, then I probably won’t be interested in reading it. It’s just an extra bonus if one can hook me from the first line (or two)! I even love when a line catches me off-guard in the midst of the story; ie witty banter or something like that :-)
Here’s a few examples of great first lines I’ve read:
“Eleanor Nielson looked around the table at the familiar, beautiful, perfect people and wondered if she was adopted”~ The Swedehearts Glory Quilt novella by Cathe Swanson (Betwixt Two Hearts collection)
“Why Livvie! Whatever ARE you doing?”~ The Elusive Miss Ellison by Carolyn Miller (Regency Brides: A Legacy of Grace series)
“He supposed that someday he would have to forgive the child for being a girl. “~ The Gentleman Spy by Erica Vetsch
“Exposed. Kiley felt exposed. Standing there. In the dark. Waiting. Waiting.”~ Minutes to Die by Susan Sleeman
“Camden Grayson took the turn into her dad’s driveway a little fast. She was never late to anything–except when it came to family events. Like this one. “~ On a Summer Tide by Suzanne Wood Fisher (Three Sister’s Island series)
These are just a few of many I have enjoyed in stories over the years!
Yes! That feeling of wanting to read more and know what happens next is really what pulls me in from the beginning too. I’m glad you give books a chance to pick up for you even if you don’t get into them right away–I’ve probably been guilty of putting down some I would have enjoyed if I’d given them a little longer.
I read mostly Christian books for the same reason–no worries about coming across that content I don’t want to see and a message that I likely need to learn!
Those are some great examples of first lines! Thanks for sharing them! I love those lines that catch you off-guard in the middle of a story too. Once I’m hooked, I want to stay hooked. :)
The first time I read it, I was bound and determined to read it, just so I could go back and get a refund by telling them I read it! It had a sticker on it, that you could do just that! I had talked myself out of buying the book for a few weeks, til that sticker appeared! I tell everyone they need to read the book!! It will open your eyes to spiritual warfare!
Haha! I love that you read it to get the refund–and then discovered you loved it enough to recommend it instead!
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” Pride and Prejudice
or
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness…. ” A Tale of Two Cities
I do enjoy a good first line but I will usually read a chapter or two before deciding whether or not to continue. (I regularly use the Amazon “Look Inside” feature.) I think I’m looking for a sense of flow that acknowledges the way real people interact. It could be set in outer space but characters still need to be relatable and enjoyable.
It’s also true that I read for escape which means that I am driven rather than drawn to enter the story world. I’ll give the author quite a bit of latitude as a result.
My first line offering:
“Good grief, Ducky. It’s like a tomb down here,” said Leelee as she came down the stairs switching on lights along the way.
Controlled Ascent, L. Clark
I love first lines that grab your attention. Thank you for sharing. Blessings
The one I’ll never forget: “He needed a woman. Bad.” – MacKenzie’s Mountain by LInda Howard
Taming Demons for Beginners by Annette Marie: “I stared into the demon’s obsidian eyes.”
Others are mostly first paragraph or first few paragraphs – see virtually any book by Terry Pratchett or John G. Hartness.
I usually read the first few pages of a book to see if I would like to read it.
Pride and Prejudice is my very favorite opening of all time. And A Tale of Two Cities is definitely a classic. :) Thanks for sharing these!
I love the Amazon Look Inside feature too. Definitely helps me choose books I’m likely to enjoy and continue reading all the way to the end. I agree–it’s the reality and relatability of the characters that matters the most. Love your opening line too! Thanks for sharing it!
Me too! Thanks for sharing. :)
Great first lines–thanks for sharing them! I agree that the cumulative effect of the first few paragraphs is what can really draw you in, even when that first line hooks you.
Yes, first lines get me hooked for sure. I love this first line: Thirty five years ago Haven”s would have opened his eyes and thought of the day ahead as lacking.
Interesting first line! Thanks for sharing it. :)
Oh I love it when a book sucks me in from the start! My favorite authors are my favorites because they are able to do that for me. When I first read The Hobbit, years ago, I recall I struggled to get 1/2 way, then finally quit. I picked it back up again 2 or 3 yrs later (on my sister’s request) and tried again. I struggled again to the 1/2 way point, and when I got about 2/3 through, finally I began loving it. When finished, I immediately hopped into the following books. The quantity of new, weird characters & settings – goodness!
Whenever I am tempted to quit on a book, I remember The Hobbit (now actually a well loved favorite I have reread several times) and I will therefore give a book to the med-point before quitting. But I also will now hop to the end without qualm to see if the ending is worth pursuing. Seldom will I actually quit on a book. But if I struggle too much, I may not reread any future books by that author. There are so many choices.
So a great attention getter is best!
Agreed! It’s so much better to be grabbed from the beginning than to have to slog through to figure out if the book is worth pursuing. (I have to admit that I’m rarely patient enough to give the book to the midpoint—but I’m glad your experience with The Hobbit showed it can be worth it!). You’re so right—there are so many great choices out there that we don’t have to spend our time on a book we’re not enjoying.
Awww, thanks for the shout out! <3