A first line can suck you into a book just like a pretty cover. With NaNoWriMo happening, I’ve been thinking a lot about writing (but not writing — you know we never ACTUALLY do any writing) and how important a first line can be. It sets the tone. It hooks the reader into the story. So here are some of the best first lines that I’ve seen.
The 6 Best First Lines on our Current Shelf
1. “Ayoola summons me with these works – Korede, I Killed Him”
My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Brathwaite
Braithwaite’s novel is a great example of a killer (LOL) first line. Right away you need to know who Ayoola is, who she killed, why she killed him, and what is going to happen. You can’t walk away from a line like that. You are turning the page and settling in for the ride.
2. “I’m pretty much fucked.”
The Martian by Andy Weir
If you’ve been with us for a while, you know we love everything Weir. He makes science fiction fun and easy to understand while taking you on a rollercoaster of events. And this line? In a book called The Martian? I need to know why this person is fucked!
3. “When Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from troubled dreams, he found himself changed into a monstrous cockroach in his bed.”
Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
This one is pretty self explanatory. Man wakes up as a cockroach. How? Why? These questions NEED to be answered so I’m reading on. It’s a classic; one of the best first lines.
4.”Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul.”
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
I did not know what I was getting into when I read this first line decades ago in university. It was beautiful. I wanted someone to feel that way about me. I devoured that first page and learned just where we were headed. Sneaky Nabokov. Sneaky indeed.
5. “I stand at the window of this great house in the south of France as night falls, the night which is leading me to the most terrible morning of my life.”
Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
Baldwin spins prose like no one else. I want to be in a great house in the south of France. Who wouldn’t? But what happens in the morning to cause it to be the narrator’s worst morning ever? I must know.
6. “Tyler gets me a job as a waiter, after that Tyler’s pushing a gun in my mouth and saying, the first step to eternal life is you have to die.”
Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk
Tyler sounds nice. He got the narrator a job. Oh… Wait… No, maybe Tyler isn’t so nice. This was the first Palahniuk I read and this line is why I own a stack of at least 10 other books by this author. Immediately sucked in. Perfection.
The Pure Magic of a Well-crafted First Line
The first line is what will get you to the last line. Some are innocuous while others are kindling about to catch and turn into a huge blaze. This is why we love reading. Those first lines that knock your socks off and pull you in against your will. Hopefully one day, one of my stories will have a line that stops a reader flat. They’ll have to go back and read it again because they’ll just know they’re about to read something special. Here’s to hoping.
What are some first lines that had you reeling? Let us know in the comments!
