Just like there are different types of endings, there are different types of beginnings. While those were focused on the content or tone, in this case, I’ll be referring to the timeline. As in, when does the story’s beginning take place? The past, the present, or the future?
And there’s a distinction to be made between a prologue (an introductory part) and a beginning—but in this case, I’ll take the easy way out and use them both as the start of the story.
To start with, there are stories that begin with flashbacks. Maybe it’s a short prologue or a chapter that refers to a memory the main character has right before the present kicks off, as in Emily Henry’s People We Meet on Vacation. Perhaps it’s a chapter that introduces some of the characters and that will make a bit more sense if it’s reread after the whole story’s finished (see “The Boy Who Lived” in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone).
Not to be too self-referential, but I started A Full Moon’s Night right when Georgiana changed into a were for the first time—I figured that’s what I wanted the story to focus on and worked in more of her backstory as the plot developed.
And looking to the future, the use of flashforwards can be especially effective in thrillers—although they can also work in contemporary women’s fiction, as can be seen in Marian Keyes’ Grown Ups.
Flashforwards (or a hint of them) can be very brief snippets—Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight—or they can be a bit lengthier—Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. They can also change in meaning or interpretation once you reach the same moment in the actual story.
I’ve definitely returned books to shelves because I wasn’t sold, just like there are opening lines that are iconic (hello, Jane Austen), but that’s another matter.
In any case, a very typical beginning is waking up—something that’s been done too many times and that has mostly lost its appeal (like waking up from a dream at a story’s conclusion).
An agent once suggested avoiding this kind of beginning unless it was entirely necessary to the story or if I could frame it in a non-traditional way. I’d written Darcy’s, Lauren’s, Zoe’s, and Beth’s stories by then with that type of beginning when they were all part of the same book, to contrast their lives, so some of that made it to the final version of each tale.
In any case, is there any famous beginning that you love? Are there opening sentences that make you return a book to a shelf?
