How to begin my story?

Rainbow Rose

Rainbow Rose

Member
For the record, I suck at beginning stories, but this one is one of the worst for me. I want to start the story off with a serene and laid-back tone. A young man named Zephyr is sitting in his favorite apple tree. He eats an apple or two then jumps down, only to find that a girl his age is sleeping under the same tree. It is implied that the girl looks familiar to him, even though he's never seen her before.

What I'm having trouble with is the first freaking sentence. I don't know why, but this one damn part keeps stumping me! Whenever I try to start it, it's always too abrupt. For example: "Zephyr sat in his favorite apple tree, looking out at the scenery." It feels so abrupt that I just can't write it that way, but I also don't want the beginning to drag out with needless details.

If anyone can help me with this, please do! This is driving me nuts!
 
Just for your information. If it feels like you're dragging it out sometimes you are, and sometimes you just need to take a different perspective. You could start out with a guy dropping the apple he is eating and spotting a lady. (That would get anyone's attention and go on with his thoughts or have him say something. It would also show his shock at seeing her.)

Another way to do this if you want is to give a nice scene with the weather and work your way down the lane with description of the lazy day or whatever it is and zoom in on the guy and then proceed. If you would like help with the specific wording try posting it and see what you get for more specific feed back or suggestions.
 
Also remember that you don't have to start at the beginning of your story! Plenty of people have trouble with opening scenes, myself included. Start writing something, even if it isn't chronological, don't let this one scene get you stuck. I often find anyway that I wind up starting in a totally different place than I had originally planned. In short, don't think too hard about it. Tell the story you want to tell and the words will come.
 
I find trouble starting stories as well and what inkdragon said above usually helps me. If I really do want to start off by integrating the character in my introductory paragraph, I usually try making my first line a thought that he/she is thinking and then use that to lead into the scenery.​
 
Rainbow Rose said:
For the record, I suck at beginning stories, but this one is one of the worst for me. I want to start the story off with a serene and laid-back tone. A young man named Zephyr is sitting in his favorite apple tree. He eats an apple or two then jumps down, only to find that a girl his age is sleeping under the same tree. It is implied that the girl looks familiar to him, even though he's never seen her before.

What I'm having trouble with is the first freaking sentence. I don't know why, but this one damn part keeps stumping me! Whenever I try to start it, it's always too abrupt. For example: "Zephyr sat in his favorite apple tree, looking out at the scenery." It feels so abrupt that I just can't write it that way, but I also don't want the beginning to drag out with needless details.

If anyone can help me with this, please do! This is driving me nuts!
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I just begin how and when feels right, and then just go with it. I don't usually begin in the beginning, and expose the background of the world as the role-play develops.

For example, I had a role-play where A scientist was trying to bring back her deceased daughter, and the role-play was from the point of view of the creation that was a result of the scientists experiments, and only towards the end of the role-play did the creation even know the scientist's motives.

Just begin however you think feels right. If not everything fits in smoothly, don't include it. If it is vital to the story, have it brought up later down the line, like I did in my role-play. P.S., the tree should be an orange tree because orange juice comes from oranges in orange tree. True story.
 
Starting with a sentence is always a choice.
Example: "Damn, this view never gets old." Zephyr said as laid back on his favourite apple tree. It was something he would always do to unwind, even though his parents warned him not to what felt like hundreds of times.

The reader isn't really clueless, so you don't have to go into detail unless it is something specific.
I hope this helps.

And yeah, I know this thread is a year old. I just can't resist helping.
 
writing first sentences are tough, but i like to start with a thought process or something philosophical/thought-provoking. for example, i started once something with the sentence “Perhaps some people are simply meant to die.” it went on in that sort of inquisitive, wondering narrative for a paragraph before leading into the actual story. maybe instead of starting with action you could start like that?

“According to the dictionary, déjà vu means ‘tedious familiarity’. I don’t know if I would call it déjà vu, though. Sure, she was familiar, but I didn’t feel as if I was reliving something.”

maybe something like that could work. i’m not you, though, and i don’t know the story as well as you, so i can’t say. hopefully you find/have found something that works!

best of luck <3
 
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