Curated insights to help fiction writers improve their craft

Beginnings of novels get a lot of attention, and for good reason.

They set the tone and expectations for the whole book, and they’re how readers decide if they’ll keep reading… or stop after chapter one.

No pressure.

Hook readers from page one

Within the first line, page, chapter, and fifth of the book, you are aiming to accomplish a few things:

• Capture the reader
• Foster empathy for the main character
• Establish stakes
• Promise conflict
• Introduce the central dramatic question
• Anchor them in a time and place
• Propel the reader into the middle

First chapter mistakes

I see some common opening mistakes — in both manuscripts that are a work in progress and even published books. These include starting too early, info-dumping, withholding instead of creating mystery, and a passive protagonist.

I share more on the goals and mistakes in opening chapters on my blog. But for now, let's move on the good stuff: The self-editing exercise ⬇️

Your opening pages: A three-pass self-edit guide

Most opening problems aren't obvious on a first read. Plus, self-editing is hard; getting distance from your own work is a mind game.

To help overcome some of this, try walking through three targeted passes of your manuscript’s opening chapters.

Each pass asks you to read with a specific lens. Grab your opening chapter 📝 (or first 20% if you want to go deeper) and let's get to work 🤓

Pass 1: The Reader Test

Does it hook and orient?

Read your opening as a stranger would — someone who knows nothing about your book. Ask yourself:

• Is there something immediately at stake, going wrong, or worth being curious about?
• Do I know roughly where and when I am?
• Are long blocks of description or backstory slowing the pace?
• Do I want to know what happens next?

Pass 2: The Character Test

Do I care, and do I understand the stakes?

This time, read only for your protagonist. Ignore plot. Ask:

• Do I know what they want?
• Do I know what they're afraid of losing?
• Have they made at least one active choice?

Pass 3: The Promise Test

Does it set up what's to come?

Finally, read for the implicit contract you're making with your reader. Ask:

• Is the central conflict — or a hint of it — present?
• Does the tone and voice match the kind of book this is?
• What question is your opening raising that the rest of the book will answer?

Happy worldbuilding and wordsmithing.

Emily Dahl

​Dahlhouse Editing LLC ​