10 Great First Lines: Setting the Tone...

I recently began reading the autobiography of Mickey Walker, the middleweight boxing champion who plied his trade in the 1920’s. The book opens with an extraordinary first line: ‘I was born dead, with a black eye’. It prompted me to think about the importance of that opening salvo to a novel’s tone.

A great first line is the literary equivalent of a captivating opening scene in a movie or a memorable opening chord in a song; it serves as the initial, powerful impression that can determine whether a reader continues to explore the world crafted within the pages of a novel. Its importance lies in several key aspects.

First, a compelling first line piques curiosity. It's an invitation, a promise that the author makes to the reader – that within these pages lies a story worth investing time in. It hints at the tone, theme, or conflict to come, sparking an innate human desire to know more, to unravel the mysteries that lie ahead.

Second, a great first line sets the mood and atmosphere. It can convey a sense of foreboding, excitement, nostalgia, or whimsy, providing readers with an immediate emotional connection to the story. This emotional resonance can make the novel more relatable and engaging.

Third, it introduces characters or situations that linger in the reader's mind. Iconic first lines often feature memorable characters or unique situations that stick with readers long after they've turned the page. These characters or scenarios become touchstones that readers can anchor themselves to as they navigate the narrative.

In essence, a great first line is a literary hook. It's the moment where author and reader establish a contract: "I promise to tell you a story worth your time, and you promise to come along for the journey." A well-crafted first line can determine whether that contract is sealed or abandoned, making it a critical component of a successful novel.

Here’s some truly great examples.

1. "Call me Ishmael." - "Moby-Dick" by Herman Melville

2. "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" by Jane Austen

3. "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" by Charles Dickens

4. "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." - "Anna Karenina" by Leo Tolstoy

5. "You don't know about me without you have read a book by the name of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer; but that ain't no matter." - "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" by Mark Twain

6. "All this happened, more or less." - "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut

7. "Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins." - "Lolita" by Vladimir Nabokov

8. "I am an invisible man." - "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison

9. "The sun shone, having no alternative, on the nothing new." - "Murphy" by Samuel Beckett

10. "In the beginning, there was the sound of the heart." - "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak