Thread: Introductions are the hardest part.

I've always had a problem with good introductions when writing stories. Sometimes, they come easily, but most of the time it's difficult for me to think of the perfect way to start a story. That's why I usually start at a random place and work from there. I'm trying to kick that habit. When I first started writing I would always, always start from the beginning, and back then it usually worked out for me. Then I started to let myself have more freedom with my writing and now I suck at intros.

Does anyone else have a problem with introductions? How do you work it out?

This is part of my introduction to the story I'm writing right now:

The red sun rose slowly over the flat, sandy horizon, chasing away the stars and the dark blue of night. A small breeze blew in our direction, lifting my black dishdasha slightly off the ground. Kuwait was surprisingly cold for a desert, even if it was December.

Which really sucks in my opinion. What do you guys think?

Why do you want to write an introduction? Jump in and start telling the story. It's worked for writers from the time of Homer, It'll work for you.

Garza, by "intro" I meant the actual start of the story.

Absolutely I do, but I can go back and rewrite later. Nothing is perma until it hits the publisher. If nothing else, write a skeleton and go back when you decide to edit and condsier it more deeply. I'm less than satisfied with my current start, but it's still on the computer, not in anyone else's hands, so I'm golden for now.

Hi Dreamworx

I'd try to avoid setting the scene by way of an introduction, it's too much of a cliche, and I think the same applies for the weather too. Imagine opening the latest work from your favourite horror author, only to find they started with "It was a dark and stormy night. Rain lashed down lit white by lightning." I think I'd stop reading right there.

For the opening paragraph you show here:

The red sun rose slowly over the flat, sandy horizon, chasing away the stars and the dark blue of night. A small breeze blew in our direction, lifting my black dishdasha slightly off the ground. Kuwait was surprisingly cold for a desert, even if it was December.

I'd lose the entire first sentence, it seems to come across as verbose. Words for the sake of words, instead of telling the story. Maybe start with: A small breeze... though I'd use the term light instead of small, as wind can't really be defined by size. Perhaps more pertinently, when your narrator was beneath the slowly rising red sun, and the stars were disappearing, and the breeze was lifting her black dishdasha off the ground, what was she doing? Who was she with? Where were they? Why were they there? And the answer to all or some of those questions might be more relevant to your story than the setting or the weather.

If starting at the beginning works (has worked in the past), then why change? Don't fix what's broken. Why have freedom with your writing? Most of what I have read whilst trying to develop the skill tells of needing discipline, save the freedom for when your rolling in cash and the success or otherwise of your next piece is unimportant.

Try going back to basics. I think basics are good. They work well.

I agree that writing out a scene is a dull way to start a story if it's not done well. Obviously my intro was horrendous. It doesn't always have to be that way though.

Oh yeah, I definitely try to have a lot of discipline with myself when I write. Absolutely no mercy. It's just that a few years ago I was introduced to a spectacular writer named Ernest Hemingway and was in awe of the way he utilized the simplest of words to create amazing stories. That was when I decided to start writing "simply" which I took as just getting to the point and not worrying about any details.

The story I'm writing right now is very personal and I want to be able to write in a way that is simple and natural, yet still beautiful. I don't know why that's so hard for me now. I used to write so beautifully and no one would ever tell me I was too "telly" or whatever.

Originally Posted by Dreamworx95

I agree that writing out a scene is a dull way to start a story if it's not done well. Obviously my intro was horrendous.[1] It doesn't always have to be that way though.

Oh yeah, I definitely try to have a lot of discipline with myself when I write. Absolutely no mercy. It's just that a few years ago I was introduced to a spectacular writer named Ernest Hemingway and was in awe of the way he utilized the simplest of words to create amazing stories. That was when I decided to start writing "simply" which I took as just getting to the point and not worrying about any details.

The story I'm writing right now is very personal and I want to be able to write in a way that is simple and natural, yet still beautiful. I don't know why that's so hard for me now. I used to write so beautifully and no one would ever tell me I was too "telly" or whatever.[2]

[1] Not obviously, and not horrendous.

[2] Comments are comments - even if applicable to a particular piece once written or under review for editing - they are not rules.

Blue's point about why change what worked for you is valid. All that has happened is that with every new piece you write, the bar (the expectation) is set a bit higher - what was great work from you a year ago is now the minimum expected or accepted. Don't be fazed by that.

If you want to write your personal story in a way that is simple and natural, then write your story exactly as you would tell your story to your closest friend, or your closest friend's close relative - in all writing, you are communicating to an audience of one (even if it is a million ones). Your natural voice (language - what words you choose and how you use them) varies according to the needs of the person you are addressing - in other words, you express yourself differently to your teacher, your mother, your child, the storekeeper, the judge, etc.

Relate your story first - worry about revisions when the time for review and edit comes, not before.

You and Blue both make some valid points, Cran. I'm just that kind of person that when they take something (like writing) so seriously they can't just kick back and relax and do it. I really need to lighten up.

The story I'm writing right now is very personal and I want to be able to write in a way that is simple and natural, yet still beautiful. I don't know why that's so hard for me now. I used to write so beautifully

I've just written a story that became very personal to me. There were autobiographical elements though it was a work of fiction overall, but more than that, I had decided before I wrote it that it would be better than any story I had written before. An acid test, if you like, to see if I could reach the standard I wanted. It took me a couple of weeks to write it, in stages, between work and parenting. And then another week to redraft it. A week to let it lie in my fermenting draw. Another few days for a redraft. It was completed about seven weeks after I first sat down to write it.

I think the point I'm trying to make is it's easy to confuse a story that writes beautifully with one that reads beautifully, for that is essentially what you're aiming for. I'd say just go ahead and get the story out of you, wring every last detail of it out on to the page (screen), and then see what you've got, and that's where, for me, the most enjoyable work begins, you have a rough diamond and now it's time to polish it. Change the order of events, lose parts, embellish parts, expand the dialogue if there is dialogue, give it that simplicity you talk of, and make every word count.

I'm looking forward to reading it already.

Scott.

I once had difficulty with starting a story. So instead I wrote Chapter Two, then went back and wrote some stuff that would lead up to Ch 2, and, bingo! There was my beginning.

Originally Posted by Dreamworx95

This is part of my introduction to the story I'm writing right now:

The red sun rose slowly over the flat, sandy horizon, chasing away the stars and the dark blue of night. A small breeze blew in our direction, lifting my black dishdasha slightly off the ground. Kuwait was surprisingly cold for a desert, even if it was December.

Which really sucks in my opinion. What do you guys think?

Now that I'm sober again, I'm in agreement with the above people. Starting off with a scene description feels too forced, like the "It was a dark and stormy night..." passage.

You could mix the scene description in with your character's actions. A little at a time.

Originally Posted by The Backward OX

I once had difficulty with starting a story. So instead I wrote Chapter Two, then went back and wrote some stuff that would lead up to Ch 2, and, bingo! There was my beginning.

I had a similar experience - I had written what I thought was Ch 1, then realised I'd started in the wrong place (with the wrong character) - Ch 1 became Ch 3.

Dream, you still do write beautifully and you always will. I think what you might be doing is jumping ahead of yourself in a rush to get the scene set up.

The red sun rose slowly over the flat, sandy horizon, chasing away the stars and the dark blue of night. A small breeze blew in our direction, lifting my black dishdasha slightly off the ground. Kuwait was surprisingly cold for a desert, even if it was December.

If it was me writing, I'd start with "Kuwait was surprisingly cold for a desert, even if it was December". Thats a really cool line and great for a punchy and intriguing opener. From there you can got a dozen routes into your story - start explaining why it's surprisingly cold for a desert and who it is that thinks so (the narrator). You could go into description from there too - talk about the colours of the scene and the sunrise and the small breeze.

But whatever you decide to do, I know there's a fantastic story in there and that you'll find it sooner or later.

Thanks for the advice, Candra. Like Blue said, though, I'm worrying too much about this single thing and its hindering me from actually getting the story out. I need to save all the worrying for later. Right now should be the fun part - just writing the story.