Write Better Beginnings
Are you looking to pull the reader in from page one? This bundle of nine resources will help you write a beginning that will hook agents, editors, and readers and will get them to keep turning pages, and ask for more!
What Agents and Editors are Looking for in First Pages (OnDemand Webinar) Katie Shea Boutillier will go step-by-step to demonstrate the importance of strong first pages, focusing on voice, tone, mood, setting, urgency, pace, description, dialogue and your natural approach to your characters. Your ultimate goal is to make sure your reader (agent, editors, and beyond) are into your work immediately, and Katie will guide you with her knowledge and experience what makes impressive first pages to readers. ($79.99)
CHAPTER ONE: How to Engage Agents, Editors, & Readers With Your Novel's First Chapter (OnDemand Webinar) So how do you write an effective first chapter? What exactly are readers looking for in your novel's opening pages? And how can you make sure your story has the best beginning possible? Chapter One: How to Engage Agents, Editors, & Readers with Your Novel's First Chapter covers all these topics (and more), providing you with information that will help you polish the opening pages of your novel. You will hear from literary agent Maria Vicente about the best practices for drafting, writing, and revising your novel's first chapter, as well as receive professional advice on how you can make your manuscript's beginning stand out in today's crowded publishing industry. ($79.99 value)
The First 10 Pages: How to Get (and Keep!) An Editor's Attention (OnDemand Webinar) First impressions count for a lot, especially when it comes to your novel manuscript. The first pages of your book need to introduce characters, describe setting, ignite the first spark of conflict, and set forth the all-important voice of your narrator. So it's no surprise that writers agonize over their first pages, and rightly so! But if you're seeing editors turn down your work time and again, with little explanation, it can feel almost impossible to divine just what needs to change on those first ten pages. As Senior Editor at Quirk Books, Blair Thornburgh reads hundreds (if not thousands) of submissions every year, but only selects a few for publication. ($79.99 value)
Fearless Writing: How to Create Boldly and Write with Confidence (OnDemand Webinar) If you love to write and have a story you want to tell, the only thing that can stand between you and the success you're seeking isn't craft, or a good agent, or enough Facebook friends and Twitter followers, but fear. Fear that you aren't good enough, or fear the market is too crowded, or fear no one wants to hear from you. In this OnDemand webinar, author William Kenower will look at several techniques you can you use to keep yourself in the creative flow and out of the trouble and misery fear always causes. ($69.99 value)
Your Story's First Pages: How to Engage Your Reader (OnDemand Webinar) In this presentation, instructor and literary agent Kathleen Ortiz will show you how to catch a reader's eye with your first sentences and pages. After sharing her own best principles, Kathleen will review first pages from published books to show you the dos and don'ts of opening your novel/memoir (including: never start with your main character getting out of bed or looking in a mirror), and the common mistakes that drive agents crazy and stop them from reading the rest of your work. ($79.00 value)
Writer's Digest January/February 2020 Digital Edition (Digital Download) In a super-sized January/February 2020 issue of Writer's Digest, themed ‚"New Beginnings" we'll help writers edit their own work, understand personal branding, share the next installment of our new column, ‚"100 Years of Writer's Digest," unveil three new columns, and more. ($6.99 value)
The First 50 Pages: 2012 Writer's Digest Conference Session (Audio Downloas) The opening fifty pages carry a surprising amount of weight for beginning a novel correctly. You have to engage your reader, introduce your hero, and establish the context of the story. You'll also be presenting the stakes, introducing the antagonist, establishing the hero's desires, starting the main character's inner journey, and getting a ticking time bomb to ticking down. Plus much more. And you want to do all these things without dumping backstory on your reader, misleading your reader, insulting your reader's intelligence, or tipping your hand to your reader. In this class, Jeff Gerke shows you how to begin your novel with the skill and intentionality that keeps readers' eyes glued to the page. ($39.99 value)
Start Your Story Right: How to Hook an Agent with Your First Pages and Chapter One (OnDemand Webinar) The first 30 pages of your book (let's be honest, even the first 3) are supremely important in terms of catching the attention of an agent and an editor. If you're serious about getting your book published, you have to be serious about making your work stand out in the slush pile. An agent won't wait until page 40 or chapter 3 for your story to get going. It has to be excellent from the first paragraph. So what does an engaging opening look like? And what are some of the common pitfalls and cliches to avoid in the opening scenes of your story? In this webinar, Sara Megibow will examine all that and more. ($89.00 value)
Writing an Attention-Grabbing First Chapter: How to Keep an Agent Reading (OnDemand Webinar) Congratulations! Your query made it out of the slush pile and an agent requested your manuscript. Now make sure they'll want to keep reading your novel by having an attention-grabbing first chapter. Between queries, clients, and requested manuscripts, an agent only has so much time to devote to reading new material. If an agent isn't engaged from the very beginning, there's a slim chance they'll keep turning the pages. Literary agent, Sarah LaPolla represents young adult, and adult fiction, and is a big believer in the power of a great opening chapter. ($79.99 value)
