Call Us Today! 1.250.285.3651 scribeswritingservice@gmail.com

What to Include in the Opening Scene of your Memoir, Family History, Biography or Fiction

This is a continuation of several posts on this subject. 

Somewhere in the first page or two you’ll want to include a scene. This is where the reader gets dropped into the action to experience this story with you. Dialogue is a vital element of scenes, in fiction and memoir, but if you open directly with one it’s best to keep the dialogue to a minimum. The reader needs to get to know your characters before she can follow their conversations.

DSCN2108You should introduce your main character(s) in the first page and a scene is the most lively way to do that. Maybe you’re going to also introduce the antagonist? Can you reveal a few (not too many at once) essential traits of these people through their actions? Your character enters that scene for a reason: to go somewhere, see something, find something out, or avoid something. Everything that happens must have meaning, a way in which it serves and supports the progress of the story to come. Something important must occur.

Perhaps this scene will dramatize the “inciting incident” (the moment when the fuse gets lit, leading to a crisis point.)

Does the reader need some backstory to understand that opening scene? If so, keep it lean. Too many details may confuse and bore.

Weave some elements of the core subject—your narrative’s theme—into this scene. Some reference to the dramatic question. It’s the essence of piece, which may not become clear to your until well into your writing process. When you do find your theme, hold that as an underlying thought. It’s rarely overtly stated. In Jane Eyre, for example, the dramatic question is: Am I a Servant? This is the question that plagues the protagonist and drives the action of the book.

Question every detail you include in the start—and throughout the narrative. Is it really needed? Does this information help the reader understand the underlying theme, characters and conclusion? Scenes, of course, require more words than summary, so be judicious in their use. They must lead to a greater understanding of the character(s) and story.

The setting and time period should be established. Are there aspects of this you can convey through sensory details? If setting is a critical dynamic in this narrative, establish that here.

Most strong scenes have atmosphere (sounds, smells, texture); dialogue (can you show much of the action through dialogue?); emotion; and action.

A hint at future action and obstacles to come—just a hint—is a great reader hook.

Watch for a final blog posting on this subject soon.