A while ago I wrote a post on the seven types of memorable last lines, but I never flipped it to write about opening lines. Mostly because I was intimidated by the topic. One of my weaknesses as a writer is opening scenes, so speaking on opening lines (where people put the most pressure) seemed too daunting. But I recently received high praise from a top editor for my story opening, and that gave me the courage to approach this topic. As I did the research though, I found opening lines are much simpler than people think. Hopefully, what I share today will also take the pressure off you and let you write a good opening line that leads readers into your wonderful story.
A Quick Note
While doing my research, I became a little aggravated with the examples for this topic. Everyone used lines from old classics we were all forced to read in high school. I’m not saying they aren’t good lines, but they aren’t applicable to today. I don’t know any readers who’d tell me that “Call me Ishmael” is an amazing hook for an opening line. Where are all the examples from modern books? So, I made it my mission to use relevant lines for my examples. In this post, all quotes come from books published in 2025 (with one exception at the end), and most are by debut authors who made some bestseller list. I wanted writing that stood on its own in current times, not books sold on the author’s reputation. I hope this encourages you to see people at our level making a splash.
Three Rules For Opening Lines
The first step to writing an opening line is to know the three rules to good lines. I know, some writers reading this are bucking at my use of rules. Stay with me. I understand there are always exceptions (I even include one as an example later!), but these rules are important and often present in opening lines. I highly suggest you follow them so you don’t make it harder for people to fall in love with your story.
Rule One: Keep It Simple
The first rule is to make the sentence simple to understand. Ideally, you want a simple sentence structure, not a long complex one. Use strong verbs and nouns, and very little adjectives. Avoid using negatives; instead state what is happening. You don’t want readers to work at understanding the sentence. You want them to follow the train of thought right into the next line.
Also, keep the context of the sentence simple. Include some universal experience or concept most people will understand. Don’t use a bunch of in-world terms or proper names that readers don’t recognize. Again, readers need to grasp the meaning easily. If they have to work hard at understanding, they may just stop reading.
Rule Two: Make It Specific
The next rule is to make your opening line specific. If your sentence is a blanket statement that can apply to any story, it won’t catch anyone’s attention. For example: Her life would never be the same after that summer. Or: It was a dark and stormy night. These opening lines are too vague to catch attention.
Making the line concrete and specific will make it stick in readers’ minds. Name a person (just one!). Give an unforgettable detail. Use words that have weight and an emotional charge. (Don’t tell us she’s beautiful, tell us she’s beguiling.) Make readers feel and visualize something in the first line so they’re already invested in the story.
Rule Three: Raise A Question
The last rule is to make your opening line raise a question in the reader’s mind. Now, this does not mean to make your opening line a question. In fact, a question as a first line is usually an awful idea so please don’t. But, whatever your sentence is, it must make the reader curious about something. It can be something big or small, just as long as it makes them wonder. That little bit of curiosity will catch their attention and carry them to the next sentence.
Four Three Types Of Opening Lines
After learning the rules, it’s time to understand the types of first lines so you can pick one that fits your story. While I was researching opening lines, most people said each sentence fell into one of four categories: description, action, character, or dialogue. I took notes on each type for this post, but as I went to look for examples, one type never appeared. After reading the opening page for over fifty novels, I gave up.
Not one book I found opened with dialogue. Are there books out there that use it? Probably. Are they successful? No clue. But for my post, I’m omitting that type because I don’t think it’s solid advice to start with dialogue. If I couldn’t find a book on a bestseller list with it, then it’s probably not a great way to start a story. I just wanted to mention it so people understood it’s an option, but maybe not the best one.
1. Action
The first type of opening line is an action sentence. This is when you start with someone in motion. Now please note, someone sitting, waking up, standing, etc., is not motion. There must be an action verb, and the sentence should lead into the heart of a scene. It’s what most people consider as opening a scene mid-action. You are just plunging your readers straight into the scene and setting up things as you go.
With this type of opening, you want to be careful to not confuse your readers. Remember rule one for first lines: they must be simple to understand. If you drop readers mid-action and it is too hard to follow, they will give up reading. Start mid-action, but make sure it’s a scene that is easily understood.
2. Description
The second type of opening lines is when writers use description. It’s a sentence that grounds readers in the scene and gets them interested in the details. This can be a description of a person, place, event, time, etc.
When using description for an opening line, writers need to be careful about making sure it’s interesting. A generic description will turn away readers so remember to use the second rule of opening lines: make things specific. Give vivid details that stick in readers’ minds and leaves them wanting to see and feel more.
3. Character
A character-centered first sentence is the last type of opening lines. This is when the focus is on the POV character, and usually some internal workings. It can be a thought, feeling, assumption, opinion, etc. It’s basically a sentence packed with interiority so readers get a taste of who they will be spending time with in the book. If you’ve heard of writers starting with voice, this is usually the opening they use.
When using this type of opening sentence, writers need to be careful not to wax long in an internal state. The last thing readers want at the start of the book is pages of the character’s musings. In the examples I found, only one author continued in an internal state beyond the first paragraph. Most jumped to an action after it to make sure the story had movement. Readers want to know what’s going on in a character’s mind, but not too much before the story really gets started.
Three Hooks To Opening Lines
Beyond the rules and types of opening lines, there is one more step to put that last special ingredient in your sentence: a hook. This is what makes rule number three happen; readers are hooked because a question is raised that they want answered. All hooks can be boiled down to three categories: tone, tension, and the unexpected. One or more of these hooks can be present in an opening line, creating a pull for readers to stay and learn more.
1. Tone
When writers use tone for a hook, they are playing with readers’ emotions to get them interested. This hook sets the mood for the story. It can be the tone of the description, or even the voice of the author or a character (if the story is written in deep POV). The story is saying: Read me, and you’ll laugh or cry or maybe not be able to sleep tonight. Because people read to feel a specific type of emotion, if you can give them a taste of what they want, they’ll stick around for more.
2. Tension
Using tension as a hook is common and very effective. People love conflict in stories, and tension promises that conflict is coming. Make readers feel a bit uneasy, and they’ll stick around to see what happens. It’s like slowing down to gawk at a car crash. We all feel the need to know the damage, even though we don’t know the people involved. Is someone being taken to the ambulance? How smashed are the cars? It might be partly the gossipers in us and partly just wanting to make sure everyone is alright, but we have the need to know. The same need creeps up in us when we read a tense opening line. We need to know more.
3. The Unexpected
My favorite hook is when something unexpected is presented in the opening line. This can have one of two effects on the readers. First, it can create a contradiction in readers’ minds that they need to resolve. For those who love puzzles, it’s an irresistible hook to read on and understand.
If the unexpected doesn’t create a question in the readers mind, it’s usually there to surprise a laugh out of them. The start of the sentence might lull them into thinking they know what will be said, and then something unexpected pops up and makes them laugh. People love feeling good so making them laugh encourages them to read more.
Opening Lines Examples
Now for the fun part; let’s see these opening lines in action! As I said above, all of these are recently published novels. I’ll give the quote, and then give an explanation of how the sentence works with what we’ve discussed so far. Just as a disclaimer, I have not read all these books so I have no clue if my interpretations of these quotes are correct. I’m only providing how each sentence by itself hits me.
Unlock the Dark by Sasa Hawk
“If this greasy little scholar didn’t get out of her personal space, Elia was going to throw the stupid mystery box in his face.”
This opening sentence follows all the rules. It’s a simple sentence that’s easy to understand (we all know what it’s like to have some unwanted person in our space!). It’s specific and cannot be used for any story. We have a specific name (Elia), and two very descriptive details (greasy little scholar; mystery box). It also raises two questions: why is this guy in her space and what’s in the mystery box?
It uses a character type opening line, putting us in Elia’s head. She is clearly annoyed by the scholar. She also doesn’t seem to think highly of the mystery box if she’s calling it stupid. Add on her threat of violence, and we have a great tone hook. Also with the threat comes a tension hook because conflict is already present on the page. On top of that, the author has a small unexpected hook too. We’ve all heard the “If you don’t, then I’ll” statements. We expect her to issue a threat, but throwing a box in his face—a mystery box—is a bit unexpected. It’s not a normal threat. Basically, this author hit the goldmine by getting all three types of hooks into one simple opening sentence.
Big Chief by Jon Hickey
“The season’s first shiver comes on Thanksgiving morning, five days before the election.”
Is this sentence simple to understand? Yes. Is it specific? Yes. (Thanksgiving morning; five days before the election) Does it make you ask a question? I did. I wanted to know if the first shiver meant the first cold day or the first bad event. Also, I was curious about the election and why it is important enough to mention as a time marker.
The line is a description style opening. It’s describing time by pointing out the weather, holiday, and an important event. The hooks in this sentence are tone and tension. The word shiver does a lot of heavy lifting. It gives the feeling of a darker mood, and the word is often associated with fear. Also, the author’s use of the election instead of an election, makes the event feel monumental. Like it changes everything, and probably not for the better. It creates some nice tension to carry the reader further into the story.
Mistress of Bones by Maria Z. Medina
“Azul del Arroyo didn’t fully know what would happen when she set out to bring her older sister back to life, but since she was ten, she didn’t much care.”
This opening line is a bit more complex than the others so far, but it still flows easily enough to understand it without much effort. For specificity, we have a proper name, an older sister, the goal of bringing her back to life, and that our POV is ten years old. That’s plenty of details to solidify a good image in the readers’ minds. As for raising questions, it definitely makes me wonder how her sister died and how Azul plans to bring her back.
This character-centered opening line gives us a peek into Azul’s mind. She’s the type to not have a clear plan but determined enough to try anything. Plus, she clearly must care a lot for her sister to try this as a ten-year-old. Which brings me to the unexpected hook in this opening line. A ten-year-old? Magic is usually a sophisticated craft so I didn’t expect a child to do something so big as bring the dead back to life. The fact the author saved that tidbit for after the goal was already listed made me do a double take. Beyond the unexpected hook, there are also tone and tension hooks. The little girl is stubborn and determined, making a fun voice, and tension is clear in that her sister’s dead. There has to be conflict behind why her sister died, but there is also the promise of conflict because Azul doesn’t know the consequences of trying this magic.
Alchemised by SenLinYu
“Helena wondered sometimes if she still had eyes.”
It’s simple, specific, and I definitely have questions. How can you not know if you have eyes? There is obviously a larger issue Helena is facing here, but the author seems to boil it down to one specific detail: Helena couldn’t see. This line just proves you don’t need a ton of details in your opening sentence. Just one that won’t let go of the readers.
This novel has a character type opening line by starting us with Helena’s thoughts. Her pondering feels almost desperate with the use of sometimes, like she isn’t sure about reality. Even as a short sentence, it hits all three hooks. The tone is dark. Even without knowing more, it’s not a pretty picture if you are wondering if you still have eyes. The fact she can’t tell if she has eyes is unexpected, and it also causes tension. What happened to her eyes if she doesn’t have them? Can she get them back? It’s just one short sentence, but it definitely carries a big opening punch.
A Song of Legends Lost by M. H. Ayinde
“Father Ngbali the Just, Arch Curator of the Sacred Order of the Twofold Path, Holy Guardian of the port town of Ninshasi, and staunch opponent of interruptions, was just biting into his plantain when the knock came.”
Remember when I said that the rules are sometimes broken? Here is a great example of that. This sentence is not easy to follow since it’s not simple and overly specific. It’s long, uses way too many in-world words, and has its subject and verb split up by a long list of descriptors. I’m going to be honest, I started reading this and almost zoned out.
But the author did something clever in this action type opening line (Yes, eating and knocking count as action!). There is a long list of titles that most people are going to feel the need to skim. The list feels pretentious, stuffy, and boring. Then we get to that last descriptor: staunch opponent of interruptions. I laughed out loud. It’s such a contradiction to the earlier list, that it was an unexpected hook. It had me chuckle…and then laughing hard when Ngbali was interrupted by the knock, setting a comical tone for the story.
It’s the kind of opening sentence I never would have advised anyone to use, but this author made it work. Did I have a question about who was at the door? Yes. Did I want to stay long enough to see how this “staunch opponent of interruptions” handled the poor person on the other side? Absolutely. That’s tension I needed to unwind. This opening line didn’t do well following the common rules, but it delivered all three hooks. It was unexpected, promised conflict, and made me laugh so I wanted to read more. (So yes, rule breakers, you can do it. But please note, this is the only one I found that didn’t follow the three rules I listed above.)
Sister Creatures by Laura Venita Green
“Not too long ago, the Thompson kids’ dad sold the black walnut trees behind their house for timber, and now clusters of big, sad stumps spoiled the backyard.”
This isn’t the simplest structure of a sentence, but it is still easy to follow. The concepts within it are easy to understand: a dad told trees for timber, making the back yard look sad. It’s very specific, but not so much that people can’t follow it. We have a specific family (Thompson), black walnut trees, and clusters of sad stumps. It creates a rich image for readers. We also have questions. The loss of the trees is clearly a sad thing, yet it happened. Why? Why did the trees need to be sold?
This is a description opening line, focusing on the backyard of a family home. It gives a bit of backstory (dad sold the trees) to set up the idea that the backyard looks spoiled by sad stumps. There is a great tone hook in this sentence with words like: sad, stumps, and spoiled. (Notice the author also used alliteration to draw attention to these words.) The fact that the loss of trees is sad makes the feeling carry over to the family. If dad sold them, something bad must have happened to make them need the money. That lingering thought creates a tension hook, making readers want to know what forced such a sad ending for the backyard.
Old School Indian by Aaron John Curtis
“Abe stands on the shaggy living room rug of his great uncle’s trailer, shoes off, stripped to the waist.”
This sentence is full of specific details. In fact, the whole sentence is basically just details (Abe, shaggy living room rug, great uncle’s trailer, shoes off, stripped to the waist). It’s a simple structure that’s easy to follow, and nothing in the sentence is confusing. However, even though readers understand everything in the sentence, what we don’t know is why. That’s the question that needs to be answered. Why is this guy here and dressed like that?
The opening line is a description. While a character is doing something (standing), there is no motion in the sentence. Instead, it’s focused on describing where the man stands and how. The hook for this opening line is a hint of tension. That hint comes from the word stripped. The verb insinuates either reluctance or speed. The author could have said shoes off and no shirt, but he chose to use stripped. That makes me think there is some sort of tension or conflict in his situation. It’s also possible some people might feel pulled in by the tone of the setting with the shaggy carpet and great uncle’s trailer.
The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff
“He’s coloring a night sky on the underbelly of the kitchen table.”
This is a simple sentence with specific details (night sky; underbelly of the kitchen table). The question it raises is why is he coloring the bottom of a table? It’s an odd place to put artwork, which makes readers wonder what led to its placement.
Action is the type of opening line for this novel. It’s starting in motion with a male coloring under a table. This sentence proves that starting with an action opening line doesn’t mean you have to start with a fight or someone running away. It can be an action as simple as coloring. As for hooks, all three are present in this opening line. It’s an unexpected hook because of all the places someone might think to color, the bottom of a table is not normal. The tension comes from him being under the kitchen table. It makes me think of a child hiding from something bad. Add in the fact that he’s coloring a night sky and the author uses the word underbelly, and the tone feels dark and sad. It makes readers curious what’s really going on in the scene.
Listen to Your Sister by Neena Viel
“Calla was wearing the wrong bra.”
This is a simple sentence about a specific character with a specific problem. It raises the question, why is it the wrong bra? What is she doing that requires a different bra? For men, this sentence might be confusing. But it’s a universal experience that women understand and can sympathize with Calla. If women are the ideal readers of the novel, it works well to pull them into the story.
As a character type opening line, it drops us right into Calla’s mind and personality. This woman is not someone who shies away from talking about “taboo” topics. She also seems no-nonsense by using a short sentence, which creates a strong tone hook for readers. There is a tension hook since the wrong bra can mean embarrassment or worse, creating conflict. And, let’s be honest, no one expected that as an opening sentence. It’s not something you say in polite conversation, so opening a book with it is very abrupt. Men may be confused, women may laugh, but both will snap into focus on the story.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
“Conscription Day is always the deadliest.”
I wanted to use at least one major book for an example so I picked this novel, which was on the New York Times Bestseller list in 2025, though it was published in 2023. As you can see, it easily follows all three rules for opening sentences. It’s simple; no frills attached. There are specifics. The author could have opened with something like, “I could die today.” It would get the same message across, but it could also open any story. Conscription Day being deadly is a lot more gripping. Also, it raises two questions: what is Conscription Day and why is it deadly?
As a descriptive opening line, it lets readers know about the time (Conscription Day) and a bit about the setting (conscription usually deals with military service). There is an unexpected hook in that conscription is deadly. Typically, people don’t start dying until after they’ve been trained, not when they sign up. With the idea of death comes a tension hook. Who is dying? Is our POV character facing death today? There is also a small tone hook because readers get an immediate sense that this book is going to have high stakes. Characters are going to die.
Final Thoughts
This was a long post, but I hope the numerous modern examples are helpful. My big takeaway from this research is your opening line doesn’t have to be earth-shattering. It just needs to do its job and get readers to the next sentence. The three simple steps to creating a good opening line is: follow the three rules, pick a type, and add some hooks. That’s it. Most of these opening lines people will not be quoting for years to come. It doesn’t matter. They got people interested in the book, and the book was written well enough that readers loved it and told others. Stop putting so much pressure on yourself to write the perfect opening line (I’m talking to myself too!). Just write an opening line that does its job, then put most of your effort into creating an amazing book. A great story will make a bigger lasting impression on readers than just a great opening line.
Thanks for reading!
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