You might not realize this now, but the opening chapter is the most important, most crucial, and most difficult part of writing your book. Beyond the 5-star reviews, NYT Bestseller lists, and the back-of-the-book synopses, readers go straight for the first page to get a taste of this tale and find whether it’s for them or not. People could be raving about a book, it could be #1 for weeks, but if the opener doesn’t click with a reader, it goes straight back to the shelf. Before you think about that published book scenario, where avid readers discover your work, consider what it takes to even get an agent to give you a shot. If you don’t want to take the self-publishing route, you will never see your book on a shelf without the guidance of an excellent agent. When you start querying, you can’t jump in with your favorite scene or chapter; you need to submit the first few pages or your opener (depending on agency guidelines), and make them beg for more. Think of querying as your portal to the literary world. If you don’t get rejected based on your query, you might lose their interest with a wonky first […]
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