From: julie@pascal.org   
      
   On Saturday, November 22, 2014 1:44:48 PM UTC-7, William Vetter wrote:   
   > Some time ago, I read one of those books...this one was about openings.    
   > It's thesis was the belief that it is possible to write an opening so    
   > strong, that editors, literary agents, readers, publishing executives    
   > are compelled to read on.  One of the examples mentioned the    
   > assassination of JFK in the first sentence.  Author claimed that this    
   > made it so interesting that people MUST read it.   
   >    
   > What I thought was that, "There are a lot of books about JFK.  Why    
   > should I read this one?"   
   >    
   > Of course, we want to be interesting, the get the quality of being    
   > interesting.  What do you think makes a fragment or piece of writing    
   > interesting?   
      
   I think it's different for different people.   
      
   Your example is a good one.  Lots of people would think, Oh, JFK again? Yawn.   
      
   "The first time I died I..."  might get an, Oh! More!, or else it might get,   
   Ew, gimmick much?  Or else, yawn, vampire, right?   
      
   I don't think that the question itself, of how to craft that one beginning   
   that is so strong that no one can put it down, is particularly valid.    
   Obviously the creature does not exist.  I think that it might be more useful   
   to think in terms of who am I    
   writing for and how do I get my audience not to set the book down.  If my   
   audience begins and ends at "agent, publisher's slush reader and Editor"   
   that's a particular challenge, and frankly the only one that doesn't have   
   cover art to help you out.   
      
   -Julie   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)