First Lines

by Sandy Cody

One thing writers try very hard to get right is their first line. Of course, we want to get every word, every line, right, but we all know that first impressions count, so we spend a little extra time honing that first line. So ... in the name of research ... and, just for the fun of it ... I took a little time to look at how some of my fellow Classic and Cozy authors began their novels. I found an interesting variety in the few I've chosen.

The first two begin (very effectively) with a one-word exclamation; for these two, I included the next sentence to give a sense of what prompted the single, excited cry. The third example is a short sentence that leaves no doubt that someone is facing a rough morning. The fourth is a bit longer, using a snippet of intriguing description. All, I think, do what their creator set out to do: arouse the reader's curiosity. The fifth is from one of my books, so I'll leave it to someone else to decide if it would entice a reader to continue (fingers crossed here).

In each case, I included a blurb after the first sentence to give an idea of where the story might be headed.

BLOND FAITH by Jayne Ormerod 

  

“’RUN!’ The command was redundant, as the sound of a gunshot had been a sufficient catalyst to get me galumphing down the dark paneled hallway faster than a speeding bullet.”

Blurb:  The sound of gunshot has Ellery Tinsdale running for her life, while Samantha "Sam" Green races to offer assistance.  Chaos ensues as the two team up to find out who pulled the trigger that killed the reverend.

Amazon link:  http://www.amazon.com/Blond-Faith-Blonds-Beach-Mystery-ebook/dp/B00L4LLXS2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1411124455&sr=8-3&keywords=blond+faith

A QUESTION OF FIRE by Karen McCullough

“’Miss!’  The word slithered from the bushes behind her, startling Catherine Bennett out of the few wits she'd managed to recover in the peace of the dark, quiet garden.”

Blurb: When Cathy Bennett agrees to attend an important party as a favor for her boss, she knows she won't enjoy it. But she doesn't expect to end up holding a dying man in her arms and becoming the recipient of his last message. Bobby Stark has evidence that will prove his younger brother has been framed for arson and murder. The man who killed Bobby saw him talking to her and assumes she knows where the evidence is hidden. He wants it back and he'll do whatever it takes to get it, including following her and trying to kidnap her.

Amazon link:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002W5RBZS

REUNION IN OCTOBER by Gina Ardito

“No one should have to face a morning with decaf.”

Blurb: Francesca lost her first love. Emily’s teetering on her last nerve. Will they risk their hearts to gain everything they both desire? 

Five years after her fiancé, Michael, left her for a job on the other side of the country, Dr. Francesca Florentino is focused on her work as an emergency room physician and has no time for a love life. That is, until Josh Candolero charms his way into her heart on the same night Michael returns, vowing to win her back. 

Meanwhile, Emily Handler, a 911 dispatcher married to her high school sweetheart for the last seventeen years, can’t seem to figure out what happened to that spark she and hubby, Roy, used to share in their marriage. A life-altering heart attack was not exactly the shake-up she had in mind. 

Amazon link: http://amzn.to/1mid2rh

RELATIVE CHAOS by Kay Finch

“I clomped over Aunt Millie’s threshold in my black steel-toed sneakers that looked like the Goodwill drop-off after closing.”

Blurb: Poppy Cartwright's Klutter Killer business is taking off. But when her Aunt Millie, hoarder extraordinaire, wants professional organizing help, Poppy moves Millie to the top of her to-do list. Surprised by the appearance of a handsome and mysterious handyman hired by her aunt out of the blue, Poppy is in for an even greater shock when amid the piles of junk in Millie's garage she discovers ... a corpse. Poppy is content to leave the case of the unidentified man to the police until witnesses begin to describe a suspect who matches Poppy's son to a tee. Now she must juggle her messy aunt, a suspicious cousin, and a booming business as she searches for clues that will clear her only child. One thing is certain Poppy won t rest until she lines up every detail, a task that might organize her right into a killer's sights.

Amazon link: http://amzn.to/XNetSS

LOVE AND NOT DESTROY by Sandra Carey Cody

“He stood at the crest of the hill, already shamed by the act he was about to commit.”

Blurb:  A baby is found in a basket on the grounds of a small-town museum during their annual Folk Festival. Twenty-two years later, a homeless man is murdered in the exactly the same spot. Connection? Or coincidence? Peace Morrow, the foundling, now an adult working at the museum, is haunted by this question and thus begins a quest that explores the nature of family, of loyalty and responsibility. As she tries to reconstruct the victim's history, his story becomes entangled with her own search for family roots. Her journey leads her through the dusty boxes in the museum’s storage area, to an antique market in a tiny hamlet in northern Pennsylvania, and, ultimately, to the innermost reaches of her own heart.

Amazon link: http://amzn.to/wxIV81


If any of you have a first line you'd like to share, either one you've written or one by another writer, please feel free to include it as a comment. Of course, as always, we welcome any comment you care to leave.