Thursday,
March 17th, I spent the morning in anxiety, the afternoon in ecstasy, and the
evening unconscious.
"Risk" by Dick Francis
In defense of
Althalus, it should be noted that he was in very tight financial circumstances
and more than a little tipsy when he agreed to undertake the theft of the Book.
"The
Redemption of Althalus" by David and Leigh Eddings
Mr and Mrs
Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were
perfectly normal, thank you very much.
"Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" by JK Rowling
I'd never
given much thought to how I would die - though I'd had reason enough in the
last few months - but even if I had, I would not have imagined it like this.
"Twighlight" by Stephenie Meyer
I love first
sentences. To be drawn in from the first few words is something I look for in a
book. The above 4 examples are all written by some of the world's most
successful authors, and all are favourites of mine. But I've never really thought
about these sentences. What draws my interest? When I started to consider it I
realised they all do the same thing:
- they all introduce something about the characters - and in all but the Harry Potter example, the main characters
- they all make me ponder a question - What could cause such a range of emotions in one day? What is the Book and why would Althalus not agree to steal it unless he was tipsy? Why would you need to be able to say you were normal, let alone be proud of it? How was she dying if it wasn't something you could imagine?
- by making me ponder a question I have to read on to find my answer (they immediately captured me)
- they are all 'different', original openings
- they are all simple - simple language and simple ideas
