Read any good first sentences lately? "I am shown into a small, drab room, told to sit down and wait."

"I am shown into a small, drab room, told to sit down and wait."

I love this first sentence because it makes me want to know more. Who showed this person into the room? How old it this person? Where are they? What are they waiting for? Are they a man or woman? How long will they have to wait?

Tatiana de Rosnay wrote this first sentence to start her book A Secret Kept. The story revolves around the Rey family told from the perspective of Antoine Rey, a recently divorced architect. His journey takes him back to his childhood and forgotten memories which lead him to investigate the secrets of his families' past

Antoine's perspective and actions are so honest it sometimes hurts to read it, yet anyone who has tried to dig up the past knows the desire for the truth outweighs the pain.

After the first sentence, de Rosnay continues: "Six empty brown plastic chairs face each other on tired linoleum. In a corner, a fake green plant, shiny leaves coated with dust. I do as I am told. I sit down. My thighs tremble. My palms feel clammy, my throat parched. My head throbs. I think, I should call our father now, I should all him before it gets too late. But my hand makes no effort to grab the phone in the pocket of my jeans. Call our father and tell him what? Tell him how?"

This intriguing paragraph paves the way for the rest of the de Rosnay's adventure. Readers, writers and family historians alike will be glued to the Rey family history from the first sentence until the end on page 303. I love this book not only for it's great first sentence, but for the raw emotion it evokes as a seeker of the truth investigates his family's history and relationships.

"Heard" any good first sentences lately? Midnight in Paris

"Out of the past was the name of the store and its products consisted of memories."
Gil Pender, Midnight in Paris

I have seen the movie “Midnight in Paris” three times in the last three weeks.

Confession: No, I am not a Woody Allen fanatic. Yes, I have seen some of his movies. No, I don’t have to go to his movies on opening weekend. And, yes, you need to make some time over the next few weeks to see this film.

There are many reasons to enjoy this movie and, not in any particular order, here are seven.

1) Paris. Exquisite scenes of Paris. Walking in Paris, talking in Paris, eating in Paris. After a few minutes you will feel like you are actually in Paris.

2) Rachel McAdams. This actress is one of my absolute favorites. She captures each character she portrays so effortlessly, you may not realize all of the films in which you have seen her. The Notebook, The Family Stone, Mean Girls, The Time Traveler’s Wife to name just a few.

3) Owen Wilson. I am a fan of both The Royal Tenenbaums and Zoolander. Go figure. Wilson plays Gil Pender, the screenwriter turned novelist who is the protagonist of the story. He appears to effortlessly capture the “Woodiness” of Gil Pender, the screenwriter turned novelist who is the protagonist of the story.

4) Writers of all shapes and sizes. Writers who talk about writing, live writing and love writing. Writers I grew up with during school assignments or as I rambled through the library looking for classics to fill my summer reading list.

5) \Art, artists and art history. This movie should be required viewing for any art student. Period.

6) The sound of rain falling in Paris. I will leave it at that.

7) One of the best first sentences for a novel not in a novel. Pender, in Woody Allen tradition, is unsure of his book and literary talent. My favorite part of the film is when Gertrude Stein reads aloud the first sentence of Penders manuscript, the only part we hear. Stein says:

“Out of the past was the name of the store

and its products consisted of memories.”

You knew I was going to return to the first sentence. I have heard there are no coincidences, but to be writing for weeks about first sentences and to experience a first sentence in a movie feels like serendipity. Stein, Hemingway and Pender all realize the value of the first sentence. Gil fears ridicule when it is read aloud however the character Adriana immediately loves it and “is hooked.” I was hooked, too. I was hooked, too.

The first sentence of a book in a movie which encompasses the crux of the film. Brilliant. Just brilliant. Could I have asked for anything more as I continue my quest of first sentences? I think not.

Read any good first sentences lately? How do writers create such great first sentences?

How do writers create such great first sentences?

I've pondered this question for the last couple of weeks because I wanted to blog about it. When I start to write, I usually have a few ideas and points I want to cover. But rarely do I sit down and immediately write a magical first sentence. One of my friends from my writer's group knew his entire novel before he sat down to write it. Well, my mind doesn't work like that.

When I put my fingers on the keyboard, I sometimes have no idea how to begin the first sentence. Most of the time I write all of my ideas in a narrative form or I type an entire paragraph which I know will be in the piece, but I don’t know where it flows into the story yet. This can go on and on for hours, days or weeks.

Once I start to edit my work, I tie loose ends together. During editing, I typically uncover underlying meanings which I use to add to the essence of the story. This step helps me to flesh out the first draft. Often when I reread what I have written, a sentence in the middle or the end usually hits me WRITE to the Heart of the Matter and I cut and paste it into my opening line. Other times, the final sentences reveal to me what the first line should be. At that point, I go back to the beginning, add the first line and, with revisions to a few key words, I tighten the entire story.

Blogs in particular work this way for me. I have some ideas I want to share and I simply start to type it out, refining it as I click the keys, backspace, insert and delete. Which, I just did right now. This doesn’t sound pretty but it is how my mind works through the creative process.

Last Sunday I wrote an email to Lev Grossman after I published my blog about the first sentence of The Magicians. I wanted to make sure he was okay that I used his book as an example of a good first sentence. I didn't expect an immediate answer, so I was surprised when he replied within twenty-four hours.

Not only did he approve, but he shared with me how he wrote that first sentence. Grossman said:

"Glad you liked the first line. Oddly enough it was one of the last lines that I wrote -- I finished the book and then I went back and added that to the beginning."

He is a writer after my own heart. Now back to that first sentence.

Read any good first sentences lately? "With her back defiantly against the wall...

"With her back defiantly against the wall of the crowded kitchen,
sixteen year old Hannah Schreissmiller
looked through tear-blurred eyes at Fritz."

What strikes me most about this first sentence is how precisely it describes and foreshadows the life of the lead character, Hannah Schreissmiller.

Second Hoeing by Hope William Sykes was first published in 1935. After seventy-six years, this story still tugs at your heart. Hannah and her family grapple in the Colorado beet fields for sustenance and acceptance. She struggles to survive despite her internal conflict to leave her family and her external conflict with her father. As a first generation German from Russia, Hannah's back is against the wall during much more than the first sentence.

Her inner strength and defiance spur conflicts between generations, fellow immigrants and neighbors. Despite its seemingly simple plot line, Second Hoeing is filled with memorable characters who create generation and immigration clashes on each page. While it was written about Germans from Russia, the themes are universal.

Ah, the courage and stamina it takes to assimilate in a new country. Something we cannot take for granted today. Will Hannah's back be against the wall for her entire life? Read it for yourself. I guarantee you will not regret the time you spend to get to the last sentence of this book.

Read any good first sentences lately? "Quentin did a magic trick. Nobody noticed."

"Quentin did a magic trick. Nobody noticed."

I recently read a book which started with these two lines. I was immediately hooked. Why? Well, I have loved the name "Quentin" since I saw the character of Quentin Collins on the daytime series "Dark Shadows." Also, the book title was The Magicians, and I felt I was in the right place.

Simple and straight to the point, the first sentence sets the stage for the dynamic story that follows. I listened to the audio book so I was unaware of the endorsements on the back cover which describe the book as a Harry Potter "coming of age" dark fantasy.

I understand the comparison, however as I read Lev Grossman's book, I experienced it as a tribute to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe with the audience targeted for young adults. It's a book you can't easily set aside and if you listen to the audio book, be prepared to drive on auto pilot and arrive at your destination sooner than you desire.

The first sentence made me laugh and made me curious...two essential ingredients to get the reader to turn to page two.