Is it ready? I know that it’s hard as a writer to know if your first chapter is ready for the eyes of a reader – whether it be an editor or agent….or a judge for the Frasier. I know because I go through the same angst every time I write a book. Thankfully, I send it off to my writing partner, Rachel Hauck, and she’s brutally and sweetly honest with me.
And now I’m going to help you be brutally and sweetly honest with yourself by giving you a Super Secret Frasier First Chapter Checklist.
These are things that you need to make sure you’re communicating in the first chapter.
1. Have you created sympathy for your character so we love them?
2. Have you shown us your character’s home life, so we know where their journey begins?
3. Have you shown us your character’s competence, and their identity?
4. Have you given us a glimpse of your characters greatest dream?
5. Have you given us a hint of your character’s greatest fear?
6. Have you given us a hint at your character’s spiritual lie?
7. Have you set the mood of the book (suspense/mystery/fantasy, women’s fiction, rom-com, romance, etc).
8. Have you delivered the story question that will drive us through the book?
9. Do you have crisp, interesting dialogue?
10. Have you honed your hook to include the Who, What, Why, When and Where’s of the story?
11. Do you have sufficient storyworld?
12. Have you used the five senses?
13. Have you shown us the story in active voice?
14. Have you used specific nouns and vivid verbs to add emotion to the story?
15. Finally, have you ended the scene with a disaster, or something that makes the reader want to turn the page?
If you have any questions on any of these, look in the MBT Blog Archieves. (and if you can’t find them in the archives, go ahead and post them on the Frasier Questions discussion at My Book Therapy Voices. )
Only 10 days left until the deadline for the Frasier Contest! For more details go Here!
Okay, that didn’t hurt that much, did it?
Susie May