There are a lot of checklists for building a first chapter, and sometimes they can get overwhelming. MBT has an advanced checklist we use to help people build their Frasier Contest Scene (it’s the same checklist I use when building my first chapters!). However, I admit, it can get overwhelming.

So, let’s start building that chapter one with 5 essential elements.  In fact, this is step two in your process. As Sally and I talked about yesterday in Conversations, sometimes it just helps the writing process to let your characters walk on the page and wander around a bit. We can hear them, talk to them, discover if we have profiled them correctly.  No, these wanderings probably won’t be the final first chapter, but it gives you a chance to get some words on the page.

But, after that initial jump into story, you need to go back and craft a foundational first chapter. You add the elements of the advanced checklist later.

Let’s start with 5 things.  (I made a nifty acronym to help you remember, just because that’s how my brain works.  You don’t have to use it. 🙂 ) .

You’re starting your story at the edge of a CLIFF:

Competence: Show that your character is good at something and can eventually win the day with these skills.

Lie: Where will your character start their inner journey (at MBT, we call it the lie they believe…which sets them up later for the “truth that sets them free.”_

Ignition:  Set up the Inciting Incident. Perhaps it’s just the hint of the II. Maybe it is the actual II.  But hint that that something could be happening…even if you are setting up a perfect world situation, we will then suspect your character is about to fall, hard.

Fear:  We want to know what your character fears – maybe he sees something, eh says something, it’s usually very subtle, but something that we can look at later and say, yes, we saw what he didn’t want to have happen!

Focus:  We want to see what your character wants, what his goals are.  What is he about?

Because you know your character, you should be able to craft this scene.  If not, start with a character interview.

Questions to ask your character to help build the first chapter

• Competence: What are you good at?  What are your super power skills that we can highlight now to show how you’ll save the day at the end?
• Lie:  What Lie do you believe and how do you show this in your everyday life?
• Ignition:  What will happen in this chapter, big or small, that will change the life of your character and ignite him on his journey?
• Fear:  What fear hangs over the book and how can you hint at it in this first chapter?
• Focus/Want: How can you express your characters focus in this chapter?  Show who they are and what they want?

Now, pull out your first scene draft.  What elements from this first scene reveal your character’s identity?  Add that to the recipe.

The final step is to wrap all of this up in Home World:  inserting the 5 W’s – Who, What, Where, What, and Why.  All these should give you the framework of your first chapter.

Here’s a hint.  Don’t write, just talk through the scene with a friend or craft partner. See if you have captured all the elements. If it doesn’t work, try a different scene.  Now that you know what you’re looking for, you can build the scene verbally before you get it on the page (but remember to take notes of your conversation!)

Remember, you don’t have to get the scene right on the first pass…you’re still in rough draft mode.  Just shoot for these 5 basic elements. You will go back later and add in the advanced list to bring your scene to publication level.

Quick Skills:  Start the first scene with your character on the edge of the CLIFF…ready to take off into the story.  Build in the 5 elements: Competence, Lie, Ignition, Fear, Focus  into your Home World and you’ll have a powerful foundation to your story.

Have a great writing week!

Susie May

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