Everyone Loves a One-liner

“You were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off”

I love one-liners.

In fact I’m looking for some.

I’m looking for buckets full of them.

I’m looking for enough one-liners to write a book with.

Well, not just one book.

One book for every one-liner.

To turn that around, I’m looking for one line from every book.

Well, one line from every Indie book, anyway.

Are you still reading this? Well I must say, I’m surprised. Because I am gibbering a bit.

So, here you go, I’ll start making sense…

I have no doubt that one line in a novel can be particularly important. If it’s at the front of the book, in the opening paragraph, or if it’s actually the very first line, then it can be incredibly important. It can be the line that motivates readers to buy the book. Or it can be a line that makes them run a mile.

But it doesn’t have to be at the front to be effective. It can be anywhere in the book. It can be one line that suddenly stands out and whacks you. It can be the basis of a ‘water cooler moment’ at the office.

Just look how we remember Michael Caine’s wonderful line in the film, The Italian Job. “You were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off.“

“Do you feel lucky, Punk?”

Or Clint Eastwood’s epic, “Do you feel lucky, punk?”

I’m sure there’s one such line in every book. I’m sure there’s one such line in yours.

And I’d like you to send it to me.

Send in one line from your Indie book that you are particularly pleased with. One line that would tempt a potential reader. One line that is likely to be discussed enthusiastically within a reading group. One line that other writers could draw inspiration from. It could be a humorous line, a dramatic line, a scary line, a sexy line. It doesn’t really matter. Just send it in.

I’ll give you mine right now, just so you know I’m not setting the bar very high. This is the opening line from my first novel, Open House. It probably put off more potential readers than it attracted, but I don’t care. I’m proud of it and that’s all that matters to me.

“Upon our arrival I will piss over the drawbridge, drip slowly, and then park my chopper.”

So you see, there’s nothing to follow.

I’ve actually cheated a bit by joining two short lines. I’ll turn a blind eye if you do that too. It’s not cheating, anyway. It’s called editing.

Please send me your line now, using the form below. Include the book title and author (you) in the Comment section.

THEY’LL ALL GO IN A BUCKET.

Every week we will select ten one-liners from the bucket and publish them, together with a link from the line to the book’s details page on Amazon.com. You never know, that one line could indeed sell your book.

I’m waiting with my empty bucket so I can say, “Great line!”

Please get emailing,

Charlie Bray

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