5 tips for writing the perfect first line

The first line of your novel needs to have impact. I am fairly certain that whole novels’ worth of material have been written about how much the first line matters (and here is some more material on the subject) and the role it plays in your novel. Everyone has their own ways of starting stories, but here are some tips to help you when writing your perfect first line.

Read lots of them. It’s an interesting exercise; going through all of the books in your house and reading the first line in each of them. Which of them are the most compelling, and why? Are there any that you think could be improved? Read on a little to the end of the first page – how does it affect the impact of the first line?
Make sure it’s a strong opening. A very vague tip, I know, but an important one nonetheless. No matter what your novel is about, make sure your first line does it justice.
Practice writing them. Write the first line of a few ideas you’ve got floating around, or even just any first line that springs to mind to find out what works and what doesn’t.
Write the first page of your book and then see if you could cut the first paragraph. Despite best intentions, we often start our novel drafts with a small amount of waffle. It might not seem like waffle at the time, but often when you come back to it, you find it could in fact be cut: your first first line might not always be your final first line.
Follow it up well. There’s no point writing a cracking first line only to then wreck it with a poor follow up. Make sure your second sentence is just as great as the first. And make sure that the third sentence is as good as the second, and on, and on…