Crafting the perfect opening lines of a novel

Do you need a killer opening line for your novel? Or is there an alternative way to draw readers in right from the start? 

I'm slightly obsessed by the opening lines of novels, and for me, the opening line isn’t merely about crafting a flashy hook; it’s about setting the tone, sparking curiosity, and providing readers with a reason to keep turning the pages. A brilliant first sentence generates intrigue and anticipation, drawing the audience into your story before they even realise it.

1. The intriguing promise of a mystery

“It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” – George Orwell, 1984

It is an unforgettable line. It instantly sets an unsettling tone. The imagery of a bright, cold day combined with the bizarre detail of clocks striking thirteen tells us we’re entering a familiar yet subtly wrong world. Orwell’s opening creates a question in the reader’s mind—why are the clocks striking thirteen?—and that curiosity draws us deeper into his dystopian vision.

2. The Atmosphere of Loss and Longing

“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” – Daphne du Maurier, Rebecca.

This opening line might have been written in 1937, but it has a timeless quality. As a piece of writing it influenced countless post-war writers. It’s both nostalgic and foreboding, immediately pulling the reader into a memory that feels weighty and important. 

The dreamlike quality suggests both a longing for the past and a hint of the tragedy to come, giving the story its gothic, suspenseful undertone.

3. The Brevity That Speaks Volumes

“He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and had gone eighty-four days now without taking a fish.” – Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea.

Hemingway’s famously economical style works perfectly here. This sentence introduces the character, setting, and struggle. 

What I love about it, like much of Hemingway is that it is not flashy. Instead, it is profoundly compelling. It grounded us in the old man’s life's stark reality and set the stage for the quiet, determined battle that follows.

4. The Subtle Revelation of Theme

“Call me Ishmael.” – Herman Melville, Moby-Dick.

Moby-Dick is a novel whose influence resonates in post-war literature. These three simple words introduce a narrator whose identity is both fixed and flexible. 

And what's the first thing we notice about it? It is so unusual. By stating “Call me,” rather than “I am,” Melville invites questions about truth, reliability, and self-perception. 

It’s a deceptively modest opening that hints at the novel’s sprawling themes of identity, obsession, and the unknown.

5. The Haunting Pull of the Past

"The snow in the mountains was melting and Bunny had been dead for several weeks before we came to understand the gravity of our situation." – Donna Tartt, The Secret History

This opening line in The Secret History, does something brilliant: it immediately tells us a death has occurred, but instead of focusing on the event itself, it lingers on its aftermath. It's what makes Donna Tartt's outstanding campus novel so good. 

The casual tone makes it even more chilling. Who is Bunny? What happened to him? 

And why did it take so long for the consequences to sink in? Tartt’s first sentence is an invitation to piece together the mystery, ensuring the reader is invested before they know the full story.

6. The Collision of Memory and Fate

"Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice." – Gabriel García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude

Márquez’s opening line spans time in a way that few writers dare to attempt. The contrast between the life-or-death moment and the simple childhood memory immediately sparks curiosity. The structure forces us to ask: How did he get here? 

What led from that innocent moment to the firing squad? Márquez masterfully sets the tone for a novel where past and present are in constant conversation by blending nostalgia with looming doom.

Final Advice on Crafting Your Opening Line

When approaching your novel’s first sentence, think about what you want to convey right from the start. Is it the atmosphere of your world, the voice of your narrator, or a key theme that will thread through the story? 

Consider how the tone and mood will set reader expectations, and don’t be afraid to revise that line many times. A strong opening doesn’t have to explain everything—it just needs to invite the reader in, intrigue them enough to keep going, and plant the seeds of the story that will unfold.