Life is difficult.
So starts one of the best self-help books ever written, in my estimation, The Road Less Traveled, by M. Scott Peck. I've heard dozens of people quote this opening line, as if everyone who has read this amazing book were part of a special club. When anyone says, "Life is difficult," other members of that club smile and nod in agreement. It doesn't get much better than this.
As you can see, the first few words of your book will influence whether or not you will turn a book browser into a buyer and ultimately into a reader and fan. If a prospective buyer is reading your first chapter, he or she has taken a little tour of your book-first a perusal of the front cover and then the back cover. If there's interest, the table of contents is often the next thing to be read. If after looking over the book's contents the prospective buyer's interest is growing, the next step is often to turn to the first chapter.
A good opening will draw you in. You find yourself thinking, "Oh, yes. I want to know more." A great opening can consist of a few words, a long story or anything in between as long as you persuade the reader to keep reading. Books with ho-hum beginnings are often returned to the shelf. Books that grab the reader in the first few lines are books more likely to be bought.
3 Kinds of Chapter Openings
Most self-help books start with one of these three beginnings:
1. Dramatic statement
Starting your chapter with a dramatic statement can draw a reader right into your book. Dramatic statements come in several varieties:
* A statement that you write
Let me quote M. Scott Peck's opening in its entirety, starting with the chapter title: Problems and Pain
"Life is difficult.
This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult-once we truly understand and accept it-then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters."
Most of us who read self-help books expect good news-a new way to conquer the old troubling situations, so Peck first statement surprises us. Being told that life is difficult is not what we expect. But he doesn't stop there. In the next paragraph, Peck flips his first statement on its head by describing the paradox of what happens when one accepts that life is difficult-it is no longer difficult.
Here's another example of a surprise opening taken from Taking the U Out of Clutter, a book I coauthored with Mark Brunetz, Emmy award-winning co-host of Clean House on Style Network:
"Don't buy another organizer bin! Don't plan another yard sale! Don't call a local charity to pick up more donations! In fact, don't do anything but get a cup of tea and sit with us for a little while."
Most de-cluttering books promote the activity of de-cluttering. But our book didn't. Since we believe that the stories we attach to each item keep us stuck, not the items themselves-our hook. Until the reader understands and accepts our premise, there's no point in sorting through one's belongings. Traditional approaches simply do not work. Our opening lays the foundation for the rest of our book.
* Quotations
Many authors open their chapters with quotations from other people. They give the reader a preview of what the chapter is about, and serve as support for the author's view. Match a great quotation with your own awesome first line, and you'll have a dynamite opening to your book.
Quotations are easy to find-there are sites online that allow you to search by category. If you choose to use quotes, you might want to invest in a few quotation books that target your particular topic area. You can also find usable quotes in other books you've read.
* Statistics
Statistics are the least personal, but can be an equally effective way to open your chapter. The strongest statistics are those that surprise and even shock the reader like these:
* It's believed that over 50% of women in our society were sexually abused as children.
* China has more straight A students than the United States has total students.
* While we used to measure progress by decades, and then years, changes in technology are now measured in months. Before you can learn how to use a new gadget, it's already out of date.
2. Story
Starting with a story can grab a hold of your reader from the first word. We are naturally drawn into stories, especially if it's about someone like themselves. Your opening story can be about someone who is struggling with problems, or a success story. And don't feel constrained to use just one story. In Who's to Blame?, a book I co-authored with Dr. Mark Baker, we used a short story to get the chapter rolling.
Allen watched from his car as Janie walked into the restaurant. Through the window he could see her as she sat down with a handsome man at a table for two. Fuming, Allen leaped out of his car and stormed into the restaurant. How could Jannie go out on him behind his back like this? He had every intention of breaking up her little rendezvous.
Who's to blame? The man who creates an embarrassing public scene or the woman who betrays his trust?
I use stories to open many of my chapters. It's a great way to engage readers and draw them into the rest of your material.
3. Have you ever...
Another common way to start a chapter is to ask the reader questions that will get them thinking about their problem, or imagining what their lives would be like with their problem solved. You can fill anything you like into the sentence-have you ever wanted to make a million dollars? Or be healthy and fit? Or make the best pasta outside of Italy.
You can change the question to whatever fits your book style. There's:
Do you...?
Did you...?
What if you...?
Have you dreamed of...?
And so forth.
Now that your audience is defined, you can subdivide it into smaller groups and target those people directly. If you add a second question, you can throw a wider net to catch as many kinds of fish possible.
Do you... or maybe you...?
Did you...or maybe you...?
What if you...or if you...?
Have you dreamed of...or maybe of...?
The Life Organizer: A Woman's Guide to a Mindful Yearby Jennifer Louden is a good example of using questions to open a chapter:
"What if there was a way to organize and guide your life that more closely resembled lying back on an inner tube as the current carried you along (with you occasionally adjusting your course because you want to smell a wild rose onshore or because you hit a bumpy stretch) rather that a furious, exhausting upstream paddle? What if self-mercy and listening to your authentic desires were your truest guides, far more trustworthy than gauging how much you accomplish in a day or what you earn? What if feeling confusion and uncertainty was actually a sign that you were on the right path? What if you could erase your sense of never having enough time or energy by cultivating a constant loving connection with yourself?"
Practice these 3 types of openings: 1) Dramatic statement, 2) Story and 3) Have you ever...? So that you will be proficient in all three and can start your chapters in a way that engages your readers.
