Beginnings

A blank page can be a writer's greatest blockade. We all know, or should know, that a strong beginning is crucial in gaining readers, so when faced with that daunting task how can a writer do anything but break down and weep? The answer is a stock beginning. Really. Truly, I mean it. Start with a couple of stock beginnings.

They can be as simple as "Once upon a time...", "Let me tell you something about...", or "The other day my friend was telling me..." As you begin to fill up a tiny portion of paper with ink, or the screen with pixels, the words will simply flow out. Once you actually start writing you can figure out where the story is going. The reason why this happens is simple.

We all know how to lie.

The lie, or in this case, the story, takes on a life of its own and all you need to do is keep up. Once the story is well underway or finished go back and change the beginning to suit the rest of the story, now that you know what it is, or add something to the story that occurs before the original beginning.

Sometimes it's good to tell.

Learning to effectively describe can be a difficult task in writing. A character with a significant number of years behind them can simply be described as 'old'. This is simple and efficient which can get the fact out of the way so you can move on to more important things. Telling is a good way to allow the readers some artistic license in the creation of the character in they're mind. For stories that have to focus on something other than long character description go ahead and get the facts out.

'Charlie was old; his joints would start to set whenever he let them sit for a while without moving. The rust would build up and he could almost hear the creaking when he tried to move again. The pain was significant, so he attempting to keep moving as long as he was awake. Charlie finished a lot of work because of his joints.'

Telling allows the story to move on and frees up writers to write creative descriptions of something they feel is more important to the story.

Some writers disagree with telling. The mantra 'Show. Don't tell' is probably ringing in most of your ears right now as it is mine. However, long superfluous writing bores many readers. A friend of mine has mentioned his dislike for literature because he all too often will begin a story he thinks he may enjoy only to read, a few pages down, in a writers attempt to show the wonderful weather of the day: 'The clouds were buttered with sunshine.'  My friend is not a writer, but he could be your reader. If you want him or anyone else to buy and recommend your book. Avoid showing everywhere and get used to telling sometimes.