Here we are with part two of the Swain outline. Again, if you haven’t picked up this book, do so. It’s life changing as a writer. The outline here won’t make much sense unless you’ve read Swains chapter on outlining a story. In this section, we’ll discuss how to start off a story and the various ways you can open a story. That dreaded first sentence or first scene. They’re always rough. But Swain has some ideas to get you started.

If you missed the first segment, you can click back here.

Remember, everything is about The Big Picture, Desire vs. Danger. The Focal Character needs to struggle for a goal, even at the start.

• Get the Story Started (The Beginning)

• • Where to open?

1. 1. 1. 1. Start with trouble
            1. Existing Situation
               1. This is the normal world (the state of affairs your focal character functions in)
            2. Enter Change
               1. Some new element makes the normal state of affairs different
               2. Something good can upset the normal world just as much as something bad
            3. Affected Character
               1. The affected character will most likely be the focal character
            4. Consequences
               1. The change must trigger continuing consequences (a chain reaction)
               2. The focal character must respond to the change, brining unanticipated results
               3. The consequence must be intolerable to the focal character (anything he/she finds too upsetting to ignore)

• • Where to start

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Start the story as close to the change as possible.

• How to open

• • Uniqueness

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Call attention to the unique situation and make the reader wonder
               1. Examples
                  1. She was the only artificial woman in the world. 
                  2. He couldn’t sleep that night. 
                  3. It was a different sort of town. 
                  4. “It’s this week or never,” Susan said.

• • The Unanticipated 

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Something unanticipated to intrigue readers
               1. Examples
                  1. The beautiful woman who has insectile eyes
                  2. The book in Grandma’s parlor with ways to commit murder
                  3. The hero starts by claiming that he/she is an idiot

• • Deviation from Routine 

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. The focal character does something different on this day. Make your reader wonder why.
               1. Examples
                  1. Instead of getting off the elevator at the normal floor, he/she gets off two floors higher and walks back down. 
                  2. Instead of entering the house through the front door, the focal character goes around to the back

• • A Change About to Take Place

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Show an unusual event that anticipates change to come. The reader will wonder why.
               1. Examples
                  1. The focal character’s lawyer calls
                  2. A girl winks at a boy while sitting next to her boyfriend
                  3. The sound of galloping hoofbeats coming closer and closer.

• • Inordinate Attention to the Commonplace

1. 1. 1. 1. Describe a common object with tremendous, painstaking detail. The reader will read on to find out why.
            1. A doorknob
            2. A grandmother’s gnarled hands
            3. The shabbiness of a run down house
            4. A little girl peering out from behind her bubble gum

The examples for different types of opening are great. For me, it’s like a pool of ideas to dive into.

Write on.

Tim Kane