Hook the Reader

At last, one of the big houses comes into the technology age. HarperCollins will now grant the reader access to the opening pages of their new releases. The idea is clearly taken from Amazon's successful ploy that allows the prospective customer to do what they would do in the book shop - see if the opening pages are grabbing.

As a fan of on-line buying, I'm all for it. I can't afford to buy many books, so what I do purchase has to be vetted and that involves reading. I'd like to be able to skim over a bit more than the opening, as in the case of literary fiction that unfolds more slowly, but every step forward is a benefit.

As a writer, the opening page previews should be a reminder that the beginning of the novel has to interest the reader and make them want to turn the page. That's the whole premise of literary agent Noah Lukeman's book The First Five Pages, which gives the budding author some pointers to perfect the beginning of the novel.

He's a successful agent who knows his business, and if you're looking for some advice on writing when the agents are rejecting your partial manuscripts without asking for more, it might be worth a look. According to his website, it's been used as a textbook for some college writing courses. Maybe that's why some of the novels I've read start out strong and then die a slow and agonizing death. Does anyone have a textbook that covers pages six through three hundred?