As I’ve written about in a previous post, no matter how great the middle and end of your travel memoir story are, openings matter the most. Readers are deciding whether or not to continue reading your tale, and they don’t want a painfully slow build up to the action.
Here are some common mistakes in openings that send readers clicking away from your story:
Waking up
It seems like a good idea to start a story with the moment a new day begins. But generally, a story that starts with an alarm clock dinging isn’t very original. Of course, there are exceptions, but there are usually better options to entice your reader. The problem with starting a story the moment you wake up is that you as the author are then stuck narrating the mundane routines of getting up, brushing teeth, making breakfast, etc. However exotic the breakfast might be, if this isn’t important to your actual story, then you’re going to waste a lot of words describing a typical routine, and your story will get off to a, shall we say, routine start.
The plane flight
Describing the discomforts of flight and arrival is also not a very compelling opening. This is because we all know these particular tortures quite well. Describing the tightness of the belts or the announcements by the pilot aren’t new information about your particular journey, and that’s what we want to read about.
Facts and history
Starting off with some facts, or even a historical story, however brief, of a particular town, street, or house, for instance, while potentially interesting in its own right, doesn’t typically bring a reader into your story. In fact, it’s quite distancing. To begin with, we need your “I” voice to come through, to compel us to read on. If we start reading about the history of a particular type of cuisine or hotel, we’re going to be left wondering how and why you connect to this history. And we might just choose not to keep reading.
Too much internal dialogue
To begin, a reader typically appreciates being placed within a scene, a particular time and place. It is unsettling to start reading a story where the writer is only going through things in their head, such as memories or decision making. The reader needs to be grounded in a place and some action first. Remember, nothing happens nowhere.
Too much close description
Don’t get bogged down by too many details. Readers expect writing styles to be consistent. Therefore, if a writer provides too much detail in the opening of their story, describing, perhaps, a local dish or handmade dress, the reader believes that this level of excruciating detail will also be applied throughout the story. Unless this opening description is entirely relevant to your story, avoid too much detail in favour of setting the scene by carefully selecting some key details that are important to the story you want to tell.
And what does a great opening look like? It’s your invitation to the reader. It should be intriguing, providing an engaging puzzle to make the reader wonder: what happens next? For tips on how to achieve that effect, read on here.
