The First Chapter : How I overcame it

The first word. The first sentence. The first paragraph. The first chapter. So many crucial points and yet it is so difficult to tick each box off as you get to it. When writing a book it can be so easy to get stumped at the first hurdle. You might have your plot drawn out to a T. Your characters might be so clearly visualised in your mind that you can touch them. You might even know what you want to include in each individual chapter. But as soon as you draft the manuscript and watch the cursor flash on your screen you become overwhelmed with the thought of putting ideas into words.

My first thought when I came to this first stage was to go somewhere that would allow me to be completely focused and comfortable ; a place where ideas would flow. For me this was my garden, but for you it could be as simple as your bedroom floor or it could be something like a train journey or workplace, its completely up to you.

The main reason that my garden was the perfect spot for me was because it was where I had originally come up with the main ideas for my book. Without giving too much away, my book has a lot of natural elements surrounding one of the main characters and of course the garden is the perfect source of inspiration for this. But in truth, to me, there is nothing better than the sunlight at the right time and natures voices when I want to properly relax. The place that makes you feel like that is where you should go to start yours.

The first draft of your first paragraph will most likely not end up as the one in print ( but hey there is no reason for it not to be), so I would not worry too much about the pressure you feel with writing it. The start of your story might end up being the ending or middle and you don't even know it yet, but the most important part is getting your first idea down. You have all of the ideas and all the potential, you just have to press go in your mind.

When I wrote my first paragraph, at first it was a rambling long piece of text around one thousand words that was probably not coherent to any reader. But then I took a step back, evaluated what I had written and then tried to piece together the different links I had placed within the text. Everything that you write has something good within it, and as readers as well as writers we have an advantage of knowing what is good to read and what is not. Draw on all of the skills you have ever learnt about books and writing and in this moment apply them all to what you do.

Your writing does not have to be perfect. You can leave complete sections out for later. You can write comments to yourself for future reference. There is no need to make the process more complicated for yourself than it has to be. In the end, this book encompasses all of your hardworking, love, passion and thoughts into one object and you should love as much of the process as you can along the way.

It is my hope that my first chapter is all of this and more and that yours will be exactly what you would hope it to be. We are always our worst critics, if you pass your own test then you can pass any.