Can You Match the Opening Line to the Horror Novel?
A memorable opening line can make all the difference between a reader devouring a book faster than Dracula can drain a victim—or toss it into the graveyard of discarded books. Horror master Stephen King knows this; In fact, he did The entire interview with Atlantic In 2013 about nothing but Topic sentences. “A really bad first line could convince me no To buy a book, because oh my god, I got it a lot From the books already, and the unattractive tone of the first moments is reason enough to rush out.
As for what makes a good topic sentence, “there are all kinds of theories and ideas,” King said. “It’s hard, and it’s hard to talk about because I’m not thinking conceptually when I’m working on the first draft — I’m just writing. Getting scientific information about this is a bit like trying to catch moonbeams in a jar. But there’s one thing I’m sure of. The opening line should invite the reader to start the story. It should say: Listen. Come here. You want to know more about this.”
See how well you can match the opening line to the horror novel it came from in the quiz below – and yes, there’s at least one King novel in there.
As for the opening line that King chose as his best? At that point, it was his 1991 novel Necessary things. “The story begins with an opening line, printed itself on a page in 20-point font: ‘I’ve been here before,’” he explained. “It all exists on its own on one page, inviting the reader to keep reading. It suggests a familiar story; At the same time, the unusual presentation takes us outside the norm. This, in a way, is a promise of the book to come. …I don’t have many books in which the opening line is poetic or beautiful. Sometimes he’s just like a worker. Trying to find something that will deliver that crucial approach in any way, whatever it may be. As long as it works.”
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