JUDITH VAN GIESON

Writing the First Chapter

JUDITH VAN GIESON is the author of eight mystery novels featuring Albuquerque lawyer/sleuth Neil Hamel and five mysteries with Claire Reynier, a librarian at the University of New Mexico and crime-solver. Judith’s books have been regional and Independent Mystery Booksellers Association bestsellers.

 

 

Time is of the essence in a crime novel and a writer needs to establish the protagonist and any sidekicks right away. Villains can take a little longer. Setting is also of the essence and needs to be described in the first chapter. In a series, if presented well, setting can become almost another character in the books.

Readers need to know what will bring the protagonist into crime-solving. If criminal investigation is the sleuth’s profession, then show him or her at work. If you’re writing about an amateur sleuth, a profession may still be what leads that person into investigating a crime. Even mild-mannered fictional librarians come across crime in their work. If it’s not the character’s profession, then show the reader what does get the sleuth involved in solving a crime.

Often sleuths have sidekicks who work with them and help them. Sidekicks can provide a balance to the sleuth, and it’s helpful to introduce them in the first chapter, too. When the sleuth is tense and serious, the sidekick can relieve the tension by cracking wise. Or vice versa. Demonstrating the interaction between the two is a good way to reveal character in the first chapter as well as to show character development later on.

Just as you’ll want to give the reader good place description, it helps to describe your characters. It isn’t absolutely essential since characters can reveal themselves through dialogue and action. But if you are going to describe them, do so early on. If you wait, readers will form their own impression. You don’t want them thinking your sleuth has short dark hair only to find out later that it’s long and blond.

It’s also important to establish the tone of your mystery right away through the voice you use. A first-person narration can be quick and sharp. Often it sounds like the narrator is speaking to the reader and it helps to have the rhythms and vernacular of speech. The third-person-narrator and omniscient-narrator points of view can be more leisurely and reflective.

Dialogue is essential as a way to reveal information and character and to keep the story moving along. You’ll want to include some in your first chapter.

The exercises that work the best for me are a matter of observation and experimentation.

EXERCISE

1. Take a good look at your setting. Even if it’s a place you know well and/or have lived in for a long time, drive or walk around it making use of all your senses. How does it smell? What colors do you see? Ask yourself what will make this particular setting unique, interesting, unforgettable to the reader.

Since a crime is going to take place here, you’ll need to explore the bad side as well as the good. And while you’re exploring, think about what your setting is going to mean to your sleuth.

2. If you listen carefully you will notice that speech is linked to setting. People in different places have their own lingo. Eavesdropping is not a bad habit for a writer.

Spend some time in the food court of your local mall listening to the words and the rhythms people use in their speech. In many cities you will hear languages other than English being spoken separately or mixed in with English. Text what you’ve heard to your cell phone or take notes. If you’re writing in the first person, it helps to read your work out loud, and it’s good to do this with dialogue, too. Does it sound authentic? Does it have the rhythm of speech? Is this the way people in your chosen setting talk? Are you using the kind of slang they use?

3. If you don’t already work in your sleuth’s profession, spend some time around people who do. One way to do this is to join professional organizations or go to meetings those people attend and listen to how they talk. Are there any words, phrases, or attitudes that are unique to that profession? Any dynamic in the way they interact that you might be able to use in the relationships between your sleuth and a sidekick? Are the professionals wary of each other or at ease? Notice what kind of cars these people drive and how they dress. When I started writing about lawyers, I learned about them by temping for law firms, but not every writer will be willing to go that far.

4. If you’re not sure what voice you want to use to tell your story, then experiment. Do you want to get into the minds of more than one character or is one enough? Try writing a couple of paragraphs and reading them out loud. Which is the best way to express the thoughts of your sleuth? For me, reading my work out loud is always a good exercise.