first sentences
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We’re All Difficult Women Now: Talking with Avni Doshi
Avni Doshi discusses her debut novel, BURNT SUGAR.
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The History of a Novel’s First Sentence
The great first sentence is not just a step on the path to a story but its own self-sufficient enterprise. Is it so easy to extract because it was unnaturally grafted on in the first place? We all know the obvious…
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Starting Points
Following his essay, “The Art of Epigraph,” Jonathan Russell Clark turns to analyzing opening sentences at The Millions. He explores what makes contemporary and canonical first lines effective, and he contemplates, through several examples, whether or not there are identifiable…
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The Stories Behind First Sentences
Granta is three posts into a new series in which authors unpack opening sentences they have written. Héctor Abad’s opening sentence is “The first thing I felt when I returned from the jungle was a paralysis of willpower.” His explanation is…
