I have a confession to make. I’m a hooker. Not only that, I work hard at it! No, not that kind of hooker. My, you have an evil mind. Nor am I a rug hooker, although I have done that in the past. What happened to Shillcraft? Just looked them up, they’re still around. May have to limber up the old hook next winter. But I digress…
If you’ve read this far, then my hook is good and you, dear reader, have been hooked. Gotcha.
Most writers are hookers. It’s an important part of our craft. It’s the device that makes readers continue to turn pages instead of turning out the light. It’s not as easy as it sounds. A chapter has a lot of work to do in a book. It tells the story and keeps the reader interested. It is also self-limiting. Once the work of a particular chapter is done, it’s time to move ahead. The writer’s problem is to end the chapter in such a way that the reader is both content with the story and eager to dig into the next. That’s the work of the hook. To leave the reader both sated and hungry. The best are invisible.
Hooks are not limited to the end of a chapter. They are just as important in the first line. The words dangled before the reader in the opening sentence serve to draw them in. You have to go on and discover what the story is about. One of the most famous opening lines is “Last night I dreamed I went to Manderley again.” I bet you recognize that line. It’s the beginning of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca. One of the best suspense novels ever written. The reader can’t help themselves, they have to read on and discover who said those lines, what Manderley is, and why it’s important. That is a well-set opening hook.
In a well-crafted book, each end of chapter hook leads into the hook of the opening line. Again, in an example from Rebecca, chapter two ends with: “”It’s Max de Winter,” she said, “the man who owns Manderley. You’ve heard of it, of course. He looks ill, doesn’t he? They say he can’t get over his wife’s death…”” Chapter three begins ““I wonder what my life would be today, if Mrs. Van Hopper had not been a snob.”” Literary magic. Du Maurier set the bar high for those of us who follow behind.
Readers and writers, what is your take on hooks. Do you love them or hate them, and do you miss them if they are absent?
I want to end my scenes with words that will encourage the reader to keep reading even if they really should be going to bed or making dinner or anything else.
ReplyDeleteOpenings have to keep the reader's attention, but I'm less fond of the ones that seemingly come out of left field because they feel manipulative to me. And I don't like to feel manipulated, so that makes the opening's task of hooking even harder.
And I also have a number of hand-hooked rugs I created from kits back in the seventies and eighties.
Hooks are what keep me reading "one more chapter" when I should be turning off the light and going to sleep.
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit more patient with the beginnings. I'm fond of beginnings that set up the scene and the story, so I'll give a book some time to get into the action. But not too long. And I would never have read past the first paragraph of "It was a dark and stormy night..." since the beginning does give a hint of the writer's style, and that one promised to bore me.
Jim, Good beginnings do a lot of heavy lifting and it is a balance. Good to meet another hooker!
ReplyDeleteKM - A good hooker can keep you up all night! Beginnings are hard. It's a balancing act between set-up and get to it. Some authors handle it so well they make it look easy.
ReplyDeleteI like a good hook, particularly in the first line of a book.
ReplyDeleteI like this post. I also like Margaret's poem in the previous comment.
ReplyDeleteMargaret - LOL - great poem!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Molly! I agree, Margaret hit it out of the park.
ReplyDeleteChapter endings are very important to me. As a reader, I also find myself drawn to shorter chapters, probably a hook in itself. I enjoyed this post tremendously—it gave me a desperately needed laugh, along with pertinent and valuable information! Thank you.
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