The best way to grab the reader’s interest
immediately is to plant the hook and drag them into the story. This is
also the best way to rise to the top of any slush pile. Start with a
bang of a beginning, something compelling, disturbing or even
outrageous.
Likewise, the conclusion should leave a lasting impression on the reader. Endings must pack as much punch as their beginnings.
Look at H.P. Lovecraft's stories. The prose was pretty over-the-top, but he sure knew how to start and end his breathless tales: with wild cautions at the beginning and horrific, surprising finales.
A few examples from my own work: Return of the Scream Queen written by Michael McCarty, Linnea Quigley and Stan Swanson starts off with a creature’s clawing popping up from a swimming pool, which inspired the cover of the book as well. And Bloodlust by Jody R. LaGreca and Michael McCarty which begins with movie star Marilyn Monroe.
As for the endings, you’ll just have to read the books yourself.
Michael McCarty has been a professional writer since 1983 and the author of over thirty of fiction and nonfiction including I Kissed A Ghoul, Modern Mythmakers, Masters of Imagination, Revenge of the Two-Headed Poetry Monster (co-written with Mark McLaughlin) and many others. He is a five-time Bram Stoker Finalist and in 2008 David R. Collins’ Literary Achievement Award from the Midwest Writing Center. He lives in Rock Island, Illinois with his wife Cindy and pet rabbit Latte. Michael McCarty is on Twitter as michaelmccarty6. Facebook! Like him on his official page here.
Likewise, the conclusion should leave a lasting impression on the reader. Endings must pack as much punch as their beginnings.
Look at H.P. Lovecraft's stories. The prose was pretty over-the-top, but he sure knew how to start and end his breathless tales: with wild cautions at the beginning and horrific, surprising finales.
A few examples from my own work: Return of the Scream Queen written by Michael McCarty, Linnea Quigley and Stan Swanson starts off with a creature’s clawing popping up from a swimming pool, which inspired the cover of the book as well. And Bloodlust by Jody R. LaGreca and Michael McCarty which begins with movie star Marilyn Monroe.
As for the endings, you’ll just have to read the books yourself.
Michael McCarty has been a professional writer since 1983 and the author of over thirty of fiction and nonfiction including I Kissed A Ghoul, Modern Mythmakers, Masters of Imagination, Revenge of the Two-Headed Poetry Monster (co-written with Mark McLaughlin) and many others. He is a five-time Bram Stoker Finalist and in 2008 David R. Collins’ Literary Achievement Award from the Midwest Writing Center. He lives in Rock Island, Illinois with his wife Cindy and pet rabbit Latte. Michael McCarty is on Twitter as michaelmccarty6. Facebook! Like him on his official page here.
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