"I can't leave an unpolished sentence": James Russell shares first pages tips
I go for the James Bond opening…
James Russell
James Russell is a bestselling indie- and trad-published children's book author based in Auckland, New Zealand. He has two series: The Dragon Brothers Trilogy of picture books, and The Dragon Defenders series of five junior novels (middle-grade fiction). He has sold over 150,000 books, been published in over 12 countries and translated into three languages. A former journalist, Russell is now working on two novels for adults, which will be released together in the first half of 2021.
James, thanks for sitting down to talk first pages tips. How do you approach your first pages? Start typing and revise later? Plan out meticulously?
JR: This is going to sound a bit weird, but I go for the James Bond opening - the one where we immediately see 007 in action, tying up the loose ends of his last mission. When you're writing for children, and in particular those reluctant readers, you need to engage them straightaway, and hook them quickly. So, for example, in my first middle-grade fiction, The Dragon Defenders, the protagonists are diving for shellfish, but then a shark turns up... The dilemma is resolved, and then the scene is set, but I don't make the reader wait long until they're plunged straight back into action.
Of course, with adults, it doesn't need to be as action-packed, but I like to drop the reader into the middle of a situation, as though they're a fly on the wall in a scenario they won't immediately understand. It could be a conversation, or the discovery of some traitorous act. It's also a great challenge to set the scene and weave enough background into a fluid situation like that.
Is this the same approach you take even writing a series where readers will know the scene and main characters?
Below is the opening of book three in The Dragon Defenders series of middle-grade fiction for ages 7-12. Even though readers who know the series are familiar with the main characters, I dropped us in the middle of a scene without wasting time explaining who’s who or where they are:
Briar did exactly as she was told. She knew it would have been foolish not to.
She sat down at the computer screen, not daring to look at her uncle - The Pitbull - who stood behind her, gripping the back of her chair. He was furious. He positively vibrated with rage. She could hear him grinding his teeth.
“Press play,” growled The Pitbull. He sounded more like a wild animal than a human.
That’s certainly putting us straight into the action. Great stuff. How much do your original first draft pages generally change on their path to publication?
I suppose that generally I have a terrible writing practice. I write a bit, then go over it and over it until it's right. I know I should be vomiting it out, and coming back to it later, but I just can't leave an unpolished sentence. The act of rewriting it over and over seems to crystallise the idea that I want to get across, and it's often while I'm doing it that the next bit comes along. It's meditative, and it slows progress enough for lots of ideas to start forming for what's to come. In any case, I get it just right, and then when I've finished the book, I rewrite it again. Terrible.
How about as a reader, what draws you in the most about others' first pages?
The opening chapter of a book is the most difficult to write. The best writers seed the action with nuggets that set the scene - things that establish the time, place, characters and situation, but with a subtle touch, so much so they seem unimportant. I sometimes find myself going back to re-read the beginning. There's nothing worse than an overt 'tell'. It makes me want to close the book immediately.
Can you think of a 'forever first page'? An opening of a book that’s stuck with you?
I love the opening chapter of At Swim, Two Boys by Jamie O'Neill. It's simply the pedantic and conservative Mr Mack wandering about town interacting with his neighbourhood. It's wondrous writing. I've read it over and over, and I marvel at it every time.
You're a prolific author always pushing the boundaries with new ways to interact with your readers, what are you working on now?
I'm working on two novels based around the world of surfing - a sport that I love, and one which serves as the perfect antidote to sitting in front of a computer for a job. I love the writing of Tim Winton and William Finnegan. They're the only two writers who have, for me, ever put the experience of riding (or being frightened by) a wave into words. I'm beyond excited by how these two new novels are progressing, and I can't wait to launch them, hopefully before the middle of 2021. They'll come out as e-books, paperbacks and audiobooks all at once. As a children's writer, I know I should probably be writing for children, but this was an itch I had to scratch. I have more children's books in the wings.
I'd heartily recommend people enter the First Pages Prize, if only to hone and re-hone chapter one of your book; it's reward enough. You have but one chance to hook a reader - and that's with your first pages! Get your entries in by February 7, 2021.
Thank you, James! It’s inspiring to hear how prolific and successful you are in both the indie and traditional fields. Readers, James Russell’s books can be found at www.dragonbrothersbooks.com. We look forward to your adult fiction and more junior novels!