A novel's first chapter is its foundation, the cornerstone upon which its larger structure rests. This lecture presents a theory of good beginnings, exploring ways that authors provide a blueprint for what follows, immerse the reader in a set of specific themes, and introduce the seeds of a coming dilemma, all while not giving too much away. Drawing on archetypal examples from literature, from Charles Dickens to Alice Walker and Kazuo Ishiguro, we'll discuss the essential features of an opening salvo—and how it can function as a microcosm of a novel's singular world.

Joe Fassler is the author of The Sky Was Ours, a novel, and Light the Dark, a collection based on his “By Heart” series of author interviews for The Atlantic. A fiction MFA graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, he currently lives in Denver.