You had me at hello
Jan 7th 2008
Karen RoseOn Writing!
When asked which part of the book is hardest to write, I never hesitate in my response - the beginning is the hardest for me. Getting the right balance of tone and backstory and dialog is so important when I start writing a story. I’ll often spend more time on the first three chapters than the rest of the book put together.
So I can really appreciate a book that sucks me in from page one, from line one, even. The following are books that had me at hello:
1) Anything by Jennifer Crusie, especially Welcome to Temptation - Sophie Dempsey didn’t like Temptation, even before the Garveys smashed into her ‘86 Civic, broke her sister’s sunglasses, and confirmed all her worst suspicions about people from small towns who drove beige Cadillacs.
2) Little Women by Louisa May Alcott - “Christmas won’t be Christmas without any presents,” grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.
3) Dead Silence by Brenda Novak - Grace couldn’t understand how he could live alone out here. How he could eat, sleep, and work the farm–all only forty paces away from where they’d hidden their stepfather’s body.
4) The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss - The sun did not shine. It was too wet to play. So we sat in the house, all that cold, cold wet day.
5) The Lord of the Rings by Tolkien - When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy-first birthday with a party of special significance, there was much excitement and talk in Hobbiton.
6) Bitten and Smitten by Michelle Rowen - For a dead woman, I felt surprisingly good.
And because it’s my blog post, <g>, here’s an opening line from one of my books that stayed with me for a long time - Have You Seen Her? - The fact that he’d seen more horrific scenes over the course of his career should have made this one easier to mentally process. Should have. Didn’t.
So what opening lines have hooked you? What books have had you at hello? Goddesses, what’s YOUR favorite opening line from one of your own books? C’mon, don’t be shy!
69 Comments »
69 Responses to “You had me at hello”
doglady on 07 Jan 2008 at 12:38 am #
Hmmm. Here is a first line from a book I love. I’ll let someone else ID it for me.
It was dark; the full and black dark of night between Nocturn and Matins when a man’s sleep was heavy and his soul most vulnerable.
More from me later after I have had some sleep. This is a great blog topic, Karen!!
The first line of my novel? “You are going to murder me, aren’t you?”
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 12:50 am #
Ooh, Doglady - I like your opening line, but am stumped on the Nocturn line. What book is it?
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 4:12 am #
Oh my gosh! I just realized we have CLOTHES! Mine is FAUX FUR, people. FAUX FUR. So no sniping at me. But it does feel good - that marble gets cold on wintery Mt. Oly nights.
Ha!
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 8:09 am #
“Call me Ishmael.”
It was the first grown up book that my Mom read to us. Imagine the imagery of a killer whale and the draw of a character like Captain Ahab. Good and evil were so intertwined and so very compelling. Mostly, I think I love the memory of seven kids crowded in my Mom’s bed while she read out loud to us every night while my Dad worked the late shift.
I like that we are allowed to put the opening line in from our own manuscripts and novels. Here is mine:
“Death waited impatiently.”
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 8:11 am #
By the way, Karen. I love all parts of writing except THE MIDDLE.
Karen Hawkins on 07 Jan 2008 at 8:39 am #
Karen, great topic! Ah, so many books, so many great openings.
My favorite opening line?
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen:
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.
It just set the tone for the entire book and shows how an omniscient point of view can be used to effectively kick off a beginning.
My favorite opening line of my own?
How To Abduct A Highland Lord :
Jack Kincaid died as he had lived: awash in a haze of fine bourbon, his perfectly tailored coat pockets stuffed with his winnings from a night of wild gaming, and faintly reeking of the perfume of another man’s wife.
That Jack! Such a scoundrel.
PS Ellen, I agree — middles can be tough to do although the last book I wrote was tough all of the way through. Sometimes they just WORK and something they make YOU work!
emmiebee on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:04 am #
” The great grey beast February had eaten Harvey Swick alive,” from Clive Barker’s kid’s book “The Thief of Always”. It really expresses just how life-sucking the dead of winter can sometimes be, esp. here in New England. Makes me want to throw on a red sweater with a faux-fur collar!
-Emmiebee
Gannon on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:10 am #
One of the funniest is from SEP’s Natural Born Charmer:
It wasn’t every day a guy saw a headless beaver marching down the side of a road, not even in Dean Robillard’s larger than life world.
Cracks me up every time!
SnikWhite on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:17 am #
Theodore is in the ground.
The Alienist by Caleb Carr. Historical thriller that every time I read it gives me chills.
cail on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:25 am #
the first line of P&P always gets me…
the first thing i noticed when i logged onto the site today was the fact that the top border was winterized. ironically it’s supposed to be 60 degrees in NY today.
Come to thing of it, I rarely remember the first lines of books. I usually get hooked in the first chapter, and I especially like prologue type ones.
doglady on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:30 am #
Oooh, Snik! I LOVE Caleb Carr. The Alienist is absolutely fantastic. Gotta love Karen H’s Jack! What a guy! Of course the first line of P&P is the Holy Grail of first lines. Still no guesses on the other first line I posted? Come on, Ladies! Oh and I am glad you liked my first line, Karen R.
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 10:25 am #
My goddesses are still in bikinis.
claudia dain on 07 Jan 2008 at 10:36 am #
Doglady, you stumped *them* but not me. It’s from The Marriage Bed, that one and only book of mine that wrote itself in 5 weeks. So glad you liked the first line!
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 10:36 am #
That’s bizarre, Ellen. I wonder how that can happen?
Sounds like your memory is both the book and the memory of your mom. That’s so nice.
Karen H - I agree, that first line of P&P sets the whole tone. I got the entire BBC collection of Jane Austen for Christmas and as soon as this book is put to bed, I’m watching ‘em. And I LOVE your opening line, especially the part about another man’s wife’s perfume. It creates a perfect picture.
Snik, I got to hear about the Alienist from my daughter - she read it last year for English. It’s now on my TBR list! I’m fascinated with the author’s approach to turn of the century forensics.
Gannon - I agree! SEP’s headless beaver line is a hoot.
Emmiebee - I bet that Harvey Swick wishes he was in FL, LOL. That is a very descriptive phrase for winter - and one I used to think about when I lived up north.
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 10:37 am #
Oooh, Claudia, I’m going to find that book!
Julia London on 07 Jan 2008 at 10:39 am #
Hey, what happened to my post? Grrr…..
its monday, I guess.
I said I was going to cite the opening line to P&P too, then gave my favorite opening line from one of my books. Bloody cyberspace.
jessie e on 07 Jan 2008 at 10:48 am #
Oh, I was going to say the opening line to Pride and Prejudice, too! How can you not like it?
My next favorite would have to be from Rebecca- “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” I can just imagine all the Gothic darkness that is to follow that line. Lovely.
Brenda Novak on 07 Jan 2008 at 11:06 am #
Hi Karen–
I’m so glad you were hooked by the opening line of DEAD SILENCE. I actually liked the one for the next book in the series, DEAD GIVEAWAY, a little better: “They hadn’t meant to kill him. That should’ve mattered. It probably would have–in a different time, a different place. But this was Stillwater, Mississippi, and the only thing smaller than the town itself was the minds of the people living in it.” Or maybe I like it because it’s Clay’s story, which is my favorite in the trilogy. LOL
I’m with those who find the middle harder to write than the beginning. I’m really confortable adding conflict. It’s getting out of it that’s tough!
And, if you guys will indulge me, I’d like to announce some really great news. Notice of my diabetes auction will be posted in the May 7th issue of Woman’s World. Isn’t that cool?
All the best–
Brenda Novak
DEAD RIGHT, On Sale Now!
http://www.brendanovak.com
SnikWhite on 07 Jan 2008 at 11:10 am #
Karen Rose & Ellen- The book is extremely fascinating. So much so that I was on pins and needles waiting for the follow-up to come out. (this was years ago mind you). Add Angel of Darkness to your list of TBR as well. Same author, same cast of characters, but unlike some sequels, unpredictible and just as wonderful as the first.
Karen Hawkins on 07 Jan 2008 at 11:36 am #
Brenda! I loooove Dead Silence, too! It’s an incredible, yank you out of your chair read.
Btw, guys, if your header isn’t winterized, reload the page.
We’re late with our seasons here on Mt. Oly, but then we’re up so high that it takes a while to reach us. 
KarenH
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 11:44 am #
Yeah, altitudinal delays…. That’s the ticket. I’m going to have to use that one again.
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 11:48 am #
Brenda, great news on the inclusion of the JD auction in Women’s World! I’m truly amazed and awed by what you’ve built. The Dead Giveaway line was also wonderful, but I remember where I was when I read the first page of Dead Silence. I remember doing a “whoa” double take and looking up to see if anyone had noticed me looking shocked and talking to myself.
RachelG on 07 Jan 2008 at 12:02 pm #
There are some men who enter a woman’s life and screw it up forever. Joe Morelli did this to me–not forever but periodically.–Janet Evanovich, One For The Money.
Valentine’s day sucked the big one.–Rachel Gibson, The Trouble With Valentine’s Day.
rachelg
cail on 07 Jan 2008 at 12:33 pm #
oh! the only beginning i have memorized is ‘it was the best of times it was the worst of times’ Charles Dickens, Tale of Two Cities.
i totally forgot about it. didn’t really hook me, but it stayed with me. plus its probably one of the most quoted first lines ever.
Ladydawgfan… I made a variation on your bread recipe. My store (::shakes angry fist::) didn’t have any rye flour, but I subbed whole wheat and it tastes great! Thanks so much.
claudia dain on 07 Jan 2008 at 12:56 pm #
Oooh, I’m holding a mug of hot chocolate! I love hot chocolate!
And KarenR, you shouldn’t have any trouble running out today *g* and buying The Marriage Bed; it’s just been reissued. I mean, you *were* going to run out and buy it, right?
First line from my May ‘08 Release: “There are certain circumstances upon which it is absolutely necessary to seek out a courtesan,” Louisa Kirkland snapped.
Lisa H on 07 Jan 2008 at 1:12 pm #
I really like the first paragraph of Karen H’s new Contemporary…I can’t remember all the details, but its about a woman who got her left cheek tatooed in celebration of divorcing her 250lb cheating husband.
The first few lines of my book: In a land where aristocracy was royalty and etiquette reigned supreme, it was difficult to maintain the rules of decorum when the unrelenting heat melted the heirloom tapestries off the ancient castle walls. What is right and proper, the done thing, was quickly slipping through sweaty gloveless fingers leaving those who strove to follow the high held customs of social graces in a terrible muck.
Lisa H on 07 Jan 2008 at 1:21 pm #
Btw, I just love that line, “You had me at hello.” Melt!
Mia Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 1:21 pm #
HaHa, I love the new header… quite fitting. We had QUITE the storm here on the west coast this past weekend. Feet upon Feet of Snow and Cold *sigh*
Anyways! One of my favorite opening lines ever has to be Gone With The Wind… “SCARLETT O’HARA was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it when caught by her charm as the Tarleton twins were…”
(Scarlett is my idol, and the ultimate Goddess in my opinion :D)
P&P’s is a good one too, I have to agree.
Hmmm… my opening line from my WIP? (at least until I go back and probably revise…) “You can’t leave now that I’m awake again, there’s still plenty of night left.” She forced her tone to adopt a sexier beckon, silently begging him not go, not to leave her for his home and his wife.
Well, I guess that’s 2 lines, but you get the picture.
krystal on 07 Jan 2008 at 1:36 pm #
I love the opening line from Gone With the Wind! It’s one of my favorites. I also loved the opening line from One For the Money by Janet Evanovich. It’s now one of my favorite series.
I also got hooked on Julia Quinn when I first read When He Was Wicked.
“In every life there is a turning point. A moment so tremendous, so sharp and clear that one feels as if one’s been hit in the chest, all the breath knocked out, and one knows without the merest hint of a shadow of doubt that one’s life will never be the same.”
*Sigh*
KariE on 07 Jan 2008 at 1:50 pm #
“The explosion caught Charlie by surprise. People didn’t usually blow things up at Middlesex, Connecticut, especially at four in the afternoon.”-Talk Nerdy To Me by Vicki Lewis Thompson. Such a cute book from an entertaining series.
Marie Conley on 07 Jan 2008 at 2:21 pm #
I’m with Ellen the middle SUCKS! Beginnings are easy you have so much to say and so little space.
I don’t know of any books that had me at hello. I usually skip the first few pages.
Sabrina Jeffries on 07 Jan 2008 at 2:47 pm #
Ellen, hit refresh or reload page. I had to do it, too.
Karen, beginnings are AGONY for me. I’ve always said that it takes me twice as long to write the first half of a book or story as the last half. Middles are fine because I’m starting to hit my stride and endings are great because I know where I’m going, but beginnings suck.
No clue about first lines. I tend not to remember even the best of them. Will have to look.
Karen on 07 Jan 2008 at 2:47 pm #
“People disappear all the time. Ask any policeman. Better yet, ask a journalist. Disappearances are bread-and-butter to journalist.” OUTLANDER by Diana Gabaldon
Tara on 07 Jan 2008 at 2:54 pm #
I agree with the “anything by Jennifer Crusie,” but my favorite of hers has always been Tell Me Lies:
“One hot August Thursday afternoon, Maddie Faraday reached under the front seat of her husband’s Cadillac and pulled out a pair of black lace underpants. They weren’t hers.”
SuzyQ on 07 Jan 2008 at 3:50 pm #
I love reading everyone’s posts but unfortunately I am at work now and don’t have access to any books to quote. I also agree on the opening of Gone With The Wind, which also happens to be a favorite of mine.
BTW - love the new winter wardrobe Goddesses!!!!
Paula on 07 Jan 2008 at 4:04 pm #
I enjoy reading but I can’t say that any opening lines have jumped out at me. I enjoy the books so much that I get caught up in them and don’t tend to really notice the first lines as standing out. I love the Diana Gabaldon series Karen they are fantastic.
Keri Ford on 07 Jan 2008 at 4:20 pm #
Love the Winter accessories…Suzie, what did you do to get shafted with shoveling snow while everybody else is dolled up for a night on the town???
One of the Fav Lines: “My name is Blair Mallory, and I’m trying to get married, but the Fates are NOT cooperating…I hate the Fates, don’t you? Whoever the dumb bitches are.” From Linda Howard’s DROP DEAD GORGEOUS
Opening Line from my story “What started as a way to rid myself of tan lines turned into a way to avoid people.”
Keri Ford on 07 Jan 2008 at 4:23 pm #
crap…I knew I’d forget something. The endings are hardest for me..not the last page ending where you get to say happily ever after, but just before that where you gotta wrap every thread into a pretty little knot and hope you didn’t forget something.
Nicole Jordan on 07 Jan 2008 at 5:01 pm #
I want my statue to be skinnier!! Otherwise I like our winter duds.
As for first lines…. Mary Jo Putney’s from Shattered Rainbows is really fun:
“She needed a husband, and she needed one fast.”
As for a recent one of mine….
It’s from TO PLEASURE A LADY, which is coming out at the end of this month.
“Matrimony. The very word was menacing. Yet the new Earl of Danvers could ignore the topic no longer, much to his regret.”
I’m happy to say that my editor just got in real copies of the book, so I should have it in my hot little hands shortly! Whohoo! I’ve been working on this trilogy for two friggin years, so it’s great to see the book is actually real.
NicoleJ
Kim on 07 Jan 2008 at 5:07 pm #
I was hungry enough to eat the ass end of a skunk.
LOL! I can’t find the book on my shelf (will keep looking though) and I can’t remember the title or author but isn’t that hilarious?
And from my current mess-in-progress:
With those few words my heart exploded in a million pieces and I knew it would never heal again.
Suzanne Enoch on 07 Jan 2008 at 6:14 pm #
Ya know, Keri, I asked my fellow goddesses the same question — why am I stuck with the shovel? KarenH explained to me that that was better than being labeled a drunk, since she has both a glass and a bottle. Again.
My fav line is probably the P&P one also — encapsulating an entire story in one sentence, much less the first one, is quite tricky.
As for me, I like my new one from “Before the Scandal” (Aug ‘08) –”Lieutenant Colonel Phineas Bromley didn’t expect paradise. True, after ten years fighting the French in Spain, anywhere seemed an improvement, but as he crossed the bridge over the River Ouse and onto Quence Park land, he felt more as though he were stepping into hell.”
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 6:26 pm #
Great first lines, all!
And Kim, your skunk-ass line comes from “Out of Time: A Casey Jones Mystery” by Katy Munger. It is a great first line
Claudia, I will go get your rereleased book as soon as I finish the one I’m working on. I’m at the end. which normally speeds like a comet for me. This story is different as it’s the end of a trilogy and as Keri pointed out - every thread has to wrapped in a pretty knot.
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 6:51 pm #
Oh. My. Gawd. Just “refreshed” to see the new winter attire. (Thanks Sabrina)
You know me…I gotta write an opening for each of our Goddesses “new” look.
Right to Left: For Julia London. (Note: I didn’t have on my glasses when first viewed.)
Julia knew her blind date was in trouble when her left ventricle exploded all over her white dress; before the second course, no less! “Serves me right for wearing white,” she murmured into her empty wine glass.
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:03 pm #
“What do you mean shovel the walkway?” screamed Sabrina. “Don’t you know who I am? Haven’t you seen my glamorous back cover shot? I am a goddess, damn you. A goddess, I tell you. Now…come in for my close up, Mr. DeMille.”
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:07 pm #
Of course Nicole was happy she had lost all that weight, but worrying about both her nipples pointing in the same direction was becoming an issue to deal with.
(I’m telling ya…this is so much fun with no glasses!)
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:12 pm #
Oooops…that was supposed to be for RACHEL’s pic. Guess there is a downfall to the “no glasses” rule.
KariE on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:17 pm #
Ellen- Should you be told now or later that it is Suzanne that has the shovel? If you want me to tell you later I will, or if you want to find out on your own when you put on your glasses. Just let me know.
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:20 pm #
Sure it was the oldest trick in the book, but Nicole knew big purses hid a multitude of sins for other celebrities. No one would ever suspect that she was four months along with baby Hugh.
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:22 pm #
That’s what’s so much fun Kari…Can’t really see the names or faces. Just took a peak though, so as to not confuse the reader. LOL
KariE on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:25 pm #
OHHhhhhh I see. LOL I should pop out my -5.something contacts and give it a shot. haha Sounds fun!
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:26 pm #
Oh, Lord. I’m afraid to find out what the mink is hiding.
KariE on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:28 pm #
Who said it will be a mink, KarenR? Remember, she doesn’t have her glasses on.
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:29 pm #
“Finally, a toast to my revenge!” yelled Karen H. “With these glasses, I can see through everybody’s blouse. And Ellen, please dear, it’s time to move up a bra size!”
(I hope Karen Rose doesn’t kill me off when she returns to see what I’m doing to her great topic…I truly cannot help myself.)
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:32 pm #
Poor Ms. Jeffries. Even the huge scarf could not hide the obvious rash from her last “Sabrina.”
Cookiedough on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:34 pm #
I have no book opening line…sigh…I can’t remember openers.
I can remember entire passages of books I’ve read when i was as young as 8 but no first lines. where has my mind gone??
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:36 pm #
“There are certain circumstances upon which it is absolutely necessary to seek out pint of Guinness,” Claudia Dain snapped.
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:38 pm #
Don’t you understand, Cookiedough? If you cannot remember one, you have to take off your glasses and write your own! LOL
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 7:51 pm #
Really…take off your glasses for this one…or squint if you have 20/20.
Karen Rose held her head high as climbed the stage to accept her Career Achievement Award. She was hopeful nobody notice that her jacket was made from the skinned animal she covertly dragged by the tail. “It’s faux,” she yelled to the crowd. Their cheers covered up a barely discernable “mmmmwahhhaaha.” It was a good night to be Karen Rose.
Karen Rose on 07 Jan 2008 at 8:31 pm #
Ew. Gross! Although I appreciate your good vibes on the Award, LOL.
Ew. This is reminding me of the racoon I discovered while taking out the trash last night. I saw him half hanging out of the can, his tail like a plushy.
I SHRIEKED loudly enough to wake the dead, but obviously not loudly enough to bring DH running. The raccoon stared at me for a moment - I’m not sure who was more scared, it or me.
Me. Definitely me. I ran back inside to get a broom, just in case it was still there while DH accompanied me back. It was gone. Good thing. I was holding that broom like a Tommy Gun. I wonder what would have happened had I needed to use my broom.
I guess I would have gotten a new stole to wear to future Awards luncheons.
Ew. How gross!
Lisa H on 07 Jan 2008 at 8:42 pm #
Ellen Ellen Ellen- I am trying to get my baby to go to sleep in the next room and you are making me laugh my ______ off! Love Sabrina’s first line.
Write one for me, will ya…maybe something with Johnny Depp, a big canopy bed, and me in white flowing gown! LOL
KariE on 07 Jan 2008 at 8:43 pm #
LOL KarenR. That reminds me of the time I opened my front door at night and there was a opossum staring back at me not 3 feet away. I screamed as well. BUT I was on my way to go get my DH so he was not there to be my protector. Instead, I went and got my dog. She loves car rides so she didn’t mind at all. Haven’t seen that opossum since.
Kim on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:31 pm #
Thank YOU, KarenR!! Katy Munger! You’re brilliant.
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:32 pm #
lol…Lisa, put that belly dancing experience to good use and write your own. LOL…let’s face it, isn’t your baby two now? Time for another! (Maybe she’ll have Johnny’s high cheek bones!)
And Karen, Be Careful! Raccoons are very, very dangerous animals. They can kill a large dog without blinking if they feel threatened. I’m not sure what their status is with screeching woman with brooms, but I would be careful. After that critter got done with you it would be “Ew, gross, indeed!”
(Raccoons: Reason #4 why Ellen would wear a fur.)
I am curious though, Kari. What exactly would an (or a) opossum do to a human? Hang upside down and mock you as you run away? Fall over and play opossum hoping that you might trip over him?
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:39 pm #
Now girls, it is late. AND, the other goddesses have all gone to sleep. Can I count on you few to keep my little “winter attire” entries hush hush? They’ll never know unless we tell them.
Karen…KAREN! Who are you texting???
Writers can never keep a secret!
xxx
doglady on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:41 pm #
I cannot believe nobody got the first line of The Marriage Bed, except the fine author who wrote it. Anyone who hasn’t read it you are missing a real treat! These are some great opening lines. And Snik is so right - both The Alienist and The Angel of Darkness are great books - very intense. His other book The Italian Secretary is also very good and has an interesting historical murder subplot.
Another great first line - “The day I died started out bad and got worse in a hurry.” from UNDEAD AND UNWED by Mary Janice Davidson
You ladies are cracking me up with your “wild kingdom” stories! I live in a trailer in the middle of five acres in the middle of nowhere. On a hot summer night I left my back door open so any breeze that blew might make it into my kitchen. I was sitting in my rocking chair quilting when a possum strolled in stopped at my Great Dane’s dish, ate several bites and then strolled out!
Lisa H on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:54 pm #
LOL doglady! Once on a very hot summer night, I was heading out to my pool for a little dip in the skinny, if ya know what I mean. Anyway, it was dark and quite late. I walked across my patio onto the grass and in the soft moonlight beheld a small animal with a white stripe down its back!
I think I would have been less frightened of a bear. Anyway, with great self-control, I turned and headed back into the house, praying to God that he wouldn’t spray me. That was about 8 years ago and I haven’t been out for a late night dip in the skinny since!
Ellen, maybe if I belly dance for Johnny he will oblige me with that baby number 4. Lord knows I have plenty of belly and lots of estrogen to go along with it! LOL
Ellen on 07 Jan 2008 at 9:56 pm #
LOL…nighty night my friends.
Judy on 07 Jan 2008 at 10:45 pm #
Me like all your first lines, they’re awesome.
The one for me, and I think it’s mainly because I had to do a research paper this last semester:
“Buck did not read the newspapers, or he would have known that trouble was brewing, not alone for himself, but for every tide-water dog, strong of muscle and with warm, long hair, from Puget Sound to San Diego.”–Jack London.
I’ve just started writing a story, mostly I’ve just written poems, so I’m really stuck at the beginning. The first line is:
“Flying, watching over the night as the world sleeps, stalking the nothingness that lurks in the shadows.”
Nicole Jordan on 08 Jan 2008 at 11:59 am #
ROFL, Ellen! I turn by back for one minute and you make me 4 months pregnant with bosoms that don’t match. Thank heavens this is fiction.