9 Mistakes You're Probably Making in the First 10 Pages

Video Description

Your first 10 pages can make or break your novel. If your opening doesn't grab attention right away, you'll lose your readers — and likely get rejected by agents and publishers. Here are the 9 biggest mistakes that kill manuscripts in those crucial opening pages — and exactly how to fix them. WORK WITH ME ON YOUR STORY https://www.alyssamatesic.com/inquire#inquire-2 GET A QUERY LETTER REVIEW https://www.queryacademy.com DOWNLOAD MY FREE STORY SELF-ASSESSMENT! https://www.alyssamatesic.com/#freebie-form MORE WRITING AND PUBLISHING ADVICE: This Simple Trick Will Make Your Novel Unputdownable https://youtu.be/8ir5S0Nb_f4 The Proven Formula That Makes a Story Irresistible https://youtu.be/oow7FW-1Hvo 9 NOVEL OPENING MISTAKES: 0:00 Intro 0:50 Spotlighting inconsequential characters 2:45 Delivering too much backstory 4:04 Burying the action 5:19 Starting with a lengthy prologue 6:45 Confusing the reader  8:04 Not introducing enough conflict  9:32 Forgetting the setting 10:40 Neglecting the stakes 12:12 Opening in the wrong place entirely ABOUT ME: My name is Alyssa Matesic, and I’m a professional book editor with nearly a decade of book publishing and editorial experience. Throughout my career, I’ve held editorial roles across both sides of the publishing industry: Big Five publishing houses and literary agencies. The goal of this channel is to help writers throughout the book writing journey—whether you're working on your manuscript or you're looking for publishing advice. SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER FEATURING WRITING/PUBLISHING EXPERTS https://www.chapter-break.com/ FOLLOW ME ON MY SOCIALS! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alyssabookeditor/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlyssaMatesic TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@alyssamatesic MUSIC: Charlie Brown by Smith The Mister https://smiththemister.bandcamp.com Smith The Mister https://bit.ly/Smith-The-Mister-YT