You've Got Five Pages, Black Mouth by Ronald Malfi, to Tell Me You're Good.

The first chapter can make or break a reader's engagement with a story. We as writers must craft brilliant opening pages in order to hook those picky readers, so let's study the stories of others to see how they do it!  The first chapter of Black Mouth by Ronald Malfi is a fine example of how one can have the intense opener, change scenes a little, and STILL keep momentum. The protagonist gets hit by a double-whammy of a notice when he just gets out or rehab, but rather than move forward on that time, we backtrack to what caused the protagonist to be in rehab. While I was bothered by this at first, Malfi successfully avoids telling us how rehab went. Rather, we experience the protagonist's spiral downward into a place of intense fear and pain. Could this just be the lack of alcohol, or is there something more sinister afoot? Plus, now that we know the protagonist is about to hear tragic information about his family, we are further intrigued to see how a man in such a state will handle such news. Considering the unique voice and personality of this character, I cannot predict what he will do...and that makes me a happy reader. And what will you, fellow creative, learn in the first five pages? Let's find out!