Project: Opening lines to stories

GWC Community GWC Writer's Forum
#1

You’ve all heard ‘It was a dark and stormy night’, of course, and the phrase has even made it so far as to become the impetus for a contest of corny opening lines.

I have a cunning plan, let us run a thread of story opening lines we have created that run the gamut of corny to brilliant and see if anyone can figure out a way to make them stick. Either that, or this can be a low calorie writing exercise that doesn’t require the discipline to actually finish a gorram story.

Opening lines! No need to continue from the previous post, just fire off the first sentence of a hypothetical story/book/literary burp.

So, with that, I shall extend myself to the mercy of your steely knives and (hopefully) kick off a thread that could bring some entertainment all around, both from a consumption and creation standpoint.

Something I twatted on the Twitter that gave me this idear:

“With an invisible flash of light, the ship that wasn’t there flared into existence.”

Next!

#2

Things were going uncharacteristically well right up until the atomics detonated.

#3

“Where the fuck am I?!”

#4

His face had all the compassion and understanding of a tightly clenched fist, this was not going to go well…

#5

I can’t remember when I lost respect for my father but it’s difficult to forget the first time he killed a man in front of me.

This is a wonderful idea, BTW.

#6

At times the truth can be admirable; I only wish I knew how to tell it.

#7

The fawning was adorable, but the lie was unbearable.

#8

“Gimme a break Suzi, can’t you see the guy is loaded?” I sneered back, “Loaded? I’ll say he’s loaded… And he is about to get loaded into the back of an ambulance if he doesn’t get those hands off of my ass.”

#9

The spiderphant skitterthumped down the road, each of its eight legs slamming into the ground one after another like angry meat pillars.

#10

The NostalgiaX settling into her nervous-system, Kate looked at the newly constructed building with a reflective sigh. “The good old days,” she mused as she directed the last girder into place with her crane.

#11

Green yellowed the blue oranges.

#12

A sehlat walked onto the Bridge chomping a plomeek stalk turned to the Science officer and said, “Ehhhh, What’s up, Spock?”

Posted on twitter by me. Had to post it here, as well.

#13

He didn’t know where to look first - at the particle bean rifle, or at the perfect cleavage she had as she pointed it at him.

#14

He awoke dying.

#15

The cat barked uncharacteristically loud for a Saturday morning.

#16

The orange haired slep looked at the data screen. He saw the impending fleet moving down the screen. He turned to his crew and said “Wha, me worry?”

#17

The ex reality-show contestant imploded on herself in a flash of expiring relevance.

#18

Kyle looked down the courtyard, the mechs towering above him like soliders at attention.

#19

  1. Knight fell.

  2. It is on cold foggy mornings like this one that I grow thoughtful and reminisce upon my recent death.

#20

Hurtling through the violent atmosphere like a bullet; a runaway train towards oblivion.