You may have noticed I’ve been doing a series of YouTube shorts called First Lines. I posted some of them here on Substack.
At one point, I realized I was assuming the first lines of most books would be, if not the best line, at least among the best lines of that book. But the more I talked with authors about their first lines, the more I realized that wasn’t necessarily the case.
Many authors use their first line as a way to best introduce their story. As a result, when asked about their first line, they fall naturally into giving their elevator pitch for the book. Which is wonderful if one is looking for that kind of pitch.
I had, to be honest, something slightly different in mind. Even if I don’t quite know what that is. So I’m approaching this as an experiment. As I zero in on what would create the most interesting videos, I made a shift. Instead of asking authors about their first line, I decided to ask about their *best line.*
The adage “Save the best for last” came to mind. That would preclude having your first line be your best. Well… I’m not being serious. That isn’t exactly an author-centric adage. And when I started asking authors about their best lines, one said it was her first line. In general, though, focusing on best rather than first, seems have opened up the territory.
So this week I’m sharing my first in the Best Line series. Meet Lori B. Duff, author of the legal thriller Devil’s Defense…
