Writing & Publishing Exposition or Inciting Incident?

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How do you start your fiction. How many pages is it? And why?

 
It is a careful balance between introducing your reader to the story's world and m/c but also having something  happen which moves the story forward.

It does not always have to some big event or grisly discovery or near death situation but it needs to have a 'Oh, No!' factor - otherwise what is there for the reader to care for or want to read on for.

Just my take.

 
I agree with @Shamrock My novel (I've only written one so I don't have the benefit of experience) starts with my MC in a social worker's office. When she leaves, we find out a lot of settling info, and we also find out her main problem: she doesn't want to give her baby up but she's homeless. I think you can do both. 🤷‍♀️

So far the first chapter is about 1700ish words because that's how many it took to get me to chapter 2. 😬

 
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Act 1 (1st 25% of the book):

Characteristic moment

Inciting Incident

Act 2 (50% of the book):

First plot point

Tests and Trials

Midpoint (Exactly 1/2 through)

False victory

Low point

Act 3 (last 25%):

Climax

Resolution

I believe I have the acts in the right places

 
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I am interested in everyone's answer, but I'm trying to be quiet, (herculean effort too), so as not to impose my choice over others.

On the other hand, I am interested in a rough word count before the inciting incident. (Just in case that's a phrase not well-known, the inciting incident is that thing that pulled the MC out of normal life.)

 
Thanks for.the definition. It is one of those phrases you hear alot of but never quite sure what is means. 👍🙏

 
Spaulding said:
Yes, but is that something expository or an II?
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Well, given the rabid "show don't tell," sentiment within writing, it should be an inciting incident.

But if you're like me, you ignore norms and write something you think is cool.

The Hobbit starts with the description of a hole in the ground.  The Lord of the Rings starts with the description of Bilbo's birthday party.  Michael Crichton's Eaters of the Dead starts with the journal of an Arab traveler.  The Assassin's Apprentice and The Wheel of Time starts with a mind-numbingly long and dry backstory (if I remember these correctly).

What people want out of a book is not universal.  While I believe it's wise to try to hook the reader early, the fact is that its the body of the work that interests the reader (as evidenced by some of the comments about Dune).

 
Spaulding said:
On the other hand, I am interested in a rough word count before the inciting incident.
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I can't give an answer to this, as the approximate word count preceding the inciting incident depends on the total length of the story.

My current WIP has 15-20k words before the inciting incident.

A previous story that I worked on had about 3k before the inciting incident.

Spaulding said:
How do you start your fiction. How many pages is it? And why?
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I like stories with action and movement, so I don't like starting with pages of exposition (when I refer to exposition, I'm referring to explanations or backstory). I like to start with something happening. The story opens with a problem that needs to be solved and they set out to solve said problem. In doing so, they run smack into the inciting incident ...

I filter backstory and exposition in on a need-to-know basis. If (and when) the readers need to know about it, then I'll look for ways and places to include it without creating info-dumps. I also don't aim to get all the backstory in within the first quarter of the story. Some of it can wait.

 
Okay  I couldn't find it, so this is off memory, but I think my memory is decent: after the II you have the climax of Act 1, which is 25% of the book (so 12,500 words if your novel is 50,000 words).  the notes do say that the story is supposed to start as close to the II as possible--it should have at least started  by the end of the first chapter.

I hope some of this helps.

 
I start with a strong opening hook and let the exposition and II appear as required by the story.

 
In my first novel, the inciting incident happened before the opening scene. 

This second one is a continuation of the first, and I'm at chapter 9 without an inciting incident anyone, (except for me), can see.

Expository? I'm stuck between reminding my audience of the previous ending and giving them what the characters need to face now, except in between that, the characters come face-to-face with the people who threw them away.

I really was seeing how others deal with these decisions. I'm old, so stuck in my ways doing something that requires me to think in a wider range.

 
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