--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Work extra hard on the beginning of your…" description: "\"Work extra hard on the beginning of your story, so it snares reader's instantly. And know how you're going to end your story before you start writing. ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a9/joan-lowery-nixon-31067_books_work-extra-hard-on-the-beginning-of-your_2047510.png" --- # Work extra hard on the beginning of your story, so it… ![“Work extra hard on the beginning of your story, so it snares reader's instantly. And know how you're going to end your story before you start writing. Without a sense of direction, you can get lost in the middle.” quote by Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a9/joan-lowery-nixon-31067_books_work-extra-hard-on-the-beginning-of-your_2047510.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a9/joan-lowery-nixon-31067_books_work-extra-hard-on-the-beginning-of-your_2047510.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a9/joan-lowery-nixon-31067_books_work-extra-hard-on-the-beginning-of-your_2047510.png) > “Work extra hard on the beginning of your story, so it snares reader's instantly. And know how you're going to end your story before you start writing. Without a sense of direction, you can get lost in the middle.” [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stresses the importance of strong openings and clear endings to keep readers engaged and maintain narrative direction. **In simple terms:** Hook readers early and know your ending. Key Takeaway Plan story structure before writing. Themes writing structure engagement Mood instructive inspirational Type educational literary When to use this quote - creative writing - editing - teaching workshops - literacy programs Key Concepts plot development storyboarding narrative pacing Questions to Reflect On - How can you stay flexible while following a plan? - What techniques keep a story compelling throughout? A Different Perspective Rigid planning may stifle spontaneity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beginning Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginning-story-619925/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Direction Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/direction-lost-406779/) [Ends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ends/) [Extras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extras/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Know how](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-how/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost/) [Middle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle/) [Reader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reader/) [Snares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snares/) [Start Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/start-writing/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Story Start](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-start-499839/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Sense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-sense-3604190/) ## Related quotes > [“At some point we must stop editing everyone else' story and start writing our own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-e-carson/at-some-point-we-must-stop-editing-everyone-else-story-and-start/) [John E. 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You start in the middle, because it's the people in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/you-don-t-start-at-the-top-if-you-want-to-find-the-story-you-start-in/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [Your story is where you take it to, not where you start.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/your-story-is-where-you-take-it-to-not-where-you-start/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [“The story starts in summer, of course. When else would a Michigan story start?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-carroll/the-story-starts-in-summer-of-course-when-else-would-a-michigan-story/) [Nora Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-carroll/) > [“If you don't like your Life, Your Story, Then Start a New Chapter... Write a Different ending for your Life, Starting Right Now!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-marcus-coates/if-you-don-t-like-your-life-your-story-then-start-a-new-chapter-write/) [Jeremy Marcus Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-marcus-coates/) ## More by Joan Lowery Nixon > [“There are 2 ways of crying-on the outside or from the inside-and I've been crying on the inside most of my life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lowery-nixon/there-are-2-ways-of-crying-on-the-outside-or-from-the-inside-and-i-ve/) [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) > [“Any other mislabeled underachievers around here? Speak up now or suffer the consquences," he said. Emily blinked. "other mislabeled underachievers?" 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Bad luck is only the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lowery-nixon/life-is-not-easy-we-all-have-problems-even-tragedies-to-deal-with-and/) [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) > [There's more to getting to where you're going then just knowing there's a road.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lowery-nixon/there-s-more-to-getting-to-where-you-re-going-then-just-knowing-there/) [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) > [Having a baby is part of a woman's life, and it is surely a great waste to be afraid of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lowery-nixon/having-a-baby-is-part-of-a-woman-s-life-and-it-is-surely-a-great/) [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) > [Dates are convenient hooks on which we can hang our memories of events. But history is all about people - people like you and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lowery-nixon/dates-are-convenient-hooks-on-which-we-can-hang-our-memories-of/) [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) > [“To my way of thinking, the slavery issue is just an excuse to allow some people to do hateful things and feel righteous about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lowery-nixon/to-my-way-of-thinking-the-slavery-issue-is-just-an-excuse-to-allow/) [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) > [I know why people die of hopelessness. 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Therefore it exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lowery-nixon/virtual-reality-is-a-self-created-form-of-chosen-reality-therefore-it/) [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) > [“YOU CAN CRY FROM THE INSIDE OR FROM THE OUTSIDE AND I'V BEEN CRYING FROM THE INSIDE ALL THESE YEARS”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-lowery-nixon/you-can-cry-from-the-inside-or-from-the-outside-and-i-v-been-crying/) [Joan Lowery Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) [Explore all 16 Joan Lowery Nixon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-lowery-nixon/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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