““It's the opening line of a football game returned for a touchdown. Or fumbled. It's what orange juice is to breakfast, the first minutes of a blind date, a salesman's opening remarks. It sets the tone, lights the stage, greases the skids for everything to follow. It's the most important part of everything you'll ever write because if it doesn't work, whatever follows won't matter. It won't get read. It's your opening paragraph. And enough can't be said about its importance. Seduction . That's basically what leads are all about--enticing the reader across the threshold of your book, novel or article--because nothing happens until you get 'em inside. And you literally have only seconds to do it because surveys show that eight out of ten people quit reading whatever it is they've started after the first fifty words.””
![“I think it's an indulgence to [write] the other [non-linear] way. I think it's a kind of cowardice. There are places in anyone's books that are going to be easier than other parts. And if when you come to a part that's difficult and think, 'Hm, I'll skip that,' all you're doing is lining up these…” quote by Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/8f2/clive-barker-773_big-book_i-think-it-s-an-indulgence-to-write-the_3031826.jpg)
