Chapter One
Why it works
A daily opening-line puzzle · about 2 minutes
First LineSet the line. Pull a proof. Open the book.
Every day the first line of an invented book arrives as loose type. Set it in as few proofs as you can, then an editor tells you why it hooks.
Proof 0 of 6
Tap a tile to set it in the stick.
Original lines written for this game. Any resemblance to real books is accidental.
Your grade
Share your line
1 page in a row
Your ear
Proof history
Next line
The real thing
Your first line is the most-read sentence in your book.
Paste your opening pages and get an instant editorial read: what hooks, what slows a reader down, and the three fixes that would sharpen it. It’s our free First 10 Pages Review, and a human editor can talk it through with you.
Send us your opening pagesMore from the desk
Past pages
Play any line you missed. Past pages don’t count towards your pages in a row.
How to play
Set the line in six proofs or fewer
- Tap tiles in the type case to set them in the composing stick, in the order you think the first line goes.
- Pull a proof: tiles in the right place lock, and pairs that belong together get joined.
- Set the whole line within six proofs, and the book opens to show why it hooks.
The six hooks
- vo
Voice
A narrator so distinct that you want to keep listening, whatever they talk about.
- my
Mystery
A question planted in the first sentence that only the book can answer.
- ct
Contradiction
Two things side by side that should not fit, so the reader needs to know how they do.
- mo
In motion
The story is already moving when the book begins, and the reader has to catch up.
- st
Stakes
Something that matters, at risk, often with a clock running.
- wo
Strange world
One unfamiliar rule, stated as normal, that tells you this world is not ours.
Original lines written for this game. Any resemblance to real books is accidental.