One reason I recommend writers start en media res, that is, “in the middle of things,” is that it creates a curiosity gap. Readers want to know what led to the middle in which they find themselves. They want to know what happens next. It may be a ploy to capture attention, but it’s one that works without fail. I know; I’m the person caught in the aisle at Half Price Books reading the first chapter in a book because it piqued my curiosity.
Luke Sullivan
Book Review: Hey, Whipple, Squeeze This
To find Luke Sullivan’s Hey, Whipple, Squeeze This: The Classic Guide to Creating Great Ads alongside my copies of Richard Hugo’s The Traveling Town, Annie Dillard’s The Writing Life, Dean Young’s The Art of Recklessness: Poetry as Assertive Force and Contradiction, and a few notable others is a testament to how good I think Sullivan’s book is. I know it’s a biased statement, but I don’t know what else to say. I like his book. I would read it again and again, and I intend to do so.