I have had a couple of people mention that they felt bad for winning more than one prize in our new #FirstLineFriday Trivia Quiz, and wondering if they should not play every week. Folks, to me, that would be like penalizing those who are well-read and have a good memory. NO ONE should feel guilty about winning multiple times. (Ask Ken Jennings!)  In fact, I’m thinking of having a Grand Prize Winner now and then just to reward those who do play often and well. 

You may enter only ONCE each week, of course–make your first guess a good one–but you may enter every single week for as long as we have this contest running. And I don’t care if you win every time you enter. It’s not like you’re stacking the deck in your favor, and we aren’t talking the Power Ball Lottery here, anyway. This is meant to be fun, and every person who enters has an equal chance of getting the correct answer. The earliest entries with the correct answer will win, but that just means you should all immediately start setting your alarms on Thursday night, so you can be ready at 8:00am sharp on Friday morning. 😀 😀 😀

Seriously, please do not feel “guilty” if you have won more than once. We’ve only had 2 Fridays when all five winning slots got filled, anyway, so it’s not like you’re keeping anyone else out of the running. The goal is to test your memory of great lines, AND to give everyone a chance, whether they recognize the line or not, to see some super examples of how to start a book.

I’ve gotten a wonderful response to this idea so far, and I would DEARLY LOVE to continue this game for some time yet. There are so many worthy opening lines out there, and this is a chance for us to focus on them, while digging deep into our memory banks for the answer. The free downloads are just meant as a way to thank you for playing.

So, let’s have no more worrying about whether you’re playing too often, or winning too many times. You aren’t. Just jump in and give it a try. Guess, if you want. There’s no penalty for being wrong. No one will even know but me, and I promise I won’t tell a soul! 😀 

Now, stay tuned for next week’s #FirstLineFriday. I might leap forward in time a bit with my selection. We’ll see. Hopefully everyone will play and we’ll have five happy, non-guilty feeling winners! 

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Thanks for playing everyone, and this wraps up our 5th  #FirstLineFriday Trivia Quiz! Again, this quiz is about more than getting the right answer. It’s an opportunity to really think about what makes up a good opening line, and that’s something important to each of us, both from a writing standpoint, and a reading one. I have been pulling these lines from several lists of the Best Opening Lines of All Time, so far. I may branch out to my own favorites at some future point, but for now, all of the lines I’ve shared with you are famous in one way or another. 

Today, we have three winners: Jeanne Owens, Staci Troilo, and Deborah Jay. Congratulations, Ladies! Well done! 

And here’s the answer to today’s quiz:

“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since”  is the opening line from the quintessential novel of the American Jazz Age, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. 

The book was published in 1925  and has been made into at least two films (one with Robert Redford and one with Leonardo di Caprio) and countless stage productions. As first lines go, it isn’t my favorite, so maybe this is the contradiction that proves the rule. I read and thoroughly enjoyed the book more than once, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t because this line riveted my eyes to the pages. Maybe that’s just me? But if you’ve never checked out this classic, you probably should add it to your list. It’s a powerful, beautifully told tale.

BLURB:

A true classic of twentieth-century literature, this edition has been updated by Fitzgerald scholar James L.W. West III to include the author’s final revisions and features a note on the composition and text, a personal foreword by Fitzgerald’s granddaughter, Eleanor Lanahan—and a new introduction by two-time National Book Award winner Jesmyn Ward.

The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s third book, stands as the supreme achievement of his career. First published in 1925, this quintessential novel of the Jazz Age has been acclaimed by generations of readers. The story of the mysteriously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan, of lavish parties on Long Island at a time when The New York Times noted “gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession,” it is an exquisitely crafted tale of America in the 1920s.

Buy The Great Gatsby HERE

And there you have it for today’s #FirstLineFriday quiz. Hope you enjoyed it, and also hope you’ll check out The Great Gatsby. It’s one of those books everyone should read, whether the first line grabbed you or not. (In fact, I wouldn’t mind hearing how others felt about that line.)

Be sure to tune in next week for another of the 100 Best Opening Lines of All Time. See you then.