Hi, I have a plot layered out and I was wondering where would be the best place begin the actual story as in a first chapter, here is a quick outline for context. sorry for being vague though --event where the main character gets kidnapped by masked men, being carried up a dark stairway in a dilipidated building blood soaking down his head. --he is then thrown into a portal (wont explain here) --he is then in the portal world where he makes a deal to escape with a spirit at a cost --he then wakes in an area of the real world and meets he first friend and then tries to solve the mystery.. my initial order was 1,2,4 of the points above and then have 3 revealed as the story progresses however is chapter two has him waking up it might seem confusing if he was thrown into the portal and then wakes outside the portal. any help will be appreciated in solving my dillema as I like the set I have but i see the drawbacks. thanks
These are the decisions you, the writer, should make. You are already addressing some of the concerns that can arise from telling the story out of chronology - keep thinking like that. No one knows the story as well as you do, so no one else's advice is as informed as yours. In truth, you could defer this decision until after the first draft is complete. Reordering the story is often done at that time, when you have all the scenes before you. Trust your instincts, and you will gain confidence in your ability to do so.
I believe that by trying to order events like that your kinda killing the flow start the book and just keep writing with a loose outline to keep you on track and when you finally get to a point were one of the events needs to occur it should be obvious on which one you should pick
I like this thought. If you wrote the story chronologically then you could go back and rearrange the order later and it would be way easier to get the first draft done. And getting the first draft down is an amazing feat. Sometimes I think getting the first draft done is more amazing than a great story because so many people talk about it and wish it to happen and so few actually accomplish it.
