With nine novels out at traditional publishers like Random House and Simon & Schuster, I've gotten a lot of rejections on stories. What makes the first few pages stand out and land a deal?

Most of it is stuff you have no control over, like maybe it just didn't "click" with the agent or editor. (That is totally valid!) What you can control is introducing your main character, Voice, tone, and major conflict in those first ten pages. Many novels do it in the first page.

Grab a PDF download of the 7 Things Your Plot Needs at https://www.fictionmentor.com

For help ensuring your first page is fantastic and ready to submit, go to https://www.fiver.com/tomleveen