Many great novels have excellent opening paragraphs that arouse the readers curiosity and make them want to read on.
To grip the readers attention immediateIy, I dived straight into the action with some menacing dialogue from the sworn enemy of my protagonist. I did not introduce any back-story until page 43.
Originally I didn't have a lot of action at the beginning of my first book so I wrote a prologue, which was all action, introducing a character who didn't re-appear until later in the story.
The second book began with a fight in a bar, which was okay. But again I added a prologue, this time more dramatic than action-packed, which was set one day after the book's last chapter. The question it raises isn't answered fully until the epilogue.
The third book's more problematic. At the moment the first two chapters are pretty full of drama though long, which I can get away with - before there's a breather in the third -because the action switches countries and characters. But I still needed a prologue, and that's more cerebral conflict than action. I might change it later :?
Which novel? ;-)
The long one originally started with a drop straight into action - but my friend told me very clearly that this could make anyone stop reading straight away. That material is still in the work - well into it. The beginning has changed to a stage well into the story which looks back to the beginning - and then the next bit goes back to almost that beginning... But there are at least three other variations that could be used.
The short one starts with location - but in a way that tells the reader a whole bunch of other things - I posted it as a shared item earlier this evening - so you could take a loook at it and see if it works in your eyes.
I think that each book needs to be distinct and unique. Probably the worst thing any book could do would be to start in a way that made you think that you had read it before.
David