The Big Grab

I want to share a fun conversation I had with my son this morning. It's been a pleasure (and a horror and times, I admit!) being home with him all of his life and able to watch him become the Kindergarten graduate he will be in a few weeks.

This morning while he was dressing he said, "I know how to spell know: k-n-o-w"

I explained the context of spelling it that way means he "knows" something as opposed to not being allowed to do something, which is "no".

He stood still for a moment, obviously contemplating, then said, "I think I'll write that sentence, 'I know what no means'." And suddenly it was if his day was complete. Imagine being that fulfilled from one sentence!

I have a writer friend that is on "twitter novel" strike.  Since I began my serious interest in writing wayyyyy back in 2009, I've been told repeatedly that you have to grab the reader on the first page, in the first paragraph, with the first sentence, with the first word, with the first letter... in fact you have to know your audience well enough that they don't even have to read your book to fall in love with it... that is what all that jazz is beginning to sound like to me and apparently to my friend as well.

My friend told me about a pitch session turned conversation she had with an agent at a recent writing conference. She said she told the twenty-something agent she was done with "twitter novels" and doesn't believe you have to grab the reader the first millisecond they open your book. I tend to agree. Lets not wait until page 35 to grab them, but dang... the first sentence?!? The agent, of course wanting what is popular and now, didn't agree with my friend.

I've been told that if your novel doesn't grab someone until page 3, then move page three's action to page 1. what do you think? Can you lead into the Big Grab, or should it be the first thing the reader reads?