Where to Begin?
People frequently say to me, “I want to write a novel, but I don’t know where to begin.” Surprisingly, the answer is not always, “Start on the first page.” There are no rules in writing. Whatever works for you is what you should do. If you can’t muster up Page One, then start in the middle (if you know what your characters are going to be doing at that stage). Or start with a description, or dialogue, and build upon it.
You might even start at the end. The idea for my book, Virgins of Paradise, came to me while I was in Egypt visiting friends. In my room at the Nile Hilton, I scribbled a paragraph that would be the final scene of the book (it’s a wedding, but I won’t tell you whose), and then I spent the next two years writing toward that paragraph. When I was done, not one word of that final scene had been altered.
Another example: the idea for the book I have just finished, Woman Of A Thousand Secrets (an epic about the ancient Maya which will be published next year by St. Martin’s Press), also came to me in a final paragraph. I wrote it down and then set out to do the research, create my characters and spin the various storylines until I reached that final paragraph. It, too, remained unchanged throughout the process.
If you do not have the luxury of a final paragraph to aim toward, then you should at least have some sort of goal in mind, an idea where you want your protagonist to be at the end of the story (preferably in a good place emotionally and mentally, with growth and change and possibly facing fresh, exciting challenges). Keep in mind, too, that your ending must tie in with the opening of the book, so that the story in between forms an arc connecting the two. Famed movie producer David O. Selznick (Gone With the Wind, 1939) said: “The ending of the movie should be what the beginning is all about.” The same can be said of a book. Your opening paragraph sets the scene, introduces your main characters, and gets the action going. The final scene is resolution of the events (or personal conflicts within the protagonist) you got rolling at the beginning.
And don’t worry if you struggle with that final scene. Endings are not always as easy to write as beginnings. Ernest Hemmingway re-wrote the ending to A Farewell To Arms 39 times. When asked what the problem was, Hemmingway said, “Couldn’t get the words right.”
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Chess player (where to begin?)
Until he's franckly attacked (so we move from strategy to tactics) he doesn't know what should be the first moves.
The answer is quite different from Barbara's about writing.
At chess, this is not to start with the begining or the end or with the middle game there. What you can't do.
The advice is to say: play, read (famous games from masters) and play again. (ok, now that's also close to writing advices there)
When you'll ask: "its my turn but I only can play one move when I think a dozen is a priority, so which one should I chose?", then you are no more a beginner.
Does it make it so different from beginners in writing?
Maybe not so. You don't have direct "opponents" in writing. Well..not as a beginner. Later you'll know how much you have opponents in writing when your editor is chosing between you and others about who's worth the financial support...
But before going there you'll have anyway greatest opponents. Your readers, until you are famous enough to go along with some favourable impression to start with.
At that point I would say many aspects are common between both beginners:
Don't let your opponent (reader in writing) to rule. Play *your* game not his (hers). Surprise him (her).
In writing it's better to have a good idea of the end and to build the path there.
At chess, even the greatest champions hardly can guess and prepare the end game. Neither their opponents by the way. And that's the winning strike.
In writing do the same. Even if you have some idea of what would be your ideal end, put yourself in the reader's skin. Take care he/she doesn't guess your intention too fast (unless you expect him to be a railway station booth reader).
When you think you become too transparent... make a U-turn in your plans!
Remember: you are the driver. Don't forget to drive in the French or Italian style. Go crazy!