First Lines: Early November 2020
This month, we’ve got pottery, a missing person, emergency career advice, and more. To submit a first line, email booklife@booklifeeditor.com.
Career Crisis Plan
Philip Kent-Hughes
“The common known reactions to an emergency are ‘fight’ or ‘flight’ (run away). The two less talked-about reactions are ‘panic’ and ‘freeze.’ ”
Celadon
Raymond Avery Bartlett
“Pottery is like love: a form of impossible perfection.”
The Janus Affair
Lilla Csorgo
“I don’t know where Ric is. He’s disappeared. He’s officially a missing person, but that would suggest I miss him, and I don’t.”
Optimal
J.M. Berger
“The digital ink had barely dried on the Treaty of St. Petersburg, marking the end of World Information War II, when the next wave of social networks debuted.”
Snowflake: A Climate Thriller
Arthur Jeon
“I gazed inside the gates of Hell today. They flanked the 405 freeway.”
