10 Really Good First Novels
Looking for some terrific holiday reading? Need some inspiration to get that first novel finished? Here is a list of 10 great books that were the first novel published by each of these authors. (In some cases, the only novel they published.)
This isn’t meant to be discouraging. Every writer has a first book… sometimes they’re amazing. Be inspired!
1. Gone With the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
2. The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini
3. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
4. The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger
5. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon
6. The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway
7. Peace Like a River, Leif Enger
8. The Time Traveler’s Wife, Audrey Niffenegger
9. The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd
10. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
Q4U:
What are YOUR favorite “first novels”?
Rachelle Gardner is a Christian literary agent affiliated with WordServe Literary Group in Colorado.
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My Twitter name is @RachelleGardner.
My passion is partnering with authors to bring worthwhile books to publication. I started this blog as a way to create a community of writers, both published and seeking publication. I write about a wide variety of topics of interest to writers, and I consider the reader comments even more important than my own posts.
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>That’s pretty amazing. I didn’t realize those were all first novels. I’m both inspired and intimidated. My current favorite first is “Demon: A Memoir” by Tosca Lee.
>I’m late in reading The Secret Life of Bees, because…well…I’m scared of Bees. (It’s like having the word “Fuzz” in the title of a restaurant, ya know?)
Gotta say it is one of the Best First Books Ever.
And every time I think about The Time Traveler’s Wife, I ask myself HOW the author did what she did….Fantastic!
>Wow ~ Gone With The Wind was a FIRST novel? Amazing. I read it for the first time this summer and enjoyed it.
My favorite first novel hasn’t been released yet. “The Prayers Of Agnes Sparrow” by Joyce Magnin Moccero and will be released by Abingdon in August 2009.
>There are plenty of great firsts out there. Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is an example, but for the most part, I can’t keep up with which books are firsts. There is a book that comes to mind that I think is a first. It comes to mind in part because Michael Hyatt is talking about marketing and great content. While the book has quality content, it didn’t enjoy huge success. I don’t know the author well, but I doubt it ever appeared in more than a couple of bookstores and the majority of sales were to a few thousand of her friends. The book is A Heart Toward Home by Maggie Chandler. It has been out of print for years, but it is an example of a great first book.
>I wonder if the author spent more thought and time on their first novel, thus making it better.
What do you guys think?
I’ll have to research to find out which of my favorite novels are first ones.
>Yvonne, I know it took Harper Lee five years to write and re-write TKAMB. In fact, at one point, she threw it out the window.
My favorite is: Demon: A Memoir.
>FUGITIVE PIECES by Anne Michaels
>Wow, what a great list. I don’t know how many of the books I like are firsts other than Demon, A Memoir (it’s really good). And wasn’t Stephanie Meyer’s book Twilight a first? I enjoyed that book as well. But I write YA and that’s my genre pretty much.
What a fun topic.
>Ha, ha,Dayle… sometimes I feel like throwing my writing out the window!
I write a lot in my head. As I was raising my kids, I “wrote” my novel. So, when by the time I put it on paper, I had the plot and characters worked out.
I don’t think I’ll ever spend that much time on a book again.
>I recently read Sue Monk Kidd’s Secret Life of Bees and was inspired. I knew it was her first, and I was awed by her smooth voice in a story full of pain and suffering. Reading it and knowing it was her first novel inspired me to ask her and other authors, as well as a couple agents and editors to give their thoughts on understanding, unnlocking and developing your voice as a writer. I was blessed with an overwhelming response from several writers and publishing professionals (go to my Dec 6 blog post to see what they said) including Rachelle, whose comment really got me thinking about being truly honest as a writer.
Unfortunately, Ms. Kidd was on deadline when asked and was unavailable for comment. Ah, a glimpse into the secret life of best-selling authors.
I also have Tosca Lee’s Demon (sounds like a spiritual epidemic) and heard her second novel, Havah, was another winner, so it’s on my Christmas wish list.
>1. Stephen King’s Carrie
2. Maggie Stiefvater’s Lament
3. Danette Haworth’s Violet Raines Almost Got Struck By Lightening
>To Kill a Mockingbird and The Secret Life of Bees are two of my favorite novels. Thanks for the info. I didn’t realize The Secret Life of Bees was a first. It gives me even more motivation to learn, learn, learn the craft.
Merry Christmas,
Christina S. Nelson
>Demon . . . a memoir.
First Christian novel for an accomplished writer: Redeeming Love, a bona fide classic, superb novel.
My first novel was very much a first novel, not an accomplished work, but it served its purpose and is still reaching out to those within and without the horse racing community.
I always wonder why people in the business of CBA publishing never mention Christian fiction in their lists of favorites or great examples. Is it because they’re afraid of offending their clients or other CBA authors?
>Hey everyone, just to clarify… some of these authors, notably Sue Monk Kidd, had written and published nonfiction books prior to writing their first novels. Sue was already an amazing writer before trying fiction.
Also, Nicole… you’re right, if I started mentioning my favorite contemporary CBA novels, the list would be really long and I’d STILL be afraid of leaving somebody out. Many of these authors are my friends, you know? So I just avoid it altogether and instead talk about general market books.
>Gone With The Wind and To Kill A Mocking Bird are my all time favorite ‘first’ and I guess “only” novels. Both of these books have moved me and touched in a way no other books have. They have been the best lessons in writing I’ve had.
>Hi Rachelle:
I’m not sure about firsts but I think Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Louisa May Alcott, and Harriet Beecher Stowe should be on the list along with F. Scott Fitzgerald. Two other questions are worth asking: (1) was their first book considered their best? (2) how many years did they spend writing their first book?
Thanks,
Vince
>Gone With the Wind–my all-time favorite book. I’ve read it at least ten times.
It was also rejected 14 times for all the reasons we get to hear: too long, too much description, no one cares about the Civil War era anymore, Scarlet not a beleiveable or sympathetic character!
Reminding myself of the trials of my all-time favorite first novel keeps my chin up!
>I’ve read Bees, Rye, Catch-22, and am currently reading To Kill a Mockingbird … which, having been an English major, you’d think I would have read by now!
Kite Runner is next on the list. I hear nothing but great things about that one!
I stumbled onto your blog through other blogs. It’s great to see Christian literary agents. Like a breath of fresh air.
>Oh wow, I thought the Secret Life of Bees was new. Didn’t realize it came out in 2004. I read “When the heart Waits” years ago and loved it.
>”Ghost Road Blues” by Jonathan Maberry
>I agree with all of those except TTW. Good list. I loved WICKED LOVELY by Melissa Marr.
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