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Write chapter 1 of your book

You bring the world, the hero, and the first line - Claude helps you write the rest.

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  1. Finish the step above first
    01

    Pick your kind of story

    Every book has a vibe. Scary? Funny? Space? Magic? Real life but weird?

    Do not pick 'fantasy' just because it is easy. Pick the kind YOU would stay up late reading.

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    02

    Build your world in one line

    A world is just this: where are we, and what is strange about it?

    One sentence. Make it a place no one else would think of.

  3. Finish the step above first
    03

    Meet your hero

    Give them a name, an age, and one thing that makes them them.

    Not 'a brave knight.' Try 'Sam, 10, talks to bugs when nervous.'

  4. Finish the step above first
    04

    What your hero secretly wants

    Deep down, what does your hero really want? Not the mission - the feeling.

    Like: to be seen. To be brave. To go home. This is the heart of your book.

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    05

    The trouble that starts chapter 1

    Something has to go wrong on page 1, or there is no story yet.

    What problem lands on your hero right away? What must they do about it?

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    06

    Choose your tone

    Tone is how the book feels to read. Pick 2 or 3 words.

    Like 'fast and funny' or 'quiet and creepy.' This keeps Claude sounding like YOU.

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    07

    Write your OWN first line

    This one is all you. No AI. The very first sentence of your book.

    Make a reader NEED the second sentence. Go weird, punchy, or start a tiny mystery.

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    08

    Build your chapter brief

    Snap it all together into one clean brief - the map Claude will follow.

    This is your plan, and you made every single part of it.

    Do the steps above and your Build my chapter brief shows up here.
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    09

    Co-write chapter 1 with Claude

    Open Claude, paste your brief, and send it. Read the chapter it writes with you.

    Then decide: what is the ONE thing you want different? Type that here.

    what will really happen

    Claude writes a full chapter fast, but the first draft rarely matches the movie in your head.

    It may drift from your voice or soften your opening line - watch for it.

    Read it as a rough draft you will redirect, not the finished chapter.

    Open Claude (new tab)
    You are my co-writer - a patient pro novelist who helps young writers make THEIR own books. You never take over and you never change my voice. You build on my ideas. Here is my chapter brief: [brief] Now write chapter 1, about 400 to 600 words. Start with my exact opening line, word for word. Show what happens, do not just tell me. Match my tone. End on a small hook that makes me want to write chapter 2. After the chapter, ask me one question about what should happen next.

    Did you ask for a real change, or just accept the first draft?

  10. Finish the step above first
    10

    Guide the rewrite

    Send your change to Claude. Watch it keep your voice and fix only that part.

    Now find your favorite line in the whole chapter and type it here.

    Open Claude (new tab)
    You are still my co-writer, and you keep my voice. Do not start over, and do not rewrite what already works. I want ONE change: [note]. Make only that change. Keep my exact opening line and my tone ([tone]). Then show me just the parts you changed, and tell me in one sentence why it works better.
    hold on - judge it, do not celebrate
    • Does this sound like YOUR book, or a generic AI story?
    • Which part feels flat or not-you?
    • Did it keep your exact opening line and your tone?
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    11

    Save your author card

    Your first chapter is real. Save your card so you never lose it.

    This is proof: you are a writer with a book that has already started.

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    12

    Show the class

    Post your card and your first line on the class wall with #Glunty.

    Then dare a friend to guess what happens in chapter 2.

The class wall - share yours

Loading the class wall...

You are an author now.

You did not pull a lever and grab the slop everyone else gets. You brought a real world, a real hero, and your own first line - so this chapter is actually yours.

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