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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/44750
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

You don't _have_ to put the homicide into Chapter 1, but you might want to. While this approach is a well-worn cliche of police procedurals, especially series (in which the protagonist is known in advance), it is nevertheless an excellent way to lead into introducing the protagonist:

_An injustice has been done. The world cries out for a hero._

Then you go on describing the hero's daily life, dropping breadcrumbs and red herrings to lead him/her to the main conflict.

**The advantages:**

- Leading with intriguing events can help grab and maintain readers' attention.

- Readers will be spotting the breadcrumbs and feeling clever.

- Dramatic irony -- the hero makes an observation the reader already knows is wrong, misses one of the chances to get involved -- works on the _first_ readthrough.

- Readers are instantly invested in the hero because they want someone to set things right.

**The pitfalls:**

- The initial sequence must matter in the larger scope, which can potentially make you show your hand too early.

- Some readers may grow impatient with the pace of the story because they know where it's going and would rather it got there already.

- Some readers may feel cheated that the first point-of-view character gets killed for "cheap thrills".

Original score: 1