Writing help

How to avoid info dumps in the beginning

Dialogue
In my opinion, dialogue is the easiest method, or at least my favourite. Having one character tell another character information that the readers need to know is a good way to make the relaying of information seem normal. If a new character is introduced, you have an opportunity to have another character catch them up, and so on. Readers can also learn a lot simply through character interactions and observations.

However, be careful you don't have characters repeating information to someone that they both already know. If they're saying something the other character knows, perhaps have them add their opinion to the dialogue so there's a reason for them to be saying this. (E.g. "It's raining outside," vs. "I hate the rain. Why can't it just be sunny all the time?")

Flashbacks
Another way you can introduce or convey information is through flashbacks or a character's inner monologue. Flashbacks should be used sparingly, however, as it is easy to go overboard and bore your readers or overcomplicate things. The same can be said for inner monologues, however. Your characters can (and probably should) reflect on past events, or at least think about them sometimes. However, make sure you don't do this too often or have characters simply narrate an entire event in their head for no reason, as most people don't do this (and that's probably a flashback at that point).

Plot
Finally, simply progressing the plot can also sometimes give your readers some insight. They might learn something from an action a character decides to take, or understand why something happened. This method is also something that probably should be happening naturally in your story already, but you can also take advantage of this a bit and use this to relay information.