This paper explores the characteristic of the fluorescent lamp operating in high-frequency range. The fluorescent lamp actually characterizes an impedance consisting of resistance and capacitance, which is seriously dependent on the lamp current, operating frequency, and lamp voltage. A novel soft-starting strategy for pre-heating and igniting the fluorescent lamp is proposed. A half-bridge series-resonant inverter (HB-SRI) is employed as the electronic ballast to verify the system performance. A soft-starting controller (SSC) is implemented to realize zero-voltage switching for the power switches and lower igniting voltage for the lamp. Mathematical model for the lamp before and after firing is built. A design example realized by the HB-SRI is conducted, and the experimental result and the simulation one are close to the theoretical predictions.