>> Today I’m going to show you multiple examples of attention-grabbing hooks to start your essay. Princeton University came out with a study that says it only takes someone a tenth of a second to decide whether they think you’re good looking, trustworthy, a leader, or fun. And whether we like that or not, it tells us two things; first impressions matter, and they’re made very quickly. In fact, YouTube says that most people decide within the first 30 seconds whether to keep watching a video or not. >> I bet most people have already left this video.
>> Rude! They’re still watching.. . I think.
That’s why starting your essay with a great hook is super important. Yeah? Question? >> Can I use the bathroom? Let’s talk about the purpose of starting your essay off with a hook.
Think about your teacher, or whoever’s reading your essay.
They probably have tons and tons of essays to read and grade. That’s why you want to make yours stand out. Like we learned earlier, if you make a good first impression in your introduction paragraph, your teacher is more likely to read the rest of your essay in a positive way. Your hook should be about two to three sentences.
Focus on quality over quantity.
>> You’re stressing me out! >> I know. I’ve found that students can feel super-pressured and overwhelmed when writing their hook. But let me tell you this: Even though it’s the first couple of sentences of your introduction, it’s actually one of the last things you write.
>> What? >> Think about it.
You can’t write your hook if you don’t know or have something to hook them to your essay. Also, I’ve found that as students dive in and write their essay, the hook just kind of comes magically to them. >> So when do I write it?
>> Honestly, when you write your conclusion paragraph, because a great hook is going to connect the start of your essay to the very end of your essay. We call that the “mic drop.” I’ll talk about that in a future video, so don’t get overwhelmed. >> Keep it together, man! >> I’m going to give you guys lots of examples.
First, you can start your essay with a question that relates to your topic.
For example, my topic is how Batman is the greatest superhero in the DC universe. >> We’ll see about that. >> Feel free to use one of these sentence starters to help you get going. Look at my example: Have you ever wondered what makes a hero great?
It’s because they have special powers or big, flashy muscles. Or, is true greatness found in someone who is willing to lay down their life to help other people? I do a couple of key things here; first off, my question gets my reader thinking about my topic — what makes a hero great? And by asking a thought-provoking question, I grab their attention. Two — I start to cast doubt on the other super heroes, the counterclaims, without even saying their names.
>> Oh, I’ll be ready. >> He’s scaring me! >> Three — I give the reader my definition of greatness. It’s not special powers or big, flashy muscles, it’s finding someone who’s willing to help other people. This is key.
As a writer, I get to define what greatness means, and you get to do the same in your essay. The next thing I would do is add a condition to go from a hook to the rest of my topic. You’ll see that in purple. If you’re finding value in this video — hit the Like button, please. Two, you can start off your essay by describing an imaginary situation that allows your reader to enter into your topic.
Imagine you could have one superpower. What would it be? More important, what would you do with it? Would you use it for personal gain, or to help other people? Again — notice what I do here.
One, I grab the reader’s attention through their imagination — that is powerful. Hopefully they’re eager to read the rest of my essay. Two, again, I define what the word “great” means. That is key. You get to do the same.
Lastly, I transitioned from my hook to my topic. You see that in purple. Three, another powerful way to start your essay is with a quote: Joseph Campbell states, “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than themselves.” Notice I say the author’s name. This is super important.
Write this down. >> Oh.. . >> If you use a quote, you have to give credit to the author.
If you don’t, that’s plagiarism, which is a fancy school word for stealing someone’s ideas. >> But I like stealing. >> That’s not a good thing. Here is a huge mistake I see students make all the time. Again, write this down.
>> Can you go a little slower? >> I read essays all the time where students start off with an amazing life-changing, powerful quote, to the point where I actually have to sit down for a second to catch my breath. Many of them just say the quote, but don’t take the time to explain how the quote connects to the topic, and that’s a huge missed opportunity that confuses a reader. Look at my example. A hero doesn’t have to rely on big, flashy muscles or special powers to be great.
They just have to sacrifice their life for others.
And no one embodies this quote better than Batman. I did a couple of key things here; one, again, I define what the word “great” means for my reader. Two, I connect the quote to my topic by explaining that no one lives out this quote better than Batman. Three, hopefully at this point the reader is interested to know how Batman truly lives this quote out.
Four, you can use a fact or research to engage your reader at the start of your essay. Let’s look back at the beginning of this video for our example. “Princeton University came out with a study that says it only takes someone a tenth of a second to decide whether they think you’re good looking, trustworthy, a leader, or fun. And whether we like that or not, it tells us two things; first impressions matter, and they’re made very quickly.” Is that what I sound like?
I did a couple of key things here; one, I cite the research study by saying, “Princeton University,” which gives me credibility and makes a reader more likely to pay attention to what I have to say next. Two, I give an intriguing fact, one that makes a reader want to know more.
Three, I tell the reader that whether they like it or not, first impressions are important and made really quickly. I don’t just state the facts, but I tell the reader the major takeaway. Four, using facts and research is going to make you sound really, really smart.
>> It’s going to be really hard to make this guy look smart. >> That’s enough. Be nice! Now you want to review, revise and edit the hook for your introduction paragraph. Let’s look at some key points.
One, remember that even though you start your essay with a hook, it’s one of the last things you write, so don’t stress out about it in the beginning.
Two, I gave you many examples, but ask yourself, which hook fits your essay the best? Three, do you transition from your hook to your topic? Four, don’t overwhelm the reader with too much information, make it simple, but engaging. As always, check the video description for free resources to help you out.
Comment below and tell me which hook you’ll use for your essay.
Subscribe to the channel to keep up to date with all the latest videos, because I will walk you through the entire writing process, from start to finish. Like the video. See you later.
https://olspsystem.com/join/1592425/b1
https://allsolutionsnetwork.com/cgi-bin/d2.cgi/TB72664/myhomepage.htm
Discover more from Marketing Revolution
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
yoseamorosk69team
