Image Credit: Pexels.com
Are you struggling with writing a good introduction paragraph for an essay or some other piece of writing? No matter what you’re writing, having an effective introduction is essential.
In other words, you want to pull your readers in right away. You want to write an introduction that makes your reader interested from the very first sentence.
Every introduction has some key elements, and today we’re going to discuss those basics so you’ll know what to do.
On the other hand, if you’re working with a really tight deadline and you know you need some help, you have the option to buy an essay Edu Birdie online immediately. There, you’ll also get some practical recommendations from qualified writers.
Three Steps to a Winning Introduction
We’re going to talk about a three-step method of writing a great introduction that you can easily apply to almost everything you write.
- Divide your introduction into three parts from the very beginning. Those parts are the hook, background information, and thesis statement. The hook is about making your readers interested. For this purpose, you can use quotations, questions, interesting facts, proverbs, or even a joke. The background information is about giving the basics of your topic without providing any details. And the thesis is stating your position on the topic with a single strong, clear statement.
- Base your introduction on the reader’s curiosity. Read what you’ve written and think whether you would like to read more if you were an average reader. Keep readers totally interested and captivated.
- Give the reasons for what you’re going to say later in your essay. The reasons are the main ideas. Pick the strongest idea and provide a map for other paragraphs. Particularly if you’re writing an essay, state your personal opinion about the topic.
What Not to Include in Your Introduction
There are a few introduction don’ts. For example, do not reference the topic of the essay directly in the first sentence. Do not start with citing a dictionary or encyclopedia.
And do not begin with a sentence that throws doubt on the rest of your essay. For example, avoid phrases such as, “I’m not sure,” “I don’t know,” and so on.
Additionally, do not begin with the purpose of your writing straight away. You don’t need to explain the purpose of the assignment to the reader in the very first sentence. Instead, try to grab your readers’ attention and make them want to read more.
An introduction should be a minimum of four or five sentences. However, it should not be more than 10-15% of the total word count. Everything depends on the size of your assignment. Make sure that your introduction is not the longest part. A reasonable balance is important.
Image Credit: Pexels.com
One of the most effective ways to grab your reader’s attention straight away is by providing him or her with an immediate sense of time and place. Do this by by engaging your reader in a discussion from the very beginning, perhaps by opening with a question.
Alternatively, you could create one or more characters and introduce them to your reader via a short scene that’s related to your topic. You could even insert some dialogue between two or three characters. If you use a dialogue technique, don’t write anything else in your introduction. Just start your essay with a short conversation extracted from the context and related to your topic. In other words, drop your readers directly into a scene.
RELATED ARTICLE: HOW TO WRITE COMPELLING CONTENT
Just Follow the Three Rules
When writing an introduction, remember these three rules: Your first paragraph shouldn’t be longer than the body. Your first sentence should catch readers’ attention, making them want to read more. And the thesis statement in your introduction should be clear and specific.
Apply these three rules to almost any introduction you write, whether it’s for an essay assignment in a college class, an advertisement, or a blog post.
