Before learning the art of writing a good hook, you should first learn what a hook is. It is a catchy and intriguing sentence from the opening of your essay, be it in high school or college, that encourages people to give your work a read no matter how lengthy it is. Although it can be considered as a tiny element, when a hook is perfect, it’s engaging as well as informative. It holds deep and important meaning and becomes successful in helping a writer to introduce his/her most important idea.

How can you make a hook work for you?

There are several main ideas that you must remember before you begin writing an effective hook. The most common mistake that students make is giving a good starter and then forgetting that it’s all part of their paper. Don’t climb to the topic discussion of your paper without showing a clear connection between the opening paragraph and the remaining paper. Words should be meaningful because they are powerful. If they aren’t relatable to your work, your argument won’t be supported.

The style and tone of your work hold greater importance. Suppose you are completing a research paper to give it to a science-based journal,you can’t start it with your childhood story. The hook you’re working on has to be appropriate and strong. If you’re writing for a less official magazine, your childhood story will be suitable. Assess the situation on your own.

These strategies to building good hooks are vital because the main purpose of every author is to give a better understanding to the readers about his/her opinion.

Transforming facts into hooks:

Wondering where good hooks appear from? It comes from your mind where you have the sense of knowing what the reader finds inspiring, exciting, or interesting. You might think of writing a curious fact on that topic, still mysterious to most of the people. Gather distinctive facts from several sources like:

• Newspapers
• Books and textbooks
• Magazines
• Websites
• Interviews
• Official published reports
• Scientific and academic journals
• Films and documentaries

Keep in mind that the more credible and recent the source is, the more reliable your essay hook will sound. To help you gain a deep insight into hook sentences and how they function in writing, go through some nice articles that are written by amazing journalists and professional writers.

 

Using facts to grab the attention of an audience:

Moreover, you should make use of facts to get an audience to read the whole essay. Publish up-to-date and sound information on the most discussed and critical topics within society. When you use facts, those statistics help potential business people in launching mobile solutions of their own in the future year. Not all professors and teachers back the usage of digital or internet resources. You should specify that way for introducing your hook plus the opening paragraph is fine.

Use jokes or anecdotes to gain more readers. EFL/ESL classroom offers several anecdotes on different subjects to facilitate students in covering any subject with a part of the humor. Check out this example of essay hooks that fascinates the reader and makes him laugh:

“A family of mice was surprised by a big cat; father Mouse jumped and said, “Bow-wow!” The cat ran away. “What was that Father?” asked Baby Mouse. “Well, son, that’s why it’s important to learn a second language.”

It’s a great idea to begin your paper emphasizing the need to learn a second language. Every country has forbidden jokes and particular humor. You should pick your hook sentences wisely.

Hook winning formulas:

When we talk about research papers and their semi-scientific nature, use of a dramatic scene, metaphor, or an anecdote is not recommended in the form of hook for the part. This approach doesn’t sound good. It is better to employ a part of statistics, an appropriate fact, or a question for your research paper as an eye-catching element that you compose to grab the attention of the reader to read an essay. For a research essay, some formulas will win you good hooks!

• An appropriate fact composed in a fascinating manner
• A section of statistics that an author finds exciting
• A relevant question on a topic which is thought-provoking
• Reminding what concerns the research paper

A persuasive essay hook:

While writing a persuasive essay, use a hook to allow your reader to acknowledge your perspective from the starting of reading. You can utilize any scrap of information to fulfill the key purpose of your essay. At this point, proving your thesis statement is essential. A good hook at the start of your writing makes a person go through your essay from start to finish. The greatest idea is to include a hook sentence such as:

• Fact
• Anecdote or joke
• Piece of statistics
• Metaphor
• Smile
• Rhetorical question

All of the above ideas can fulfill the purpose effectively. You should create an interest for the readers and intrigue them with a quotation, scene, or a question. Writing a good hook requires specific skills, but if you keep on practicing, you will eventually find the most suitable solution for particular cases.