Hi, and welcome to strategy for paragraphs. This strategy has four techniques. And it covers paragraphs in terms of how to organize them and how to set them up and what they should emphasize and how they should function. Organized paragraphs with clear plans and subheadings. Now it may seem like common sense, but there are some specific techniques here that can really help you in terms of your organization, in terms of your paragraph structure in terms of deciding how long to make a paragraph, what to put in it, how to unify it and where to break your paragraph. That's often a question that I get from my students a lot.

Where do I break my paragraphs? And that's a good question and we'll talk about that strategy for though the explanation. each paragraph should have a specific goal and or key idea and its form should fit its function. each paragraph should have a specific goal or key idea And it's forum should fit its function technique one is on intros introductions to pieces. Now I know. You know in terms of informal writing, it might be a little different.

And in fiction, it might be different than say in nonfiction. In academic writing, it might be a little bit different than say in creative nonfiction or blogging. And so adapt this as the need goes, you know your genre and you know, your mode of writing better than you know, you know what you need to say, but these still apply in most situations and can be adapted intro should get the reader's attention immediately. And they should give the reader a sense of what the piece is about. So you want to do two things in the intro, you want to get the reader's attention. I use a little humor here with my students, and I'll tell them you want to show just a little bit of leg where they're like me, I want to see more of that.

But you want to leave enough to the imagination that they want to read more. So I'll tell them make your interests sexy. Hopefully The reader have something that gets their attention. And there are several things that you can do there to do that, an anecdote, a startling statistic, a human example, some kind of human story, something that has more of an emotional appeal to the reader or give them a clear mental image of something that you want them to think about throughout the piece. Those are things that will hook the reader or maybe something strange or unusual, as long as it's legitimate to what you're trying to say. You don't want to use cheap ploys here, but using something to hook the reader is definitely effective.

Also, you want to give the reader a clear sense of where the piece is going. What is it about, especially when you're writing essays and nonfiction pieces. You don't want to give everything away once again, but in some cases, you'll have a thesis. In some cases, you'll have cases you'll have an implied theme, but you want you don't want to talk about one thing in the intro and then talk about something entirely different in the body paragraphs. You do want there to be unity from your intro True. And it should be clear as it goes into the body paragraphs where you're going, it doesn't have to be predictable, but it needs to be unified and clear.

And so part of that technique is, like I say, get their attention immediately. Show them a little leg, but leave something to the imagination, and also give them a clear sense of where you're going with the piece on in the sample. This lead sparks the readers curiosity and gives her a sense of character setting and situation. So this is actually a piece beginning of what could be a piece of fiction. In January 1966, Darrius Johnson stood at the snowy edge of the Casino Royale roof, wishing his mother had put him in the car that day. So that piece is a good hook.

You're like, what the heck is going on? Why is it snowing in Las Vegas? Why is he standing at the edge of the building? Why is it the Casino Royale? Why does he seem to be wanting to jump and what the heck does that have to do with his mother not putting him in the car years ago and so leaves a lot of questions, but it also intrigues the reader. So it gives the reader some sense of setting of what's going on in the future paragraphs, but it also hooks the reader so they want to continue it leaves enough mystery that it doesn't give everything away.

Example to these examples of a genuine response, for better or worse for from the reader and they give her a sense of character, place and situation. And so these are some famous beginnings of entire novels, or works, fiction or nonfiction. Here is one by Vladimir Nabokov. And it's Lolita, a very famous novel, and many critics say it's the best novel written of all time and probably the best novel written in the 20th century. And here's the beginning, Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins, my sin, my soul, that one just grips you and you just want to know more. You get a sense of where the plots going and you Also get a sense of wanting to read more there it hooks you immediately.

Another one. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. You can't get more straightforward than that. And that's from the Bible. And then you have this one. Charles Howard had the feeling of a gigantic on rushing machine, you had to either climb on or leap out of the way you get immediate characterization, you get an immediate sense of one of the main characters and that is from Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand and that is one of my favorite works of all time the writing is beautiful if you want to see a piece of nonfiction that is so engaging and so consuming that it's like reading a fiction piece with the same kind of technique.

I highly encourage you to read Laura Hillenbrand, she is amazing. And Seabiscuit is an amazing piece of nonfiction. But those are all three beginnings that in some way hook the reader but they also adapt to their unique genre and situation. They also give the reader a sense of where the entire work is going. And if you're familiar with those works, you can see what I'm saying there. So that is strategy four technique one and that is intro should get the reader's attention immediately.

And it should be a little sexy and it should also give the reader a sense of what the piece is about.