 Leads snag a reader's eye, and entice, intrigue and hook them into reading… Writing an Effective Lead

 It gives readers an idea of what the rest of the writing will say.  It provides a reason for readers to keep reading. An Introduction Serves Two Purposes

Introduction Format 1.Hook the reader with an effective lead 2.Transition from the lead with a lead in to the essay. 3.Provide a roadmap for the reader by letting them know the things you will talk about in your body paragraphs

Anecdote Lead  Yesterday morning I watched as my older sister left for school with a bright white glob of toothpaste gleaming on her chin. I felt no regret at all until she stepped onto the bus …

SHORT, CATCHY SENTENCE  "Crowds! I hate them!"...  ""Flick! Flick! Flick! The police car's flashing blue light told its own story."

COMPARE OR CONTRAST Personal narrative example:  When I was seven, I thought my father was all- powerful and could do no wrong. When I was seventeen, I thought he was a jerk.  CONCLUSION:  My father wasn’t the god he seemed when I was seven, but he was sure a lot better and wiser than I  thought he was when I was seventeen.

PUNCH lead  The Punch lead consists of a blunt, explosive statement designed to surprise or jolt the reader. The best friend was dead.

CHALLENGE Lead  A challenge raises reader expectations and creates tension. A challenging opening statement is effective for a thesis that calls for changes to be made in public policies or personal actions, such as in persuasive essays and argument or analysis papers:  Chances are, if you live outside city limits in any of California's twenty-one rural counties, you couldn't use public transportation if you wanted to. There isn't any.

PICTURE Lead  PICTURE lead - The picture lead draws a vivid word picture of the person or in the story. The idea is to have the reader see the thing as the writer saw it. Standing tall and straight, easy to smile, unfurrowed brow under glistening eyes, Mary told of her dramatic attitude change, having seen her business results turn around after bringing in a consultant.

BACKGROUND lead  This is the same as the Picture lead except it draws a vivid word picture of the news setting, surroundings or circumstances. High seas, strong winds and heavy overcast provided the setting for a dramatic mission of mercy in the North Atlantic on the first day of the year.

Character performing an action  “It is nearly 10 p.m., and the toll taker at the Triborough Bridge’s Manhatten Plaza is near the end of her shift. Her routine is methodological, icily efficient. She glances out the window to see the kind and size of vehicle approaching….”  Source: Sol Stein’s Stein on Writing

CONTRAST lead  - The contrast lead draws contrast between two opposite extremes - tragedy with comedy, past with present, age with youth, beauty with ugly. Less than 3 years ago, two college friends decided to build a website to exchange their favorite videos. Today You Tube is owned by Google and gets over 25 million unique visitors to the site each month.

Make the reader curious.  Make them wonder who, what, when, why, where, and how. You don’t have to ask a question, but you can hook readers by forcing them to read beyond the first sentences. Make them desperate to keep reading. Here is an example: “Oh no, not another shoe,” Sharon Bennett remembers telling her husband, Michael.” (Maclean’s, “Mystery Afoot,” July 7, 2008). This article is about severed feet that keep getting washed up on the shores of British Columbia. ”If it’s normal for feet to wash up, shouldn’t it happen all the time?”

A sense of mystery….  Water doesn’t trickle down from the right basin of Jeanette Davis’ sink – it pours. (Alana Casanova-Burgess) What do you notice about this lead? It is a simple subject-verb sentence, using active verbs. Most importantly, it creates a whiff of mystery, and makes us want to read on.

Examples of POOR Leads  TOPIC: baseball "In this paper I am going to tell you about baseball.“  Do not announce your intentions: In this paper I will... The purpose of this essay is to...

The smooth white surface of a cigarette. As you light it you slowly relax. You feel the day is over. How can you resist? I can. Just think about all those people you are hurting, the innocent people trying to live a normal life. Then you walk by with a cigarette in your mouth. People stare at you in disgust. You try to ignore it, but all the faces are looking, watching, waiting. You sit by the subway entrance in a huge crowd. The smoke slowly drifts into the smoggy air. You hear coughing, sniffling, whispering. They cover up their noses to get away from the scent. Annotations: Grabs reader’s attention. Implies an organizational structure. Includes multiple strategies (scenario, taking a stand, contrasting situation). Adequate choice of support Thesis/position stated

High School Expository Pre-Lesson Example Student A My talent is playing baseball. The way I developed this skill is practicing pretty much my whole life. Baseball has taught me that you cannot get frustrated when you’re having trouble hitting or fielding a ground ball. Baseball is a very humbling game. Annotations:  Little attempt to get reader’s attention  Implies a vague structure  Contains some announcements that seem to be a disconnected list  Support not clearly connected to thesis  Vague thesis

High School Expository Post-Lesson Example Student A It was the bottom of the 6 th inning and we were down by one run. It was our rival team and the biggest game of the year. There were men on first and second and I was up to bat. The catcher put the ball on the tee, then I swung as hard as I could and the ball went flying and the two men on base came home. I knew then, that I loved the game of baseball. Annotations:  Adequately engages the reader  Implies a reason by reason structure (why I love baseball)  Includes an anecdote and draws a conclusion  Appropriate support for the thesis.  Thesis present (I love baseball).

Let’s Practice  Work with a partner.  Your group will be given 2 poorly written leads.  Your assignment is to write better leads together.  You will be asked to present one of your revised leads to the class.  APPLICATION: look at writing in your writing folder and revise some of your own leads to improve them.