Starting an essay can be quite a challenge. It's a hurdle many writers stumble over, yet it's a crucial one.
Crafting an introduction that's not only attention-grabbing but also compelling is the cornerstone of successful essay writing.
In this blog, we will explain everything about starting an essay. We will discuss how to begin different types of essays and what are some common ways to start an essay. Additionally, we'll highlight some common mistakes to avoid in your essay's introduction.
So let's get started!
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In academic writing, the only chance to make readers stick to your paper is to start off with an interesting and engaging introductory paragraph.
The introduction typically starts by setting the stage and presenting vital background information about your specific topic.
Make your introduction catchy and interesting to both inform and motivate your readers. In this way, you can make your opening of the essay as compelling as possible.
Here are the steps that you need to follow to create an engaging essay introduction:
Let’s explain these steps in detail below.
An essay hook is an opening statement that strives to grab people’s interest and attention. Always start an essay introduction with a hook to make your essay appealing.
Here are different types of hooks that can be used in your introduction paragraph:
The kind of hook that should be used in the essay depends on the topic and type of your essay. If addressing a serious and sad issue, do not use a casual or funny statement. It would be better to use quotations or anecdotes for such essays.
Likewise, if your topic is casual and humorous, try to open your essay lightly and casually. You can ask a funny question or start with a random funny statement.
You can also go through an interesting hook example and learn how to start a paragraph with interesting hooks.
After starting the introduction with a compelling hook, you need to provide background information about your topic.
The background information is provided to familiarize your audience with the topic and the main argument.
Providing background knowledge in the introduction is not as easy as it seems. You have to stop yourself from sharing excess information in the introductory paragraph. This will bore your audience, and they will stop reading for sure.
Just slightly give an idea about your topic and move on. You should not spoil the surprise coming for readers in the body paragraphs.
The last component of an introduction is the thesis statement. It is a 1-2 line sentence statement that sums up the main concept and the argument of your essay.
A thesis statement is considered a road map for your essay and provides your reader with an idea about the essay. It sets the tone of the essay, and the reader gets a slight hint about what they are going to read further.
The rest of the paragraphs that come before the conclusion are the body of your essay. They contain all the reasons and shreds of evidence that support and back your thesis statement.
Quick Tip: Always firmly present your argument in the thesis statement. Do not fill it with excessive information. The thesis statement is meant to convey your stance!
This is especially helpful for longer essays as it informs the readers about what is to come in each section of the essay. Keep this part concise and to the point, and give your readers a clear direction of your essay.
If your essay is short or discusses fewer ideas, this step may not be necessary. But, in the case of a longer essay, the mapping will inform the readers about the things being further discussed in the essay.
Once done with the writing, edit and revise the introduction. Make sure that you have added a compelling hook, adequate background information, and a thesis statement.
Furthermore, keep in mind that your introduction should be according to the type of essay that you are writing.
Here is how to start your essay with a quote:
Here are some expert tips for putting a quote at the start of an essay:
The easiest way to start an introduction is to ask a question to your readers to engage them immediately. Asking questions gives an image of a one-on-one conversation, which is super effective.
Seeing a question first will make your audience look for the answer in the content.
A rhetorical question is a good kickstart to your essay, as such a type of beginning is attractive to readers.
If you start with an intriguing question, the answer of which is not clear, then you should provide the answer within the text. Keep in mind that the rhetorical question does not require any specific reply.
Including interesting facts or statistics in your introduction helps you to take hold of your readers. Facts and stats are good attention grabbers for any piece of writing. Everyone gets entertained by the interesting and fun facts as they provide the context and background information of the topic.
For serious issues that are global, you can present shocking statistics or news to instantly grab your reader’s attention.
Choose facts and figures from credible and trustworthy sources. Your facts should support or prove your point of view or argument being presented later on in the essay.
Starting an essay with a shocking fact from a credible source is an effective way to start an essay, followed by explanations to convince the readers.
Another interesting way to start an essay is with a brief anecdote. It is about setting a short story at the start to show how it reveals the important features of your theme.
This hook is appropriate to use if you are writing descriptive or narrative essays. The anecdote should be short, simple, and to the point. Make sure it relates to the central idea of your essay.
Here are some effective words and phrases to begin an essay introduction:
Here are some interesting sentences to start an essay:
Examining various essay introduction examples provides valuable insights into captivating your reader's interest right from the start.
Check out these examples for guidance on crafting powerful opening lines.
The best way to start a paragraph in an essay is to write the topic sentence. The topic sentence tells the reader what the paragraph is going to be about. After the topic sentence, the supporting details are further provided.
Read this example to know how to start a paragraph.
To start a conclusion in an essay, you should write a rephrased thesis statement first. As it is the crux of your whole essay. Further on, the points discussed in the essay can be summarized one by one in the concluding paragraph.
Here is an example of how to write a conclusion to help you understand this better.
Besides the ones given above, here are some common ways of beginning your essay on a strong and engaging footing.
Instead of adding your thesis statement plainly, make the tone engaging and keep it brief.
Discoveries and little-known details always interest the readers. They are curious and they want to know more. This makes this kind of essay very interesting and irresistible for your readers.
Presenting the setting of your essay to set the mood of your audience. This helps them know where your essay is heading.
Recount an event to add drama to your essay. This also helps the readers to connect with you on a deeper level.
This technique works best in piquing your audience’s interest and keeping them on the edge of their seats. However, do not linger on it too much and use this technique carefully.
Use historical present tense to add weightage to your narrative. It makes the readers feel as if the event is taking place at the present moment.
Describe a process briefly that leads to your main essay topic.
“How to start an essay about yourself for college?”
People are always interested in knowing secrets. This is what makes this technique so good. Use it to reveal some secrets about yourself, if you are writing an essay about yourself.
It is a very effective technique as it helps the readers see the comparison between past and present situations.
There are many things that we believe to be true, a.k.a. Virtual reality. This technique helps you in presenting what a myth is and what reality is. Breaking the myths is an effective technique to grab someone’s attention.
Here are a few mistakes that should be avoided for writing a great essay introduction.
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A good instruction sentence for an essay is one that captures the reader's attention with an interesting hook. After writing the hook, give them some context by providing background information that will help set up what is to come in later paragraphs or sections of the paper/essay.
Finally, conclude your introduction with a thesis statement that states both concisely and specifically what main point(s) are being made about this topic along with why it matters.
The three most recommended ways to start off an essay are:
Some words that can be used to start an essay are once, next, then, in fact, similarly, or a time word like first, second, third. You can also use sequential transitions to merge your hook to the rest of the introduction paragraph. These transition words include, for example, consequently, for this reason, or another addition transition.
A good paragraph starter is a brief yet complete topic sentence. The topic sentence should adequately give the reader an idea about what is going to be discussed in the rest of the paragraph. The topic sentence should also prove your thesis statement.
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Nova A.
Nova Allison is a Digital Content Strategist with over eight years of experience. Nova has also worked as a technical and scientific writer. She is majorly involved in developing and reviewing online content plans that engage and resonate with audiences. Nova has a passion for writing that engages and informs her readers.
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