After reading an engaging paragraph from Brave Margaret: An Irish Adventure by Robert D. San Souci and then work on writing good opening paragraphs for their own stories. Teacher and student instructions are provided along with student...

Great lesson in which students read various examples of "leads," or attention-grabbing introductions, in literature. Students then contemplate and develop their own interesting "lead" for a short story and share it with the class. Great...

This is a PDF offering eight alternatives for how to write engaging introductions to common fairy tales.

Never underestimate the power of an intriguing start. When analyzing the literary greats like Charles Dickens and Kurt Vonnegut, be inspired by their craft and learn how to write a tantalizing introduction and strong thesis. Free...

Site discusses the importance of "hooking" an editor with the first page of a manuscript. Gives examples of how to use a "hook," especially when attempting to get your work published.