Good Hooks for Essays for Your Academic Success
Many students think that writing is a talent and if you don’t have one – you are doomed to fail. However, with a proper attention to details, regular writing and practices you will surely become a great writer.
This article was prepared for students of all academic levels in order to help them understand what a so-called ‘hook’ is, how to use it and how it contributes to the overall quality of your essay. Just make yourself cozy and get familiar with good essay hooks!
Metaphorically speaking, a hook is a written boxing punch, which also aims to knock the opponent down. It is a sentence, which has a strong effect on the audience and aims to attract attention to the topic, offering intriguing details and unknown facts.
In a result, the reader will read your essay from the first page to the last one and will be amazed what a great writer you are!
How to write a good hook
Now, when you are familiar with hook’s definition, it is a right time to get started. We have collected the most important steps, which will help you to create a catchy and solid hook not depending on the topic and the target audience. They include:
- Find inspiration. Read online articles, samples of other works and journals to find fresh ideas or information for your own hook;
- Identify the reader. It is crucial to know who you are writing for. So before getting started, make sure you detect whether your reader is a group of teenagers, teachers or middle-aged white collars. Depending on the category you will be able to choose the most appropriate hook type;
- Understand the goal of your writing;
- Research. When you know what hook type you want to use, devote enough time to looking for the necessary information. Go to a library or surf websites, read scientific journals or listen to famous speakers. You can even share a personal story if the topic allows;
- Relate to the work. Make sure that the chosen information clearly relates to the subject. Too often students write their favorite quotes without seeing that they have nothing to do with the general idea of the essay;
- Write your hook. The last and the most important stage is creating the hook itself. Don’t be afraid to be creative, grabbing attention of the reader from the very beginning.
Types of essay hooks
Good hook sentences are always filled with interesting information, catchy details and relevance for the topic. That is why there are multiple hook types depending on your goals, academic level and the audience. Here are the most popular of them:
Quotes
It is one of the most popular and winning types of hooks, because literally quotes have a magical effect on the audience. Once the readers see a famous name, they immediately want to know what the author thought on the subject. They will read the quote till the end, surely remembering it. Moreover, it is quite simple to use such a hook type, because you only need to type a topic in the search bar. You will get a list of quotes on the required subject and lots of options to choose from. If you are using someone’s thoughts, don’t forget to include the author to the list of references.
Anecdotes
If your topic is light and entertaining, there is no better hook than an anecdote. It eases the tension and makes you closer to the audience. Even if you don’t want to make the paragraph funny, spicing it with some humor will surely grab readers’ attention. However, it is important to check whether your essay type allows using a first person, because most of the anecdotes are told from the narrator.
Questions
Good hooks for essays also include questions. They can be intriguing, catchy and stirring imagination. However, the structure should be clear and understandable: you want the reader to find the answer and not to feel puzzled.
If you want to use a question in your hook, make sure that the answer will be a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’. One of the best solutions is to provide a question, which has several options to choose from. Along the text you can provide pros and cons of the topic without a need to pick a side.
Definitions and facts
If you want to be sure that your hook sentence reaches its audience, you should choose an interesting and unknown fact or a definition. You will see how intrigued the readers will be to find out whether it is true that USA has the highest number of mentally ill people or that trypophobia is a fear of small holes.
Statistics
Another great solution for a hook sentence is statistics. When people see numbers, they feel the urge to read the whole sentence. Moreover, if such sentence is clear and short, the reader will be pleased and strongly willing to read the essay further.
Now you know what a hook is, how to write it and what the most winning hook types are. If you still have doubts and want to make sure that your essay is strong and catchy, you can always contact our experts and see yourself how easy and affordable the whole writing process is!
