Continuous Writing 2 - Writing a Good Introduction

Continuous Writing – Topic 2

Writing a Good Introduction

How many times have you picked up a book, read the first few lines and then put it down again, condemning it as a lousy book? Then there might be those times when you started reading a book and found it impossible to stop reading until you reached the end. 

If you are a writer, you would want your reader to want to keep reading until he reaches the end of your story or you might want to arouse your teacher's interest in your story the moment she reads the first few lines. How do you get your reader to continue reading past the first few lines of your story in the first place? 

You need a good introduction. It must be interesting, entertaining and perhaps even unusual enough to pique your reader's curiosity. 

Do you remember those times when the items in the display case of a shop attracted you and you decided to walk into the shop? Well, your introduction is like the display case in a shop. You need to write in a way that will make the reader want to read more of the story. 


Remember, the introduction is the first thing readers will read.

Read on to find out about the different ways you can write an interesting introduction. 

The introduction must:

- capture the reader's attention 

- interest the reader to want to read the rest of the story

- be relevant to the story you are writing 

1. Description 

Your description of the characters and setting must be relevant to your story.

For example, if your setting is in a shopping mall, avoid describing the weather. Describe the mall instead. 

Bring in your character as soon as you can. 

For example, if your story is about your character witnessing someone shoplifting in a mall, avoid giving many detailed descriptions of the people in the mall that will not have an impact on your story in any way. 

2. Recall/Flashback/Reminiscing 

The events that take place later in the story (problem, climax and resolution) are what the character remembers happened at some point of time in the past. 

To use recall, you must have a suitable trigger that causes the character to recall the incident. 

For example, if you had a terrible accident in the past while cycling, your memory of that accident could be triggered because you saw a young cyclist almost collide with another cyclist.  

3. Action 

This might be a difficult introduction to write because you need to create excitement to make the reader or your teacher want to read your story but you also have to repeat what you write in the introduction later on in your story, yet in a different way. 

For example, if your story is about an inconsiderate act at a food centre, the introduction begins with a good description of that inconsiderate act. You then write the problem in the second paragraph and repeat the same inconsiderate act in the climax of the story but using slightly different words from the introduction.