Beginning Writing

Narrative Writing

Beginning: Hook

Purpose of a hook.

• Grab your reader´s attention

• Start with:

  • a striking opening with vivid details

  • dialogue

I lie there rather uncomfortably on the examination table. I was in fear, in pain and nervous. I had broken my back and was waiting in the Emergency Room.

​Example 1

Beginning: Hook

Multiple Select

What is missing from Example 1 that might make it better?

• 
  the character´s name

• vivid descriptions

• dialogue

• details about the setting

Lying rather uncomfortably on the examination table while facing the painfully bright ceiling lights, I fidgeted nervously, desperately trying to ignore the gloominess of the situation. I attempted to focus on staying warm in the bitterly cold room, but the events of just a few months prior kept running...

​Example 2

I lie there rather uncomfortably on the examination table. I was in fear, in pain and nervous. I had broken my back and was waiting in the Emergency Room.

​Example 1

Beginning: Hook

Multiple Select

In Example 2, what is the writer doing correctly?

• adding vivid descriptions

• dialogue

• setting the scene

Beginning: Background Information

​Purpose

• Introduce the setting and characters

  • setting is where the story takes place

• Hint at the conflict or theme

  • conflict- the main problem

  • theme- the larger life lesson, message to the reader

Lying rather uncomfortably on the examination table while facing the painfully bright ceiling lights, I fidgeted nervously, desperately trying to ignore the gloominess of the situation. I attempted to focus on staying warm in the bitterly cold room, but the events of just a few months prior kept running through my head- the intense pain, my overwhelming fear, and the frantic scrambling of surgeons and nurses in the Emergency room. The doctors told me I had broken a vertebra in my lower back. Briefly, I now smile thinking about the innocence of my response to the news: ¨So I have to wear a brace now when I play Football?¨

​Example 2

Beginning: Hook

Hotspot

Highlight where you see setting and main character.

Hotspot

Highlight where you see a hint of the conflict and theme.