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73 Essay Hook Examples

73 Essay Hook Examples

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

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essay hook examples and definition, explained below

An essay hook is the first one or two sentences of your essay that are used to grab the reader’s attention and draw them into your discussion.

It is called a hook because it “grabs” the reader and doesn’t let them go! It should have something in there that makes the reader feel curious and intrigued, compelling them to continue reading.

Techniques for Good Essay Hooks

Here are a few techniques that you can use to write a good essay hook:

  • Use a Quotation : Sometimes, a relevant quotation from a well-known author or expert can help establish the context or theme of your essay. Next time you’re conducting research for an essay, keep an eye out for a really compelling quote that you could use as your hook for that essay.
  • Start with a Statement that is Surprising or Unusual: A surprising or unusually statement will draw a reader in, making them want to know more about that topic. It’s good if the statement contradicts common knowledge or reveals an insight about your topic that isn’t immediately obvious. These can be particularly good for argumentative essays where you’re putting forward a controversial or compelling argument as your thesis statement .
  • Tell a Brief Anecdote : A short, interesting story related to your topic can personaize the story, making it more than just a dry essay, and turning it into a compelling narrative that’s worth reading.
  • Use Statistics or Facts: Interesting, surprising, or shocking facts or statistics work similarly to surprising statements: they make us want to know more about a topic. Statistics and facts in your introductions are particularly useful for analytical, expository , and argumentative essays.
  • Start with a Question: Questions that make the reader think deeply about an issue, or pose a question that the reader themselves has considered, can be really effecitve. But remember, questions tend to be better for informal and personal essays, and are generally not allowed in formal argumentative essays. If you’re not sure if you’re allowed to use questions in your essays, check with your teacher first.

Below, I’ll present some examples of hooks that you could use as inspiration when writing your own essay hook.

Essay Hook Examples

These examples might help stimulate your thinking. However, keep in mind that your essay hook needs to be unique to your essay, so use these as inspiration but write your own essay hook that’s perfect for your own essay.

1. For an Essay About Yourself

An essay about yourself can be personal, use “I” statements, and include memories or thoughts that are deeply personal to you.

  • Question: “Have you ever met someone who could turn even the most mundane events into a thrilling adventure? Let me introduce myself.”
  • Anecdote: “The smell of freshly baked cookies always takes me back to the day when I accidentally started a baking business at the age of nine.”
  • Intriguing Statement: “I’ve always believed that you haven’t truly lived until you’ve read a book upside down, danced in the rain, or taught a parrot to say ‘I love pizza.'”
  • Quotation: “As Mark Twain once said, ‘The secret of getting ahead is getting started.’ That’s a philosophy I’ve embraced in every aspect of my life.”
  • Humorous Statement: “I’m a self-proclaimed ‘professional chocolate tester’ – a title that’s not only delicious but also requires extreme dedication.”
  • Start with your Mission Statement : “My life motto is simple but powerful: be the person who decided to go for it.
  • Fact or Statistic: “According to a study, people who speak more than one language tend to be better at multitasking . As a polyglot, I certainly live up to that statistic.”
  • Comparison or Metaphor: “If my life were a book, it would be a blend of an adventurous novel, a suspense thriller, and a pinch of romantic comedy.”
  • Personal Revelation: “Ever since I was a child, I’ve had an uncanny ability to communicate with animals. It’s an unusual skill, but one that has shaped my life in many ways.”
  • Narrative: “The day everything changed for me was an ordinary Tuesday. Little did I know, a single conversation would lead me to discover my true passion.”

2. For a Reflective Essay

A reflective essay often explores personal experiences, feelings, and thoughts. So, your hooks for reflective essays can usually be more personal, intriguing, and engaging than other types of essays. Here are some examples for inspiration:

  • Question: “Have you ever felt as though a single moment could change your entire life? This essay is going to explore that moment for me.”
  • Anecdote: “I was standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon, looking at the vast emptiness, and for the first time, I truly understood the word ‘perspective’.”
  • Bold Statement: “There is a part of me that is still trapped in that room, on that rainy afternoon, holding the letter that would change everything.”
  • Personal Revelation: “The first time I truly felt a sense of belonging wasn’t in a crowded room full of friends, but in the quiet solitude of a forest.”
  • Intriguing Statement: “In my life, silence has been a teacher more profound than any words could ever be.”
  • Quotation: “Einstein once said, ‘The only source of knowledge is experience.’ Now, looking back, I realize how profound that statement truly is.”
  • Comparison or Metaphor: “If my life is a tapestry, then that summer was the vibrant thread that changed the entire pattern.”
  • Narrative: “As the train pulled out of the station, I realized I wasn’t just leaving my hometown, I was leaving my old self behind.”
  • Philosophical Statement: “In the theater of life, we are both the actor and the audience, playing our part and watching ourselves simultaneously.”
  • Emotive Statement: “There is a sort of sweet sorrow in remembering, a joy tinged with a hint of sadness, like the last notes of a beautiful song.”

For an Argumentative Essay

Essay hooks for argumentative essays are often the hardest. This type of essay tends to require the most formal type of academic writing, meaning your hook shouldn’t use first person, and should be more based on fact and objectivity, often at the expense of creativity. Here are some examples.

  • Quotation: “Thomas Jefferson once said, ‘Whenever the people are well-informed, they can be trusted with their own government.’ If Jefferson were alive today, he would likely feel that this meed for a well-informed citizenry is falling well short of where he would aspire.”
  • Provocative Statement: “Despite what romantic films may portray, love at first sight is merely a myth perpetuated by society. This essay will prosecute the argument that love at first sight is a myth.”
  • Statistical Fact: “According to the World Health Organization, depression is the leading psychological disability worldwide. Yet, mental health is still stigmatized and often overlooked. This essay will argue that depression should be seen as a health issue, and stigmatization of depression causes serious harm to society.”
  • Comparison: “Much like an unchecked infection, climate change, if left ignored, can spread far beyond what it is today, causing long-term economic and social problems that may even threaten the longevity of humanity itself.”
  • Contradiction : “While we live in an era of unprecedented technological advancements, millions around the world are still denied basic internet access.”
  • Bold Declaration: “Animal testing is not only ethically unacceptable, but it also undermines the progress of medical research.”
  • Challenging Belief: “Despite popular belief, the automation of jobs is not a threat but an opportunity for society to evolve.”
  • Quotation: “George Orwell wrote in ‘1984’, ‘Big Brother is Watching You.’ In our modern society, with the advancement of technology, this is becoming more of a reality than fiction.”
  • Intriguing Statement: “Despite countless diet fads and fitness trends, obesity rates continue to rise. This argumentative essay will argue that this is because medical practitioners’ approaches to health and weight loss are fundamentally flawed.”
  • Statistical Fact: “Research reveals that over 90% of the world’s plastic waste is not recycled. This alarming figure calls for a drastic change in social attitudes towards consumption and waste management.”
  • Challenging Assumption: “Society often assumes that progress and growth are intrinsically good, but this is not always the case in the realm of economic development.”
  • Contradiction: “Western society upholds the value of freedom, yet every day, members of society cede personal liberties in the name of convenience and security.”
  • Analogy: “Like an overplayed song, when a news story is repeated too often, it loses its impact. In the era of digital media, society is becoming desensitized to critical issues.”
  • Relevant Anecdote: “In a village in India, the arrival of a single computer transformed the lives of the residents. This small anecdote underscores the importance of digital inclusion in today’s world.”
  • Call to Rethink: “In a world where success is often equated with financial wealth, it is time for society to reconsidered what truly constitutes a successful life.”

For a Compare and Contrast Essay

A compare and contrast essay examines two issues, looking at both the similarities and differences between them. A good hook for a compare and contrast essay will immediately signal to the reader the subjects that are being compared and why they’re being compared. Here are sine ideas for hooks for a compare and contrast essay:

  • Quotation: “As Charles Dickens wrote in his novel ‘A Tale of Two Cities’, ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times’. This could equally apply to the contrasting dynamics of urban and rural living.”
  • Provocative Statement: “Despite popular belief, cats and dogs have more in common than society tends to think.”
  • Comparison: “Comparing being an only child to growing up with siblings is like contrasting a solo performance with an orchestral symphony.”
  • Contradiction: “While many view classic literature and contemporary fiction as worlds apart, they are more akin to two sides of the same coin.”
  • Bold Declaration: “Android and iPhone may compete in the same market, but their philosophies could not be more different.”
  • Statistical Fact: “Statistics show that children who grow up reading books tend to perform better academically than those who do not. But, the jury is out on how reading traditional books compares to reading e-books on screens.”
  • Quotation: “As Robert Louis Stevenson once wrote, ‘Sooner or later, we all sit down to a banquet of consequences.’ This statement can be used to frame a comparison between short-term and long-term thinking.”
  • Provocative Statement: “Democracy and dictatorship are often seen as polar opposites, but are they are not as different as they seem.”
  • Comparison: “Climate change and plastic pollution are two major environmental issues, yet they demand different approaches and solutions.”
  • Contradiction: “While traditional classrooms and online learning are seen as separate modes of education, they can often blend into a cohesive learning experience.”
  • Bold Declaration: “Though both based on merit, the structures of capitalism and socialism lead to vastly different societal outcomes.”
  • Imagery: “The painting styles of Van Gogh and Monet can be contrasted as a stormy sea versus a tranquil pond.”
  • Historical Reference: “The philosophies of the Cold War-era – capitalism and communism – provide a lens to contrast economic systems.”
  • Literary Comparison: “The dystopian societies portrayed in George Orwell’s ‘1984’ and Aldous Huxley’s ‘Brave New World’ serve as contrasting visions of the future.”
  • Philosophical Question : “Individualism and collectivism shape societies in distinct ways, but neither one can truly exist without the other.”

See Here for my Guide on Writing a Compare and Contrast Essay

For a Psychology Essay

Writing an engaging hook for a psychology essay involves sparking the reader’s interest in the human mind, behavior, or the specific psychology topic you’re discussing. Here are some stimulating hooks for a psychology essay:

  • Rhetorical Question: “How much control do we truly have over our own actions?”
  • Quotation: “Sigmund Freud once said, ‘Unexpressed emotions will never die. They are buried alive and will come forth later in uglier ways.’ This essay will explore whether this is universally true.”
  • Provocative Statement: “Contrary to popular belief, ‘venting out’ anger might actually be fueling the fire of fury.”
  • Comparison: “Just as an iceberg reveals only a fraction of its bulk above water, conscious minds may only be a small piece of who humans truly are.”
  • Contradiction: “While it may seem counterintuitive, studies show that individuals who are more intelligent are also more likely to suffer from mental health issues.”
  • Bold Declaration: “Despite advances in technology, understanding the human brain remains one of the final frontiers in science.”
  • Statistical Fact: “According to a study by the American Psychological Association, nearly one in five adults in the U.S. lives with a mental illness. Yet, mental health continues to be a topic shrouded in stigma.”

For a Sociology Essay

Writing an engaging hook for a sociology essay involves sparking the reader’s interest in social behaviors, cultural phenomena, or the specific sociology topic you’re discussing. Here are ideas for hooks for a sociology essay:

  • Quotation: “As Karl Marx once noted, ‘Social progress can be measured exactly by the social position of the fair sex.’ Sadly, society has not made much progress in gender equality.”
  • Provocative Statement: “Social media, initially created to connect people, is ironically leading society into an era of unprecedented isolation.”
  • Comparison: “Comparing society to a theater, where each individual plays a role, it is possible to start to see patterns and scripts embedded in daily interactions.”
  • Contradiction: “While people often believe that technology is bringing society closer together, evidence suggests that it’s actually driving a wedge between people, creating ‘digital divides’.”
  • Bold Declaration: “Human societies are constructed on deeply ingrained systems of inequality, often invisible to those benefiting from them.”
  • Statistical Fact: “A recent study found that women still earn only 81 cents for every dollar earned by men. This stark wage gap raises questions about equality in the workforce.”

For a College Application Essay

A college essay is a personal statement where you can showcase who you are beyond your grades and resume. It’s your chance to tell your unique story. Here are ten potential hooks for a college essay:

  • Anecdote: “At the age of seven, with a wooden spoon as my baton, I confidently conducted an orchestra of pots and pans in my grandmother’s kitchen.”
  • Provocative Statement: “I believe that life is like a game of chess. The king might be the most important piece, but it’s the pawns that can change the entire course of the game.”
  • Personal Revelation: “It wasn’t until I was lost in a foreign city, armed with nothing but a map in a language I didn’t understand, that I truly discovered my love for adventure.”
  • Intriguing Question: “Have you ever wondered how it feels to be part of two completely different cultures, yet wholly belong to neither?”
  • Bold Declaration: “Breaking a bone can be a painful experience. Breaking stereotypes, however, is an entirely different kind of challenge.”
  • Unusual Fact: “I can recite the periodic table backwards while juggling three tennis balls. It’s a strange talent, but it’s a perfect metaphor for how I tackle challenges.”
  • Quotation: “As Albert Einstein once said, ‘Imagination is more important than knowledge.’ This quote has defined my approach to learning.”
  • Narrative: “It was a cold winter’s day when I first discovered the magic of turning a blank page into a world full of characters, stories, and ideas.”
  • Metaphor: “Like a caterpillar transforming into a butterfly, my high school years have been a period of profound metamorphosis.”
  • Humorous Statement: “Being the youngest of five siblings, I quickly learned that the best way to be heard was to become the family’s unofficial lawyer.”

Conclusion: The Qualities of a Good Essay Hook

As I wrap up this article, I want to share a few last tips on qualities that a good essay hook should have. Keep these tips in mind when writing your essay hook and using the above essay hook examples:

First, relevance . A good hook should be directly relevant to the topic or theme of your essay. The hook should provide a preview of what’s to come without giving too much away.

Second, Intrigue. A great hook should make the reader want to continue reading. It should create a question in the reader’s mind or present a fascinating idea that they want to know more about.

Third, uniqueness. An effective hook should be original and unique. It should stand out from the many other essays that the reader might be going through.

Fourth, clarity. Even though a hook should be captivating and original, it should also be clear and easy to understand. Avoid complex sentences and jargon that might confuse the reader.

Fifth, genre conventions. Too often, my students try to be so creative in their essay hooks that they forget genre conventions . The more formal an essay, the harder it is to write the hook. My general approach is to focus on statistics and facts, and avoid rhetorical questions , with more formal essay hooks.

Keep in mind that you should run your essay hook by your teacher by showing them your first draft before you submit your essay for grading. This will help you to make sure it follows genre conventions and is well-written.

Chris

  • Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 10 Reasons you’re Perpetually Single
  • Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 20 Montessori Toddler Bedrooms (Design Inspiration)
  • Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 21 Montessori Homeschool Setups
  • Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd-2/ 101 Hidden Talents Examples

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How To Write A Halloween Essay? Best Advice

halloween essay

Halloween is an excellent time to celebrate but writing a persuasive essay on Halloween is another topic for discussion. Many college and university students find it tedious crafting such a paper and scoring low grades. To others, such an assignment is scary, and they end up not attempting it all. But should that be the case for all students? Well, our experts have prepared a tip-top guide on how to write Halloween essays that will make you a superstar. Keep reading.

What is a Halloween Essay?

It is an academic paper on Halloween that takes place on 31 st October every year. Now, Halloween is usually a night of customs filled with fun and merry-making. The Halloween tradition has rich ancient religious stories, beliefs, and history. With its origin over 2000 years ago in Celtic Ireland, the festival has developed roots in most parts of Europe.

Outline For Halloween Essays

Many students think that knowing how to write a Halloween essay introduction is all to it. Nonetheless, it would help if you had more than an understanding of one section to craft a brilliant Halloween essay sample. You will have to know the following background information first:

Origin of the Halloween festival Its significance to the communities that celebrate it The cultural and religious implications of the festival

With such knowledge, you are good to proceed to the structure of a Halloween essay which is a swift process. Like any other essay, a Halloween paper has three parts; introduction, body and conclusion. Below is a brief description of this structure:

  • The introduction should contain catchy facts and ideas on Halloween that would immerse the reader into your essay. The beginning can also have proverbs, citations, some wise words, or quotes on Halloween. The thesis statement which comes in the intro should be brief and informative. Remember that the introduction paints a picture of what to expect, and as such, it should be captivating.
  • The body: This is the part that explains the thesis statement in detail. It contains arguments and facts that support the main idea presented in the thesis statement. It is essential to connect every paragraph of the body logically to make your essay flow. To make this section more interesting, use vivid details and descriptions when narrating your story.
  • Conclusion: It is the shortest part of your Halloween essay that wraps up your discussion. The decision should summarize the main points and restate the thesis statement. For an excellent article, ensure that your conclusion leaves a mark on your audience. Do not leave them scared and frustrated as people celebrating Halloween for the first time.

To ace your paper, you can look at the various Halloween essay example tasks online. These will give you ideas as well as tips on how to write a thrilling Halloween paper.

Halloween Essay Example

Halloween is widely celebrated in the U.S. and has a number of strange characteristics that make it similar to other rituals of reversal. Some social roles are reversed during Halloween. One example is that children hold power over adults through “trick or treat” as they can make adults give them candy and other things that they would not usually get. There are also many different costumes.

One type of costume that gets a lot of attention are the “sexy” costumes made for women and girls that are different to what they would normally wear. On a normal day no-one would wear that type of clothing but on Halloween it is OK. This is a way of everyone (particularly girls) stepping away from cultural norms and having the freedom to dress the way they want and express themselves. There are also symbolic messages behind the costumes in that they are supposed to imitate “scary” things. Anyone wearing a clown or vampire costume in everyday life would be seen as strange but on Halloween this is considered normal behavior.

Halloween can serve many functions in contemporary U.S. society. It is one of the most creative holidays in that it allows people to express themselves in costume and clothing, as well as make things and decorate their homes in an interesting way. It is also a kind of equalizing holiday because many costumes can be made at home from everyday objects, and pumpkins to carve are not expensive. In this way, everyone can join in with Halloween festivities, whereas Christmas (for example) can be very expensive with the presents and light shows. It is also an important holiday because it is fun for both children and adults – children can go to “trick or treat” whilst adults get to dress up and go to parties.

Let’s have a look at some exciting Halloween topics for your inspiration:

History of Halloween Essay Topics

  • Analyze the myths behind the origins of Halloween
  • Discuss the role of the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain in Halloween
  • Why do people light bonfires and wear costumes during Halloween?
  • Evaluate the development of the Halloween festival from the 8 th century
  • What aspects of All Saints Day featured in Halloween?
  • Discuss the evolution of Halloween into a day of activities
  • Traditional festive gatherings that define Halloween
  • Discuss how people in the United Kingdom and northern France celebrated Halloween in the 18 th century
  • Why was Halloween associated with human death?
  • Discuss the connection between the worlds of the living and the dead and Halloween
  • The role of Celtic priests in furthering the Halloween festival
  • Why did people offer crop and animal sacrifices during Halloween?
  • Discuss the role of the conquest of the Roman Empire on the Celtic territory
  • The role of religion in contributing to the development of Halloween
  • How did Pope Gregory III contribute to the furthering of the Halloween festival?

Custom Halloween Topics For Top Performers

  • Beliefs and customs of the rigid Protestant belief systems
  • How did the southern colonies celebrate the Halloween festival?
  • Discuss the customs of different European ethnic groups concerning Halloween
  • How do the American Indians celebrate Halloween?
  • The impact of coronavirus on Halloween celebrations in the United States
  • How did the American version of Halloween emerge?
  • Should people buy costumes for their pets during Halloween?
  • Discuss the typical annual autumn festivities related to Halloween
  • The role of immigration in furthering Halloween
  • How did the Irish Potato Famine impact Halloween?
  • The role of the media in popularizing Halloween

Fast Topics For An Informative Speech On Halloween

  • Discuss the “trick-or-treat” tradition of Halloween
  • What is the significance of apple parings or mirrors during Halloween?
  • How neighbourly get-togethers spice up Halloween celebrations
  • What is the role of pranks and witchcraft in Halloween
  • Familiar games that people play during Halloween
  • How newspapers and community leaders contribute to furthering Halloween
  • Discuss Halloween parties in the 1920s and 1930s
  • Evaluate the relationship between vandalism and Halloween
  • Discuss the role of the Spooky Story Hour during Halloween
  • Effects of reading many Halloween stories and poems
  • The part of divination games
  • Halloween and watching horror films
  • Impact of visiting haunted attractions during Halloween
  • Why telling scary stories to lighten up Halloween

Getting Help With Halloween Essay Is Easy

An essay writing service is all you need to score top grades in your Halloween paper. We offer full essay help that will make a perfect impression on your professor. Ask our writers to work on your article today!

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Halloween Essay: How to Write, Topics and Essay Ideas

So, there are a few days left before Halloween, one of the favorite American holidays both for kids and adults. Most probably, your teacher will ask to prepare a Halloween essay. And most probably, it is not the first Halloween essay that you need to prepare.

We are sure that right now your head is busy with ideas for a Halloween party, your costume, some tricks, and so on. You absolutely do not feel like writing your Halloween essay, although the topic is fascinating.

Yet, even really amazing topics should be properly covered. Let Custom-writing.org offer you several ways of completing your Halloween essay, which will not take too much time and efforts.

🔝 Top 10 Halloween Essay Ideas

  • Your favorite Halloween specials 
  • What traditions define Halloween? 
  • What makes trick-or-treating dangerous? 
  • Why are apples associated with Halloween? 
  • How does Halloween impact the economy? 
  • Different Halloween customs around the world 
  • The difference between Samhain and Halloween 
  • The effect of media in the popularization of Halloween 
  • How has the Halloween celebration evolved over time? 
  • How has religion contributed to Halloween’s development? 

Writing Halloween Essays: Way #1

Imagine that you have a friend who lives in a country where Halloween is not popular, and you have to tell him/her about the holiday. You can use general facts, your knowledge, and experience to complete the Halloween essay in this way.

Here are some points to include into your Halloween essay for a foreign friend:

Ghost costume halloween party

  • Say a few words about the origins of Halloween;
  • Talk about the tradition of carving pumpkins. Add a couple of pictures.
  • Tell how people celebrate Halloween . Give details on how people decorate their houses and yards, how they choose costumes, how kids do trick-or-treating, how Halloween parties are organized.

Writing Halloween Essays: Way #2

Another easy and exciting way to prepare a Halloween essay is to make up a scary story. Think about a good idea for your story involving ghosts, witches, dead men. Mind that descriptions, vivid details will make your Halloween essay more impressive.

Your Halloween essay can also be based on your personal experience (sure, you can make up some details). It can be something like “Last Halloween, I and two other guys decided to visit that old, abandoned house that was believed to be haunted. As it turned out, ghosts were there!”

Our tips for writing remembered event essays and a narration essay might be useful.

Learn more on this topic:

  • Coral Reef Essay: Descriptive Writing How-to Guide
  • Best Descriptive Essays That Win Top Marks
  • Harriet Tubman Essay: How to Write, Prompts and Ideas
  • Americanism Essay Writing: How-to Guide, Tips, Topics
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i really needed this and i have a presentation in a few days and i really needed a speech for my project thanks!!

Everybody loves HALLOWEEN and your article is really good one 😀

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Thank you very much for stopping by! We hope to see you again on our blog. Feel free to browse other posts and categories. Have a nice week!

Thanks so much for interesting ideas for my Halloween essay. Though it is too early to write about Halloween, but this is my favorite holiday, and I can’t but dedicate my paper to it! Good luck!

When I was given to write an essay about my favorite holiday, I chose Halloween. In your article on writing Halloween essays, I found lots of fascinating ideas for my paper. Thanks for them very much!

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Public Speaking Tips & Speech Topics

50+ Hook Examples: The Opening Lines That Make Your Essay Successful

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Jim Peterson has over 20 years experience on speech writing. He wrote over 300 free speech topic ideas and how-to guides for any kind of public speaking and speech writing assignments at My Speech Class.

The Opening Lines That Make Your Essay Successful intro image

Writing a good paper starts with brainstorming a brilliant hook, which keeps your audience engaged with the text. There are many ways to formulate hooks, which will help your writing sound more original and compelling. Looking at some essay hook examples and tips on writing them is the first step to creating one of your own!

In this article:

What is a Hook?

Tips for creating a great hook, question hook examples, strong statement examples, fact/statistic hook examples, metaphor/simile hook examples, anecdotal hook examples.

A “hook” is a sentence that grabs the reader’s attention and keeps them interested in the outcome of your academic text or research paper. The hook is found in the first sentence or two in the opening paragraph in an academic text and serves both as an introduction and an attention grabber.

In literature, such sentences are often found in novels. A great personal favorite of mine is Christmas Carol’s first sentence: “Marley was dead: to begin with. ” This invites tons of interesting questions and piques your curiosity, making you want to read along.

We come across hook examples in our day-to-day lives, scrolling through YouTube video titles and website links. Clickbait can be considered the hook of the modern world, and there are tons of techniques to learn from it.

However, this article will focus on essay hooks for academic papers specifically. In the section below, we’ll be discussing tips on writing hook sentences and engaging your reader’s interest through a single opening sentence.

There are different types of hook sentences in an essay introduction. We’ll take a look at each type, and a few tips, so later on, you can start formulating your own essay hooks based on these few examples.

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  • Question Hook: If you’re writing an art essay, philosophy paper, or business coursework, choosing a compelling and interesting question will leave the readers pondering throughout your text. The reader will automatically try to look for the answer within your research paper.
  • Strong Statement: The opening lines can be controversial, a bold claim – the best hooks for argumentative essays are. This method can shock your audience, and they’ll be curious to learn how you defend your argument.
  • Fact/Statistic Hook: These hook examples are used for scientific and academic assignments, allowing you to use a lesser-known fact or statistic which will grab the reader’s attention.
  • Metaphor/Simile Hook: You can set up a scene by telling a short story for your readers to imagine before getting to your essay’s core. This metaphor hook can be highly compelling and relatable to your audience.
  • Anecdotal Hook: The trickiest essay hook used to diffuse the tension surrounding a heavy topic. This tricky opening line should be carefully thought out and guaranteed to make the reader laugh and only used in the right circumstances.

If you’re using the fact/statistic hook, always make sure you quote a credible source. The same goes for the interesting facts hook type. Include those sources in the body of your essay.

It also helps to think of a hook you came across recently that made an impression on you. Was it a controversial blog post? A captivating personal story? A thesis statement that made you ponder?

Once you finish reading our article, it’s helpful to test your hook and introductory paragraph out to an audience. Have another student, tutor, or parent read it. See if it’s doing its purpose – is the reader engaged? What did they understand from your hook? Is the essay topic clear?

Don’t get discouraged if you don’t get it right the first time. Writing is a long process and requires a lot of rewriting. Take a small break and give it another go.

How to Write a Great Hook + Examples

There are two crucial points to follow when you write a hook:

  • Keep your sentences short – don’t overstuff your sentences or let them run longer than two rows.
  • Use simple, comprehensive language – the ultimate essay can be read and understood by anyone, even people outside your academic course.

It’s time to get to the examples!

  • What if I told you the world has an unlimited energy resource?
  • How much screen time is too much for elementary school children?
  • Is online education the best way to learn in the middle of a pandemic?
  • Did you know women are twice as likely to experience clinical depression than men?
  • Are your evening habits keeping you from getting a good night’s sleep?
  • Do jobs that require degrees have a higher earning potential?
  • How important is it for YouTubers to use search engine optimization strategies?
  • Will the consumption of meat products become a luxury in the year 2050?
  • Has reading become more challenging due to our short attention span?
  • Have you ever wondered why traffic builds up on no-stop roads?
  • Why we should feel sorry for high achievers?
  • Why you don’t need to be exceptional?
  • How much sugar do you think you consume?
  • The effects of global warming are irreversible, so what can we do to optimize our living now?
  • Should fireworks be banned due to noise pollution and its effect on animals?
  • Has television died in place for streaming services?
  • Is our hatred of certain foods and flavors a direct result of our genetic heritage?
  • Android app development will die out in the next twenty years.
  • You’ll always marry the wrong person.
  • Why is ordinary life not good enough anymore?
  • Why are romantics ruining love?
  • “The wicked tend to win” Machiavelli
  • The hardest person in the world to break up with.
  • Some imaginary friends can cultivate independence in a child.
  • Did you know that space smells like seared steak?
  • The human body houses 10 times more bacteria than it does cells.
  • The longest war in the world is between the Netherlands and Sicily and here’s what happened.
  • “A country that demands moral perfection in its foreign policy will achieve neither perfection nor security” H. Kissinger
  • Cat purring can be beneficial to your health.
  • There is a scientific explanation behind boredom.
  • The average drunk driver drives under the influence more than 80 times before they get arrested for the first time.
  • 1/3 of adults still sleep with a comfort toy in bed.
  • The average American generates nearly 4.5 pounds of trash each day.
  • The global rate for keeping good hygiene after using the toilet is 20%.
  • Americans read for pleasure for less than 10 minutes every day.
  • The average American eats around 13 pounds of ice cream each year.
  • More than 1/2 million people experience homelessness each night.
  • Approximately 90% of people who experience a cardiac arrest outside of hospitals die.
  • Farmers and ranchers make up less than 2% of Americans.
  • Approximately half of Americans will experience a mental illness during their lifetime.
  • My cousin Joanna went to a party with red lipstick all over her teeth. I couldn’t help myself to tell her.
  • I dressed up as a werewolf last Halloween. That’s when everything started.
  • As a child my grandfather gave my grandma her favorite flower- a rose on every holiday. Does this kind of love still exist?
  • Last year my parents dragged me to Paris six times. I had the most dreadful time – I just couldn’t understand how such a historic city can be so dirty, or why.
  • The cause and effect example – when talking about the importance of safety, tell a story with an important moral.
  • Imagine sitting by the fire with the love of your life…
  • I have a four-year old baby – my publishing business I started in 2018.
  • The picture of… brought back memories of…
  • It’s difficult to talk about… because…
  • If you were a famous person, would you…
  • When I was 6, I was given a pet hamster for Christmas. Needless to say, little Zach is gone now, but I wonder how long he could have lived if I had been given it at 12?
  • One reason I decided to switch to a healthy diet is… well it’s cheaper than buying a whole new set of clothes!
  • I like talking to myself. Sometimes I have these seemingly clever and long conversations. I hardly have a clue what I’m talking about.

Mastering the hook sentence is something you might end up using in your day-to-day life, especially if you go into academia, publishing, or journalism as a career choice. But that’s not it – we use hooks to communicate on social media. The title of our blog post or recent youtube video are examples of well-formulated hooks. The quicker you start practicing them the easier they’ll become to use.

If you’re having any other academic trouble, like coming up with essay topics , or you want to learn the outlines of the different essay types, we can help you with that! You’ll become an essay writing pro in no time! We’ve got some good and interesting research paper topics we’re proud of, as well as demonstration speech topics ! Hook sentence examples are just the start!

We hope this article has helped you master the art of essay writing, and you now find the reader agrees with your point of view! Let us know of any good hook examples you came up with!

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50 Spooky Writing Prompts and Horror Story Ideas

50 Spooky Writing Prompts and Horror Story Ideas #horror writing ideas #horror writing prompts #scary story prompts #Halloween writing prompts #dark fantasy story ideas #suspense story plots

If you’re looking for scary story prompts or horror writing ideas, you’ve come to the right place! These are great Halloween writing prompts, and some of these could also be used as suspense story prompts or dark fantasy story ideas.

These are all from my book 5 ,000 Writing Prompts: A Master List of Plot Ideas, Creative Exercises, and More . The book has 100 additional spooky writing prompts and horror story ideas, as well as master plots and idea starters for all kinds of writing.

If you are easily scared and have an over-active imagination, just skip this one. And anyway, just remember it’s all nonsense that I made up while I was exercising on the treadmill or sitting in bed.

Some of these are skeletal (ha) plot ideas, while others are images or suggestions. And if you’d like a spooky soundtrack to inspire you, be sure to check out my scary music playlist for writers ! Be sure to pin or bookmark the post for future reference. After all, when autumn rolls around, you might find yourself looking for Halloween writing prompts!

50 Spooky Writing Prompts and Horror Story Ideas #horror writing ideas #horror writing prompts #scary story prompts #Halloween writing prompts #dark fantasy story ideas #suspense story plots

  • A musician practices. When she finishes a piece, she hears someone clapping for her, although she lives alone.
  • Frightening events in a small town lead its citizens to dig up the grave of a deceased inhabitant.
  • Someone gets on the elevator by himself and is never seen by his friends or family again.
  • The Furies—the vengeance deities of classic mythology—are back in business again.
  • A collector buys an unpublished manuscript by an obscure writer that describes a terrible historical event a year before it occurred. The collector learns the writer wrote many unpublished stories…
  • Creating a hybrid of a human and this particular animal turns out to be a bad idea.
  • A person has the ability to make other people very ill.
  • The dead walk out of the sea.
  • An individual begins seeing and hearing from someone who looks just like her – and learns she had a twin who died at birth.
  • A killer places an advertisement for a willing victim and finds one.
  • A basement contains jars filled with unusual specimens.
  • A person finds new photos of herself on her cell phone that she didn’t take.
  • The spirit of a brutalized slave or prisoner of war wants revenge on his tormentor’s descendants.
  • A couple vacationing in a remote area begins having the same nightmares.
  • All of the circus performers were killed in the train wreck.
  • The television switches to another station of its own accord and plays footage of something horrible that happened long before the technology existed to record it.
  • A spouse or sibling dies. He or she begins to take over the body of the surviving spouse or sibling.
  • Weekend adventurers explore a cave and can’t find their way out again. Then they encounter something terrible…
  • Authorities go through the cluttered apartment of a deceased man who lived alone with no known friends or relatives for decades and find something disturbing.
  • A group of teenagers trolls everyone else in an online group by telling made-up stories about terrible things they’ve done. Things then get out of hand.
  • It’s bad luck in the theatre to call the Shakespeare play Macbeth by name, but someone in the company keeps doing it anyway… and the superstition proves true.
  • Every exhibit in this carnival sideshow is fake. Except this one thing.
  • An individual develops a terror of water – drinking it, touching it, or even being near it. There’s actually a good reason why.
  • The grandfather clock starts running backwards.
  • People in this neighborhood begin having freak accidents that involve normal appliances and machinery, such as blenders, weed whackers, and garage doors.
  • The cure for a new deadly epidemic is almost scarier than the disease.
  • He locked the doors and shuttered the windows; it came in through the roof.
  • A woman is happy when her dead loved one comes back to life… but he’s changed.
  • This centuries-old beauty secret is effective but horrifying.
  • A killer toys with his victims by orchestrating a series of false hopes for them.
  • She wakes up in the middle of the night and runs out to a certain tree.
  • Tourists on a ghost tour, along with their guide, fall into the hands of an evil presence.
  • A young woman is impregnated by her handsome new boyfriend, who turns out to be something other than human.
  • The empty swing is swinging.
  • A bride on her honeymoon discovers she’s not her new husband’s first wife… not even close.
  • Long ago, when he was a baby, a man’s parents made an unwise deal in order to bring him back from the dead.
  • Members of a family or people in a town begin sleepwalking and doing strange things in their sleep.
  • A young man confesses to a killing that hasn’t happened. The murder he describes takes place while he’s in custody.
  • Grisly events happen after the arrival of a hypnotist in Victorian London.
  • An author’s fictional villain stalks him.
  • Fraternity hazing goes way too far.
  • It always happens when he’s alone in the car.
  • A patient in a mental hospital encounters a malevolent ghost, but nobody believes her.
  • A mother’s young child may or may not be a changeling.
  • Swarms of insects appear in various places in a town, always followed by an untimely death.
  • The ghost at the movie theater wants everyone to watch one particular snippet of film.
  • A child’s imaginary friend starts to cause real trouble.
  • When putting together a slide show for a wedding or funeral, someone notices that for decades, the same man, dressed in the same fashion, has been appearing in the background of photographs taken in public places.
  • A politician, religious leader, or celebrity exerts mind control over the will of his or her followers.
  • The fairy godmother isn’t the good kind of fairy.

Okay, I creeped myself out a little with these spooky writing prompts! If you’re writing a novel and want a step-by-step guide to planning, writing, and editing, be sure to check out my book 5,000 Writing Prompts .

5,000 WRITING PROMPTS: A Master List of Plot Ideas, Creative Exercises, and More | BRYN DONOVAN |

Do you have questions or suggestions about horror story ideas? We’d love to hear them in the comments section! And don’t miss future posts about writing. Follow my blog, if you aren’t already — there’s a place you can sign up below. Thanks so much for reading, and happy writing!

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60 thoughts on “ 50 spooky writing prompts and horror story ideas ”.

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This was terrific. Thank you.

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Thanks, B.D., you’re so welcome!

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You always have the best writing prompts. I love these! Several gave me the jeebas. 🙂

Thank you so much! Haha, it only seemed creepy to me when I went back and read straight through them. 😀

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Fabulous prompts – I see some stories in my immediate future.

Aw thanks Noelle, glad you like them!

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Thanks, Bryn, for all the great prompts. I appreciate it. 🙂 — Suzanne

Thanks, Suzanne, you’re welcome!

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Great prompts for the coming season and for those who write about the supernatural all year round. A friend of mine and myself send photos to each other as prompts and most of the time, mine stories lean toward the macabre, supernatural or fantasy. I love it! Many of these set my thoughts in motion (the gears are turning). Thanks!

Cheryl, that’s so cool that you and your friend send image prompts to each other! So glad you liked these. Thanks for the nice comments!

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Those are delightful ideas and I thank you for them. Did you hear, by the way, about the writer of bizarre tales whose stories were typed using the blood font.The one that leaves an occasional trail of blood down the background image of the screen. Isn’t technology a delightful addition to this lexicon?

Hi Robert! Holy smokes, I had not heard of that use of text. That’s amazing! Thanks so much for commenting, and for the kind words!

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I really like the first one: A musician practices. When she finishes a piece, she hears someone clapping for her, although she lives alone.

My character plays the violin and she’s blind, so imagining something like that happening is kind of scary.

Oh geez, Cinthia, that would be scary. That one was my favorite one, by the way. Thanks for commenting!

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The reasons why crime features so heavily in media coverage are many and varied. In practical terms crime stories are often easy to cover, relative to other issues. Police make appeals for witnesses, ‘tip off’ journalists (sometimes in ethically problematic ways), court hearings are easy to access and scheduled long in advance.

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nice stories……..give me the creeps

Haha, thank you so much Jayitha!

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Thanks so much really helped me.I have to write a short story for english so thanks!

So glad it helped, Neveah! Hope your story turned out (or turns out) great!

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who are you?

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That was amazing, I am 11 years old and I looked up writing prompts for fun but now I want to write a whole story! Thank you!

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Thank u for these ideas. Good suggestions. I am actually writing a horror/thriller story right now and I’m almost done with it. It may be my first story to publish. At least I hope so. I hope that if it does get published, people may like it. I try to make my stories as unique as possible compared to the fantastic horror books already written.

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Great article…So, I have a very sketchy idea (comments welcomed).Newly married couple, husband starts having night terrors about being trapped/lost in a cave (the type extreme potholers go down). He suffers from claustrophobia, specifically potholing. The terrors become more and more violent until one day/night he wakes up inside a shaft, wedged between the walls by his broad shoulders…can’t go forward, can’t go backwards. That’s as far as I’ve got. Apart from skipping to a potential sad ending. You may have guessed that this is a fear of mine!!!

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That is unbelievably terrifying!!

ps. You may also guess that I am attempting to write my FIRST book!!!

Thank you Ember Jay

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can you have more scary stories and pin them on pinterest? If you want my email for anything its [email protected] . Thanks

lisette isabelle

Isn’t the last one the plot of Shrek 2?????

yessss broooo

Broooo thats my fav movie!!!!!

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I like #4 The Furies—the vengeance deities of classic mythology—are back in business again. I’m currently writing a story about a demon and a school girl the story is call Her name was Misaki

I like #4 The Furies—the vengeance deities of classic mythology—are back in business again. I’m currently writing a story about a demon and a school girl the story is call Her name was Misaki

This sounds like a a great story!

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I used the first one to get me started on brainstorming, and I warped the idea into a feature screenplay that was very fun to write. Thanks for the awesome help!!!

Yeah boiiiiii

I was sitting by the window watching the snow slowly and silently fall. Suddenly, outside, a snap of a branch and a stutter of leaves, a sad old man leaves his house over the road. I watch him as he slowly strolls down the driveway with his brown old wooden stick. Is this a good story starter?

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Thanks for getting my imagination running. I needed that. J

Aw, thanks. Thanks for reading, John!

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heyo…. I’m 13 years old and i want to write a horror story…..this is helpful!!! I want to be an author when i grow up…whats it like being an author???!!! i have so many ideas , too many that i actually have no idea what to write this gave me some good ideas too thanks. oh, and i love your eyes they are so pretty.

Hey there! I’m so glad you liked the list! It sounds like you have an amazing imagination. Being a writer has challenges, but it’s fantastic making up whole characters, stories, and worlds…and when readers love your stories, too, that’s a great feeling. I hope you have great success as an author. Thanks for the compliment, too!

idea 48 is probably the ex boyfriend of the girl getting married and getting revenge on the husband hehe

I love all these prompts! They give just enough detail but also leave a great amount of imagination! I am doing a spooky story contest and now I have a wonderful idea! thank you so much! -Charlotte

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Love this list! I plan on entering a short story contest, and this is very helpful! I lean more towards lengthy fantasy (particularly magic or medieval related) stories, so coming up with ideas for a scary short story is not exactly easy. I now have a solid idea combining bits and pieces of a few prompts (for example: #13 and #16) plus combining my own twists. So thank you!!

Thank you so much I really needed this for English

My story Wrote by 11 yrs old girl (no name, sry) The Mystery Of The Unexpected Ghost: As my grandfather lies on his deathbed, he told me of a terrible crime he committed many years ago and got away with. He also told me that his freedom was the result of a spell someone performed and that I should expect a visit from a ghost. “He will come out from the shadows,” are his last words. Hi, my name is Naomi. I am 21 years old and I love to read ghost stories especially Mr Midnight. I love spooky things like ghost but I do not wish to meet one, until one day, an unexpected man came and it changed my friend, Ruby’s and my life, FOREVER. It all started when I woke up one morning, “Hey! Want to hang out today? Let’s start working on our club, Daring Devils!” I called my friend, Ruby, over the phone. “Sure! I have no plans anyways…” Ruby answered. “Yay! Come over now!” I hung the phone and waited for Ruby to come. Moments later, “Ring… Ring…” The doorbell rang. I thought, ‘Yay it’s Ruby!’ When I opened the door, I saw Ruby and pulled her to my room. Then, I got super serious and asked her for cases to solve. “Nah, I have none, you?” Ruby said. I replied, “Actually, I do have one, but I think ghosts aren’t real…” “Wait, this case is about ghosts? Woo hoo! This just got a little more exciting!” Ruby exclaimed as she waited patiently for me to tell her the case. “Ok, so, before my grandfather died, he told me that I should expect a visit from a ghost.” I responded. “What, that’s not fun!” Ruby complained. I continued, “But that’s not all, after that, my grandfather told me that the ghost will come out from the shadows.” After hearing what I had said, Ruby’s face lit up and imitated a ghost, “WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO… So this is a mystery! Did your grandfather tell you when will the ghost appear?” “No…” I replied. “O…K… So we must predict when the ghost is coming…” Ruby said, trying to think when the ghost will come. I thought really hard that I thought my brain was going to explode and I suddenly said, “At night! Ghosts always appear at night!” “Ok, then, I’ll meet you at night, got to go, bye!” Ruby replied as she ran home. I sat patiently on my bed and waited for Ruby to come at night. I kept trying to sleep but thinking about the ghost kept me awake. “Ring… Ring…” the doorbell rang. I ran to the door, drag Ruby to my room and exclaimed, “Yay! This is going to be so fun!” Ruby answered, “Naomi, I’ll not get too excited if I were you…” “What, you scared of ghosts, I don’t even believe in them!” I responded. “Naomi! The ghost might be listening! Stop making fun!” Ruby warned me. “Whatever!” I blurted. Little did I know that the ghost was spying on us, listening to every word I said. “Let’s get started on the case!” I exclaimed as I turn on my computer and typed, ‘Ghosts that can perform spells.’ “Enter!” I said as I pressed enter. Once I pressed enter, lots of information from the internet popped up on the screen. I slowly browsed through each website. “Not this, not this and not this either! At this rate, we’ll never find out about that ghost” I whimpered, feeling hopeless. “Search, ‘Visit from a ghost who performs spells’.” Ruby replied immediately. I typed, ‘Visit from a ghost who performs spells.’ “Enter.” I uttered. Suddenly, there was only one website. I click on the website and it says: The Chancer * His real name is unknown. He is believed to be the ghost of a boy who never had a second chance. This ghosts helps humans in life. He gives chances to those who have a kind heart. If this ghosts visits you, you are lucky. But… if you do not have a kind heart, you will die! If you want to risk your life, then call him… Say, “Chance, chance, give me a chance. Everyone deserves a second chance.” If you did not call him but he came to you, means someone you knew had called him before… Beware of your surroundings, he will come out from the shadows. If you do not want him to come near you, say, “Chance, chance, I don’t need a chance. Everyone deserves a second chance, everyone but me, I’m done…” If you are expecting him to come, he will say, “Second chance, second chance, second, second, second chance… What would you like for your second chance? Tell me now, tell me now…” * (BOHH) “Gosh! Naomi, quick! Take a picture of it!” Ruby shook me. “Chill! ‘Kay, ‘kay!” I grumbled. I quickly took my phone and took a picture of it. “Anyways, what’s BOHH?” Ruby questioned me. “WHAT! You don’t know!? It means Blood On His Hands. He has taken a life. You should read Mr Midnight!” I responded. “So if you are not kind hearted and you called the ghost or if someone you know has called the ghost, you will die?” Ruby asked. “Yup!” I replied. “But I don’t need a second chance, do I?” I wondered. “I guess…” Ruby murmured. Unexpectedly, the lights suddenly off. “Second chance, second chance, second, second, second chance… What would you like for your second chance? Tell me now, tell me now…” said an unknown voice. “Who are you?” Ruby hollered. “I am The Chancer, would you like to have a second chance?” The voice said. “Uh… uh…” I stammered. I quickly turn on my phone and looked at the picture I took. I took a deep breath and said, “Chance, chance, I don’t need a chance. Everyone deserves a second chance, everyone but me, I’m done…” Once those words left my mouth, I heard a loud scream and the lights suddenly turned back on. “What just happened?” Ruby asked. “Am I dreaming? Pinch me, Naomi!” Ruby said. I pinched Ruby as hard as I could to get my revenge for her pinching me in the past. “Ouch! Stop!” Ruby screamed. “So, I’m not dreaming…” She said under her breath. Weeks past as I tried to forget the memories that haunt me. After a year, I called Ruby and asked, “Have you forgotten about The Chancer?” Ruby stammered, “I…I…I…I…” I asked impatiently, “So did you forget ‘bout it?” Ruby stammered again, “Ok, Naomi, I have to tell you this, don’t… freak… out, ‘kay?” “What is it?” I asked her curiously. “The Chancer… The Chancer has visited me…” Ruby answered me with a frightened look. “WHAT DID YOU SAID?!” I asked. “How many times must I repeat? The Chancer visited me!” Ruby shouted. “Oh! I understand everything now! If someone you know saw The Chancer, he will go to someone you know or someone you are really close with, or even you! I get it now!” I explained to Ruby. Then, I asked curiously, “But, what did you do when you saw The Chancer?” “Uh… Naomi, I forgotten what to say when The Chancer come, so I said I want a second chance!” Ruby replied me, feeling frightened. “What!” I hollered. “What is your second chance?” I asked. “My second chance is to be pretty!” Ruby answered, curling her hair and blushing at the same time. “But, you know that, err….” I said. “I know what?” Ruby asked. “You know that a second chance means, A SECOND LIFE, right?” I told her. “Oh no! I’m going to die? Please tell me I’m dreaming! Pinch me, please!” Ruby shouted. I pinched her cheek as hard as I could and she shouted. “Yup, definitely not dreaming!” Ruby said, as she touched her cheek. “HOW?!” Ruby shouted in horror. “Don’t ask me! Ask yourself!” I answered her with a furious look. “What am I supposed to do at this stage?” Ruby complained. “We’ll see… Let’s observe what will happen next…” I answered, feeling worried for Ruby. “We can have a sleepover at your house, YAY!” Ruby squealed. “Ugh…” I grumbled. “It’s midnight!” I said. “Be ready for what’s going to happen next!” I continued. Suddenly, Ruby was glowing. After a few moments later, she disappeared! Feeling afraid, I tried to sleep, but as expected, I could not. It was dawn and my eyes were still wide open. Unexpectedly, I heard someone screamed, “AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH” I shut my eyes and covered my ears. When I opened my eyes, I saw a very beautiful girl in front of me. “Get away from me!” I screamed. “Naomi, it’s me, Ruby!” she said. “Liar, then tell me something only Ruby and I know!” I screamed, feeling afraid. “There is someone called The Chancer and he came to visit me and you.” She continued. “Oh gosh, Ruby!” I hugged her and cried. “What happened to your face? You somehow became, prettier!” I asked curiously. “Oh… About that, err… The Chancer said it is only temporary. He said if I did not use this chance correctly, I will have consequences. But if I use it properly, I can keep it forever.” Ruby explained. “You sure? This doesn’t feel right.” I said, thinking about why The Chancer would let her keep it if she used it properly. “Stop talking nonsense… Do you always act like this?” Ruby talked with a little bit of sassiness. “We need to change your name to something prettier…” I suggested. “I agree. I kind of want to be named Naomi…” Ruby said. “Let me think of a prettier name than mine. Hmmm… How about Alexi?” I suggested. “That is so nice! Ok…” Ruby Alexi replied. The next day, I went to school with Ruby Alexi. When we entered, many people were staring at Alexi with their mouths wide open, even the prettiest girl in our school, Cindy. “Hey girl, what’s your name?” Cindy asked with A LOT of sassiness. “Ru… Alexi” Alexi said. “Why you hanging around with this nerd… What was her name again? Oh yes, Naomi.” Cindy said, pointing at me. “You are the real nerd! Stop being so mean you ugly girl and don’t act like you are so pretty, because you are NOT!” Alexi screamed at the top of her lungs. “OMG… I can’t believe such a pretty girl like you to be so mean,” Cindy flipped her hair and sashayed away. After Cindy left, a lot of guys started crowding around Alexi, asking her stuff like, “Are you single?” and “Want to hang out with me?” When Alexi saw them, she started flipping and curling her hair. “Psst… Remember to use your second chance properly. Stop flipping and curling your hair and get away from this crowd,” I reminded her. “Oh sorry people, I got to go… See you guys later!” Alexi told them and sashayed away. “Ugh…” I whispered under my breath. Many days past and Alexi acts the same every day. Until one day, something odd happened to her. She stopped doing the stuff she normally do. When we walked back home together from school, I asked her, “What happened to you?” “Something is about to happen… Something bad! I know it… The Chancer is going to remove my chance! Am I going to DIE?!” She answered, feeling afraid. “No you are not! Can you stay over at my house for today? I need to observe you…” I asked her. “Ok…” She immediately agreed and plastered a fake smile across her face. We reached my house and we waited until it was night time. “What now?” Alexi asked. “We’ll see,” I replied, staring at her. “This is getting awkward… I’m going back,” Alexi said, walking away from me. When she was walking, she suddenly fainted and disappeared, AGAIN! “Ugh… Not again!” I complained. This time, I thought she was dead as she did not appear for the past few weeks and her parents said she did not return. One night, when I was about to turn off the light, the light off itself. When I was about to scream, someone covered my mouth and I immediately fainted. When I woke up, I was tied up. I took a closer look at where I was and noticed it was a cemetery. “Mmmm!” I tried to scream but my mouth was taped. Suddenly, The Chancer appeared. “I mean no harm… I just have to warn you something,” he said. “Ruby… She… Is dead!” He continued. “It’s Alexi!” I reminded him. “You can’t call her Alexi!” he warned me. “Why?” I asked. “Just don’t.” he replied. “But why is she dead?” I asked. “I tried to warn her about something but The Devi got her!” He explained. “Who is The Devi?” I asked curiously. “She is my sister, or should I say, she was my sister. She has changed. She used to be a kind girl but now, I’m not really sure what has happened to her.” He said, staring at a grave. “Her grave, is at this cemetery. It is over there,” he said, pointing at the grave he was staring at previously. I looked closer at the name at it said, “RIP DEV ‘LOVE FOR ALL, HATRED FOR NONE’ MAY GOD BLESS MY FAMILY” “Oh, so that’s her grave. But, why would she kill Ruby? I mean what did Ruby did? And, how do you know Ruby is dead?” I asked curiously. “You will know soon… I must get going!” The Chancer disappeared after saying that. When he left, I started feeling dizzy and lied on the floor. Moments past and I woke up after dreaming of Ruby. I immediately went to my computer, went to the internet and typed, ‘The Devi’. When I press enter, there was lots of websites popped up. I clicked on the first website and it says: The Devi * Her real name is Dev. She is believed to be the ghost of a girl who was murdered. Some say she was murdered because of her doing something ridiculous. The story goes, when she was born, she was ugly. When she grew up, she realised that other girls were prettier than her. So she went to this ghost and asked the ghost to make her prettier, but unfortunately, the ghost killed her. The Devi kills people who asked The Chancer to be pretty for their second chance. Some survived her as The Devi thinks that they are not very pretty. If you survived her, you will be unlucky for the rest of your life! But if you are lucky enough, you will be lucky for the rest of your life. Beware of what you asked from The Chancer! If The Devi wants to meet you, you will glow and suddenly disappear. If you disappear once, you will definitely survive from her. If you disappear twice, it depends if The Devi wants you dead or alive. If you disappear thrice, you will definitely die from her! * (BOHH) The Chancer, click here “Oh no… So did Ruby died or what?!” I asked myself confusedly. I took out my phone and took a picture of it. Suddenly, I heard the same voice, “AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!” ‘Ruby! Are you there?” I asked. Ruby appeared again. I saw a lot of blood and scars on her body. “Oh my… What happened to you?” I asked her. “Hel… Hel… Help… Me… I-I-I a… am…” After saying that, Ruby fainted. After a few days, Ruby finally woke up. “What… What happened?” she asked curiously. “You disappeared as The Devi caught you.” I explained. “Who is The Devi? I only remember there was this extremely pretty girl talking to me.” Ruby asked, scratching her head. “What did she said to you?!” I asked her, waiting for her answer. “I only remember part of what she said. She said, ‘You will disappear again and it’s up to me to decide whether you should live or die… Hmm… I guess you can…’ Then I forgot what she said.” Ruby said, trying to remember what The Devi had said. “She would either said die or live.” I told Ruby. “How would you know?” Ruby asked. I took out my phone and showed her the picture about The Devi I took before Ruby appeared. Ruby read and screamed, “AAAAAAAHH! Oh no! She said I will disappear again, means I will definitely die!” “We might not know if the internet is true…” I said. “Yeah, you are right,” Ruby said. “I guess we have to wait until I disappear again…” Ruby continued. “No… I have a plan, but I’m not sure if it would work. But we might now know unless we give it a try!” I said. “So, what’s the plan?” Ruby asked. “Ok, we have to make Dev come out.” I said. “Err…” Ruby said, feeling confused. “We have to say something to piss her off.” I explained. “Like?” Ruby asked. “Just try to think… Let’s do it now.” I answered. “Hey Dev! Are you really that ugly? If you are, come out!” I shouted. “Err… Oh yeah, come on out unless you are afraid!’ Ruby shouted. Suddenly, Ruby was glowing. I hold her hand and we disappeared together. “Where are we?” I moaned. “Oh no! Naomi! Hel…” I heard Ruby said. I looked around and realised that I was in a cemetery, AGAIN! “Ruby?” I hollered. I looked around and spotted Ruby lying at a grave that said, “RIP DEV ‘LOVE FOR ALL, HATRED FOR NONE’ MAY GOD BLESS MY FAMILY” “Uh oh…” I whispered. I ran towards her and carried her up. Suddenly, The Devi appeared. “Wow, you guys are the first who dares to say cruel things to me, other than my brother and… and… wow!” she said. “Err…” Ruby and I said, feeling confused. “I saw that you, Naomi, searched about me on the website. You did not believed the internet and that is very smart of you… It is all a lie. Let me tell you my real story. So my real name is Dev. I was murdered by The Chancer, my brother, also known as Chace. He murdered me because I had something he did not have, popularity. The story goes, when I was born, I was extremely beautiful. A lot of boys always hang out with me but he was not popular. Chace was extremely jealous of me, so he killed me one day.” “Then…” I gasped. “Chace is evil! Oh my!” I screamed. Immediately, Chace appeared and slid Dev’s throat with his knife. “You betrayed me! You evil little creature, you will never get a second chance to live your popular life!” Chace screamed. “Look what we have here… Two girls. Well, Ruby, you want to be pretty right? Then you shall die too!” Chace continued, taking a sword about to kill Ruby. “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!” I screamed. I shut my eyes, thinking of how helpless I am right now. “Don’t you worry and thank you for being so kind to me…” I heard someone whispered to me. I slowly opened my eyes and saw Dev jumping in front of Ruby and defend her from the sword. A lot of things happened in a blink of an eye. Dev was sliced into half, Ruby fainted and Chace screamed, “DEV!” Chace ran towards Dev and sob. “I’m so sorry.” He said to Dev. “Oh no! Dev is dead!” I screamed and ran towards Chace and Dev. “Why did you kill her!? You are crazy!” I screamed at Chace. “I’m sorry.” He said with tears dripping off his face. “Since young, I have this illness. I will turn into someone crazy when I am jealous. But now, when I’m a ghost, I will turn into someone crazy when I give someone a second chance to be prettier.” He explained. “Then just remove the chance you gave Ruby!” I suggested. “Oh yeah! You are right!” he said with his eyes lit up, twinkling with delight. “Second chance, come to me, come to me and you shall die.” He said. After saying that, Ruby was glowing and her face turned to her own face. “Yes! It worked! Ruby, you are back!” I screamed. I took a look at Dev and she was also back to her normal self. Dev cried and thanked me then face Chace and apologise, “I’m sorry, I did not know…” “It’s alright!” Chase said. After that, life was back to normal and now, everyone is wondering where Alexi went, even Cindy. Before I sleep, Dev and Chase would always come and visit me and you will never guess what happens when they visit me…

Although James did not believe in ghosts, it was hard to dismiss the appearance and Disappearance of the girl in a white chiffon dress.

As my brother lay helplessly on his deathbed, I would only recall the memories of him talking about the tree of death. His last words were ‘beware of the undergrowth’.

Days and weeks passed since the tragic accident until I had enough of keeping the secret all to myself. From that point onward I knew both my life and Ella’s life would change…

It all started in the morning when I was deciding on which book from the series ‘GHOST OF MURDER’ I should read again. Then before I could tell what I was doing, I was moving automatically towards the telephone. Unknowingly, I started dialling the numbers 07345967781, it then came to my head that I was dialling the phone number of my friend Ella. Within seconds, the phone was received and that was when I started blabbering about the new club we started, called Devils Dare. Just like I expected she agreed enthusiastically.

Soon after Ella came, fully packed with all the necessities for the club. “Ugh…” I complained it was so annoying when Ella does not understand what I wanted to say. Then I started ambling towards her and started to mumble under my breathe” GHOSTS”! Then out of the blue “AAAAHHHHhhh”! screamed Ella in her usual high-pitched voice. Grabbing her by the wrist we fledged to my room.

There, Ella started complaining about how her wrist is broken and that its paining horribly. “What a cry-baby she is”. I said under my breathe ignoring and trying focus on what I called her here for. Ella stop, I did not mean to scare you. And do you remember my brother…. “Yeah of course I do”. Ella said in a very intense voice. Well before he died, he told me about a tree near Midview meadow was the tree of death. “WOW!!!!” whispered Ella.

Within a blink of an eye I saw Ella opening her laptop and was typing (exceptionally fast) about deaths occurring near the tree. My face then drained out of colour. I felt dumbfounded that I did not think of that earlier. We then only found one website which had the title DEATH…. the ghost of eternal darkness. It then occurred once we started reading the second paragraph, that each time someone dies at that very spot, they have a leaf fall on them and that is when they will evaporate into thin air.

Stunned by the news, we were really wanting to see if it was true. However, just before my very eyes Ella was being taken away from me by the shadows. Suddenly RING…. RING! OH! PHEW, I was dreaming.”. At one point, I had thought that all this a real dream until I realised that it was true, Ella had been taken! Running around in my room just like a headless-chicken I was really frightened until it came to me that my brothers last words were ‘beware of the undergrowth’.

It came to my mind that the undergrowth are the ghosts guarding the tree from the kind and letting the leaves on the ones who have a cold heart. Hurrying up to the tree I went to the very spot where the very people named on the website died. However, I never realised there was a test to pass. Although there was just one question (and that to the question being quite easy I quickly answered it).

As I slowly walked, there was a loud thud, which had made the ground make a little sound of pain. Running towards the core of the loud sound, I found Ella tied up with a misty rope. Fear took over me and without thinking, I noticed that I was at the exact spot where the ghost called death killed its victims. Hoping a leaf would not fall on me, I closed my eyes and wished. Though I unfortunately failed and I evaporated into thin air…

Within seconds I understood Deaths intelligence of luring me to be one of the victims. Abruptly, I found myself floating, I was a ghost!

“OH please, ghosts aren’t real and are never going to be”. James stammered. Who would believe in that. Though little did he know that he would be seeing the exact person at that exact place. Alas, the day arrived he then went with all his bravery to the Midview meadow and to his astonishment saw the last victim of the ghost Death. The next day back at school he started telling everyone about the disappearance and appearances of a ghost he had read, and he saw about. Though no one would ever believe him…

Title: The Stalker “Ring…” the bell rang. “Class dismissed!” Mrs. Ng said. “Amelia! Amelia! Wait for me, let’s walk home together.” Ari shouted. Amelia agreed and they walked home together. On their way home, “Creak…” Amelia turned behind and saw nothing but heard the wind blowing in the air. “BOOM!” When they heard the loud noise, they shouted and ran as fast as their legs could carry them. When they thought they were safe, Amelia stopped running and said, “What a relief! I could hear the loud boom just right beside my ears!” Ari panted and said, “Let’s just walk home and forget that just happened.” Amelia agreed and they continued walking home. Just when they were about to reach home, there was an unknown voice that whispered into Ari and Amelia’s ears. The voice said, “I’ll set you free when I get what I want.” Amelia shouted, “Reveal yourself!” So, the stalker revealed himself. He had spiky hair, tattoo all over his body, long claws as finger nails, a weird smile on his face and a scar on his eye. “My name is Klaus!” “Oh My Gosh!” Ari said it shockingly. Feeling afraid, Amelia whispered to Ari, “Let’s run away!” Ari nodded his head and they ran away. Before they could even move, Klaus use a metal pole and knocked them down. Klaus brought them to an abandoned house, tied their hands with ropes and taped their mouth with duct tape. When Amelia woke up, she mumbled, “Mmmm…. Mmmmm!” When Ari heard Amelia mumbling, she woke up. When Klaus saw Amelia and Ari woke up, he said, “Finally, you’re both awake. I’ve been waiting for an hour!” When he saw both of them were trying to talk, he removed the duct tape on their mouth. “Hey! What do you want?” Amelia shouted. Klaus said, “Money, obviously. Everyone wants money!” “Fine! Take it, release us and go!” Ari said. Klaus asked, “You sure?” “Yeah!” Ari replied. When Klaus was about to take the money, a siren sounded. Klaus shouted, “You called the police?” Amelia giggled and said, “Yeah, I called the police!” After hearing what Amelia had said, Klaus ran as fast as a cheetah. Ari asked Amelia, “Did you really called the police?” Amelia laughed and replied, “No, silly! That was my alarm! I am prepared for anything… Come on, let’s walk home!” s the saying goes, ‘Once bitten, twice shy’, Amelia taught Ari to be prepared for anything.

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78 Halloween Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best halloween topic ideas & essay examples, 📌 simple & easy halloween essay titles, 🥇 good research topics about halloween, ❓ halloween research questions.

  • “Halloween” (1978): A Film Analysis Since the plot of the movies of the killer genre revolves around the murderer, it is only fair that the way his presence and actions are depicted is what makes the story horrifying.
  • The Global Festival of Halloween or Hallow Eve The festival’s roots came from the traditions of religious attention to the edge between the world of the living and the dead.
  • Halloween: Ancient Religious Roots and Traditions Preview: After conducting in-depth research, in the next few minutes, I will inform you about the history of Halloween, how the modern trick-or-treat tradition came to be, and the practice of wearing costumes.
  • Halloween Celebration in the United States During the event, I learnt a number of factors that were very practical in increasing the level of pleasure and joy that one can derive from the festival.
  • Halloween and Dia de Los Muertos Celebrations Halloween was celebrated by the Celtic inhabitants to mark the beginning of the New Year celebrations. The Druids were the priests, and the educated class of the Celtic group.
  • Why Halloween Celebration Is Bad It signifies the time when the wall between the world of the dead or supernatural and the living was broken down.
  • Comparing and Contrasting: Halloween to Day of the Dead
  • Americans Should Abolish Halloween as a Traditional Holiday
  • Comparison Between Halloween and Easter
  • Is Your Kid’s Halloween Costume Safe?
  • Role of Religion in Contributing to the Development of Halloween
  • Why Catholics Should Not Celebrate Halloween
  • Celebrating Halloween and Being an Exemplary Believer as a Paradox
  • Comparing and Contrasting Between Prom Night and Halloween Night
  • Discrimination Issues Appearing During Halloween
  • Halloween History and Traditions: Old and New
  • Racist and Culturally Oppressive Customs During Halloween in the United States
  • The Reasons Why Halloween Is the Best Celebration of the Year
  • The History and Origins of Halloween
  • Halloween: The Gate Between the Living and the Spirit World Opens
  • Role of the Conquest of the Roman Empire on the Celtic Territory
  • The History and the Negative Effects of Halloween
  • The Origin and Development of the Halloween Tradition
  • The Past and Present of Halloween
  • The Symbolism and Traditions in Halloween
  • Why Keeping Halloween Traditions Is Important
  • The Issue of Gender Roles During Halloween
  • Finding the Definition of Halloween in Different Works of Literature
  • Halloween and Day of the Dead: The Unique Difference
  • The Dark History Behind Halloween
  • The Role of the Media in Popularizing Halloween
  • The Difference Between Samhain and Halloween
  • The Effect of Media on the Popularization of Halloween
  • How Has the Halloween Celebration Evolved?
  • The Myths Behind the Origins of Halloween
  • The Development of the Halloween Festival From the 8th Century
  • The Evolution of Halloween Into a Day of Activities
  • Traditional Festive Gatherings That Define Halloween
  • How People in the UK and France Celebrated Halloween in the 18th Century
  • Connection Between the Worlds of the Living and the Dead and Halloween
  • The Role of Celtic Priests in Furthering the Halloween Festival
  • The Customs of Different European Ethnic Groups Concerning Halloween
  • The Impact of Coronavirus on Halloween Celebrations in the United States
  • The Typical Annual Autumn Festivities Related to Halloween
  • The Role of Immigration in Furthering Halloween
  • Overview of the “Trick-Or-Treat” Tradition of Halloween
  • What Are the Changing Halloween Costume Trends?
  • Should Americans Abolish Halloween as a Traditional Holiday?
  • What Are the Most Popular Halloween Movies?
  • What Is the History of Halloween?
  • Do Stores Have Sales Before Halloween?
  • What Is the Scariest Outdoor Decoration for Halloween?
  • What Are the Most Popular Halloween Sweets?
  • How Is Halloween Traditionally Celebrated?
  • What Are the Similarities and Differences Between Halloween and the Day of the Dead?
  • Is Dracula a Popular Halloween Icon?
  • What Is the Most Popular Halloween Symbol?
  • What Is Better to Use on Halloween, a Mask or Makeup?
  • Do You Celebrate Halloween With the Whole Family?
  • Why Is Halloween Celebrated in October?
  • Should Catholics Participate in Halloween?
  • Are Gothic Buildings Associated With Halloween?
  • Why Do Children Love Halloween?
  • What Are the Myths and Legends About Halloween?
  • How to Create a Budget Costume for Halloween?
  • What Are the Most Questionable Celebrity Halloween Costumes of All Time?
  • Why Are Pumpkins Popular on Halloween?
  • Are There Racist and Culturally Repressive Halloween Customs in the United States?
  • Are Sexy Halloween Costumes Appropriate?
  • What Are the Best Pet Costumes for Halloween?
  • The Halloween Effect and Japanese Stock Prices: Myth or Anomaly?
  • What Are the Negative Effects of Halloween?
  • What Do Halloween Colors Symbolize?
  • What Skills Are Used When Carving Halloween Pumpkins?
  • What Are Some Halloween Games for Kids?
  • What Does Halloween Teach Children?
  • Social Media Marketing Topics
  • Contemporary Art Questions
  • Culture Topics
  • Witchcraft Research Ideas
  • Fear Questions
  • Dracula Ideas
  • Entertainment Ideas
  • Dress Code Ideas
  • Chicago (A-D)
  • Chicago (N-B)

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Writing Beginner

How to Write a Hook (40 Good Examples)

As a professional blogger who has crafted hundreds of hooks for stories, articles, blog posts, and more, I understand the power of a good hook.

Here is quick summary of how to write a hook:

Write a hook by capturing attention with a direct, concise statement or question. Use emotional triggers, strong imagery, or surprising facts to engage readers immediately and keep them intrigued. A story or snippet of dialogue are also good hooks.

In this guide, I’ll share everything I know about writing compelling hooks, from definitions to types, tips, and 40 good examples.

What Is a Hook?

A woman writes near cliff in bedroom, monster lurks in corner -- How to Write a Hook

Table of Contents

A hook is essentially the opening sentence or paragraph of your content.

Its job is to grab the reader’s attention so compellingly that they are drawn into reading more.

Think of it as the bait on a fishing line or the flashy headline on a magazine cover.

For instance, starting a blog post with “Last year, I doubled my income using this simple trick…” instantly piques interest because it promises an intriguing story and valuable information.

Types of Hooks

There are five major types of hooks:

  • Question hooks
  • Anecdotal hooks
  • Statistic hooks
  • Quotation hooks
  • Statement hooks

Question Hooks

Questions provoke thought and beckon readers to find answers. “Have you ever wondered what makes people truly happy?” This type of hook engages readers by directly involving them in the narrative.

Anecdotal Hooks

Sharing a short, personal story can connect emotionally with readers. “When I first started blogging, I made every mistake in the book – here’s what I learned…” This approach makes the hook relatable and builds a personal connection.

Statistic Hooks

Starting with a surprising statistic can shock or intrigue readers. “Did you know that 90% of startups fail within the first year?” Such hooks build credibility and set the stage for a discussion based on factual evidence.

Quotation Hooks

A well-chosen quote can lend authority or set the mood. “‘The only way to do great work is to love what you do’ – Steve Jobs. This has been my guiding principle in over a decade of writing.”

Statement Hooks

Bold statements can spark curiosity and debate. “Most people are wrong about how to become a millionaire.” This type of hook challenges common beliefs and encourages readers to engage further.

11 Tips to Write a Hook

Writing a hook that captures attention and drives readers to continue is an art form.

Here’s how you can master it:

1) Know Your Audience

The effectiveness of your hook entirely depends on its ability to resonate with your audience.

Consider their demographics, interests, and challenges. For example, a hook for a teenage fashion magazine will differ vastly from one aimed at retirees interested in financial planning.

Understanding your audience’s expectations and crafting your hook accordingly can dramatically increase engagement.

2) Be Direct and Concise

A straightforward and concise hook is much more likely to catch attention than a rambling opener.

Keep it short and impactful.

Instead of saying, “In this article, I will discuss several ways that can possibly help you improve your productivity,” cut to the chase with, “Boost your productivity with these five unmissable tips!”

3) Evoke Emotions

Hooks that tap into emotions can compel readers to engage deeply with your content.

Whether it’s excitement, anger, sadness, or joy, emotional hooks create a psychological connection.

“I never thought a simple decision could bring me to tears every time I remembered it.” This kind of hook can make the reader eager to find out more about your personal story or the insight you offer.

4) Use Strong Imagery

Visual hooks can transport readers to a different place or situation, making your opening memorable.

“Imagine a world where every morning, you wake up to the sound of waves gently crashing against the shore.”

This not only sets a scene but also engages the senses, making your content more appealing.

5) Offer a Solution or Promise

People often read content looking for solutions.

A hook that promises a payoff can be highly effective. “Eliminate back pain forever with this one simple exercise!” promises a significant benefit, making it more likely that the reader will stick around to learn more.

6) Create a Sense of Urgency

Hooks that convey urgency push readers to act immediately, whether it’s reading a post or buying a product.

“Don’t miss out! Learn the secrets to instant stress relief available only for today.”

Such hooks make the content feel essential and time-sensitive.

7) Experiment with Different Hook Types

Each piece of writing is unique, and different hooks work for different types of content.

Don’t be afraid to experiment with various styles to find what best suits your piece.

A humorous anecdote might work better in some cases, while a shocking statistic might be more effective in others.

What Makes a Powerful Hook?

A powerful hook grabs attention, resonates emotionally, or intellectually stimulates the reader.

It’s precise, unexpected, and seamlessly transitions into the rest of your content. A good hook not only intrigues but also promises something that the rest of the text delivers.

Key Characteristics of a Powerful Hook:

  • Precision: A strong hook is clear and focused. It directly addresses something that is crucial to the reader, making it impossible for them to pass by without wanting to dive deeper.
  • Surprise: Incorporating an element of surprise in your hook can jolt the reader into paying attention. Whether it’s a startling statistic, an unusual fact, or an unexpected twist in phrasing, surprise makes your content stand out.
  • Seamless Transition: The best hooks are those that naturally lead the reader into the body of the text. They serve as a smooth segue that enhances the reader’s curiosity about what follows.

To create such effective hooks, consider tips:

  • Start with a conflict: Introduce a problem or conflict right away to create immediate tension and intrigue. This could be as simple as posing a dilemma or as complex as starting in the middle of an action sequence.
  • Invoke the senses: Use vivid language to tap into the reader’s sensory experiences. Describing a sound, a smell, or a tactile sensation can vividly pull readers into the scene.
  • Challenge common beliefs: Present a statement that contradicts common knowledge or popular opinion. This not only piques interest but also prompts readers to reconsider their assumptions.
  • Use dialogue: Opening with a snippet of dialogue can be an effective way to drop readers directly into the scene, providing immediate context and character insights.
  • Include a compelling character insight: Introduce a character in a way that showcases a unique trait or dilemma. This can make the reader immediately care about what happens to the character.

Hook Examples (for Different Types of Writing)

Here are some good hook examples.

Story Hooks

“Under the light of a blood-red moon, she vowed to uncover the truth, even if it led her into the heart of darkness itself.” This hook sets the stage for a thrilling mystery or adventure story.

“As the clock struck midnight, the statues in the garden whispered secrets of the old mansion’s past.” This hook immerses readers in a mysterious, possibly supernatural storyline.

“He woke up to find the city deserted, the silence an ominous prelude to the chaos that was about to unfold.” This opening sets a dramatic and suspenseful tone for a post-apocalyptic tale.

Article/Essay Hooks

“Scientists have discovered a revolutionary technology that could end global warming within the next decade.” This hook promises new, potentially world-changing information, drawing readers into the article.

“Recent studies show that the lifespan of the average person could increase by 20 years due to new genetic editing techniques.” This hook introduces groundbreaking scientific advancements, capturing the reader’s curiosity.

“A hidden environmental disaster bigger than the BP oil spill is silently unfolding in the Pacific.” This hook alerts readers to an urgent issue, leveraging the shock factor to engage them.

Blog Post Hooks

“I tried living without plastic for a month, and it changed my life. Here’s how you can do it too.” This hook combines personal experience with a guide, making it perfect for a lifestyle or environmental blog.

“Five years ago, I said goodbye to my 9-5 job; here’s why I’ll never go back.” This hook offers a personal testimony that resonates with many aspiring to escape the traditional workforce.

“How I traveled the world with just $100 in my pocket — the ultimate guide to budget backpacking.” This hook provides a tempting offer of adventure on a shoestring budget, ideal for travel enthusiasts.

Social Media Hooks

“This simple trick can save you hours on your daily chores. Click to see how!” This kind of hook works well on social media where users are looking for quick, practical advice.

“Double your workout results with this one little-known technique — tap to learn more!” This approach appeals to fitness enthusiasts eager for more efficient training methods.

“Are you making these five common makeup mistakes? Watch to find out and fix your routine today!” This hook uses curiosity and the promise of improvement to draw in viewers interested in beauty tips.

Marketing Copy Hooks

“Last chance to grab your dream vacation at half the price!” This hook uses urgency and the appeal of savings to encourage quick decisions and actions.

“Unlock the secrets to younger-looking skin with our new serum — first 50 customers get a 40% discount!” This hook combines the allure of exclusivity with a significant discount.

“This gadget cuts your energy bills in half—find out how and save big this season!” This hook promises financial savings and practical benefits, which are key selling points in marketing copy.

Speaking of story hooks, here is a good video about how to write them:

Final Thoughts: How to Write a Hook

Now, go write some hooks that no one can resist.

This guide should equip you with everything you need to start crafting hooks that not only catch attention but also transform casual browsers into engaged readers. Happy writing!

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Essays on Halloween

Spooky season is the best season, and you can use your Halloween essay as an opportunity to delve deeper into the origins and traditions of this boo-tiful holiday. Halloween also referred to as All Hallows' Eve, is a holiday that originated in Ireland, where it was called Samhain. Some Halloween essays concentrate primarily on the Celtic origins of this holiday, while other essays on Halloween explore modern-day practices and traditions. Halloween is celebrated annually on October 31. It was believed that on this day evil spirits roamed free, so people were putting on costumes to trick the spirits into leaving people alone. Nowadays Halloween is celebrated by dressing up in costumes, trick-or-treating, carving jack-o-lanterns, and eating candy. Use Halloween essay samples below to gather more information about Halloween for your essays. We compiled only the best essay samples for you to check out!

Harry Potter: A Story of Marginalization and Hope Because of their universality and magic, the Harry Potter series and stories are exceptional. It revolves around an outcast young boy. Harry Potter is a young kid. Outcasts have been viewed as a relegated and undesirably typecast community throughout history. The story depicts...

Cosplay is seen differently by many people; for others, it is a way of life, and for others, it is a sport. If you have engaged in cosplay or not, it has become common in today's culture. Labor and a significant amount of time are expended in creating these costumes...

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In a small remote town in Chicago Illinois There is an old legend that has been passed from one technology to another. The story is narrated to kids by their parents at night time to scare them during Halloween so that they do not wander far away from their homes. The Actual...

Related topic to Halloween

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Halloween - Essay Examples And Topic Ideas For Free

Halloween, celebrated on October 31st, has ancient roots tied to the Celtic festival of Samhain, but has evolved over centuries into a holiday synonymous with costumes, trick-or-treating, and a celebration of the spooky and macabre. Essays could delve into the history of Halloween, exploring its pagan origins, its Christianization as All Hallows’ Eve, and its cultural evolution in modern times. They might also discuss the commercialization of Halloween, and how it reflects broader societal fascinations with horror, death, and the supernatural. Discussions could extend to the variations in Halloween celebrations around the world, and how the holiday serves as a lens through which to explore societal norms, fears, and the human fascination with the unknown. We have collected a large number of free essay examples about Halloween you can find at Papersowl. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

Informative Speech Outline Halloween

Introduction Halloween is a magical time that allows you to become a whole new person for a night, but this holiday hasn't always been what we know it to be today... so how did children begin running around yelling, "Trick or Treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat" and expecting candy in return? This is something we all do as kids and don't really question, because I mean free candy. Halloween is my favorite holiday, not only […]

What’s Better Halloween or Christmas

The most wonderful thing about people is that we have different cultures, beliefs, and lifestyles in different countries around the world. That is the reason holidays exist; as marks in history to be remembered. Holidays are essential and fun because they allow people to take breaks from busy, mundane day-to-day life duties, spend time with family or friends, or just to celebrate culture and life. Some of the most common and widely-known holidays are Halloween and Christmas. One celebrates spooky […]

Review of the Day of the Dead

Day of the dead is a Mexican holiday celebrated through out Mexico in particular cantral and south regions. Day of the dead is celebrated October 31 - November 2. This ritual dates back 3,000 years ago and is still evolving. The Aztec created this Mexican holiday even tho you might think day of the dead and Halloween are related they have many different feats. In order to celebrate, the families make altars and place ofrendas (offerings) of food such as […]

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John Carpenter’s Halloween

John Carpenter's Halloween is an iconic film that perpetually changed the horror genre. Halloween modernized slasher films and brought it to mainstream media; its release in 1978 caused a cult following, and filmmakers instantly took notice. Even before Halloween, "horror cinema prospered and developed its unique forms of expressions in many film industries around the globe, [but] it is in the United States and in the American film industry that horror, for as long as film has existed, has been […]

Halloween Writing

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The Day of the Dead in Mexico

Imagine having a brightly colored ( Especially marigold) altar called an Ofrenda, with pictures of your departed loved ones and a hat, article of clothing or a loved shawl that dead relative loved. And at the exact same time, it also may have food and drinks you are offering them. Once you are finished with this tradition they go to the graveyard and light candles by their graves. After that, you replace the flowers on their graves with new flowers […]

Origins of Halloween

Abstract I'm conducting research on the origins of Halloween. I chose this subject because I have always loved Halloween and it has a very interesting history. I plan to research the history and different meanings of Halloween throughout time. I will be looking at how Halloween got its start, how it has changed over the years, and how it got to where it is today. I will also be looking into how the idea of jack o lanterns and the […]

About Halloween in the World

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Modern Samhain Celebrations

Halloween began as Samhain, a Celtic festival that took place at the end of summer when the veil between the spirit world and the living earth was said to grow thin. In order to drive off trespassing specters, the Celtic people would dress up in frightening costumes and party the night away. With time, Christianity's rapid spread through Europe leads to pagan marginalization. All Saint's Day was enforced in place of Samhain in hopes that as the Celtic people were […]

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The report entails a review of Mickey's Halloween party event that I attended recently. This was the first time that I attended this special event. It was interesting that one could enter the parks even some hours before the beginning of the event, which was a good option for those who wanted to avoid traffic. The sole intent of attending this party was to take pictures with my favorite characters: Mickey and Minnie. At exactly 3 p.m., my friend Jack […]

Halloween and Carving Pumpkins

Halloween is one of the scariest days of the year. To some people, Halloween is all about carving pumpkins and cute costumes. Halloween is my favorite holiday because of the scary decorations, fearful haunted houses, and the delicious candies. One major part of Halloween is the scary decorations. Many people put black and brown coffins in their yards, implying they are holding dead bodies. People also put clown masks on and use pictures of them because they are known to […]

Halloween Series: Michael Myers

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Halloween Horror Nights

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Date :Monday, October 31, 2022
Significance :First day of Allhallowtide
Observed by :Western Christians and many non-Christians around the world
Also called :Hallowe'en; All Hallowe'en; All Hallows' Eve; All Saints' Eve

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Best Topics for Halloween Essay with How-To Guide

good hook for halloween essay

Halloween is a fantastic time to explore spooky, creative ideas through writing. Whether you’re crafting an eerie story, analyzing the history of Halloween, or diving into the psychology behind fear, the possibilities are endless. In this guide, our essay writing service will walk you through some of the best essay topics for Halloween and show you exactly how to get started.

What Is a Halloween Essay

A Halloween essay is just like any other school assignment—only with a spooky spin. Around October, teachers might assign these essays to get students thinking creatively while practicing their writing. Topics can range from crafting a ghost story to exploring the origins of Halloween, like how the holiday traces back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, where people believed spirits returned to Earth.

So why would your teacher ask you to write one? It’s a fun way to keep things seasonal while meeting academic goals. You could dive into why people carve pumpkins (a tradition from Irish folklore about "Stingy Jack") or research how Halloween became the massive candy-buying event it is today. Through these assignments, you’ll practice organizing your ideas, researching history or culture, and even exploring psychological themes like fear or superstition—all while tapping into the festive spirit.

Does the deadline for your Halloween essay creep from around the corner?

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List of Halloween Essay Ideas to Consider

Starting with all these steps might feel overwhelming at first. To help you get going, our custom dissertation writing service has put together some topic ideas. Browse through these topic suggestions and find one that excites you. 

Spooky Topics for a Short Essay About Halloween

  • How did the tradition of ghost stories become central to Halloween?
  • What are the creepiest urban legends associated with Halloween?
  • How did Halloween become linked with the supernatural and the occult?
  • What are the origins of the most terrifying Halloween costumes?
  • How have horror movie tropes influenced Halloween party themes?
  • What are the scariest Halloween pranks ever played?
  • How do Halloween haunted houses create effective scares?
  • What eerie historical events have contributed to modern Halloween fears?
  • How do Halloween decorations evoke fear and add to the spooky atmosphere?
  • What is the history behind the most unsettling Halloween symbols?

Best 5 Paragraph Essay About Halloween Ideas

  • How did costumes evolve from the 19th century?
  • What is the history behind modern trick-or-treating?
  • How has Halloween shaped popular media?
  • What are unique halloween traditions around the world?
  • Why do we seek out scary stories on halloween?
  • What do classic halloween symbols represent?
  • Why are haunted attractions so engaging?
  • What's the origin of Jack-O'-Lanterns and their significance?
  • How does Halloween influence contemporary fashion?
  • What makes Halloween exciting for different generations?

Awesome Topics for an Essay About Halloween Festival

  • How did ancient customs shape the modern halloween festival?
  • What are the most unusual halloween festival traditions around the world?
  • How do urban vs. rural halloween festivals differ in their celebrations?
  • How have costume trends at halloween festivals changed in the past 50 years?
  • What historical events have influenced the evolution of the Halloween festival?
  • How do local businesses benefit from Halloween festival tourism?
  • What are the most creative community-driven halloween festival activities?
  • How have halloween festival foods evolved from traditional to contemporary?
  • In what ways does the Halloween festival reflect current social and cultural trends?
  • What are innovative solutions to reduce the environmental impact of Halloween festivals?

Creepy Ideas for Essay on Halloween Parties

  • How did the concept of haunted houses become a staple at halloween parties?
  • What psychological techniques do hosts use to scare guests at halloween parties?
  • How do classic horror movie scenes influence the design of halloween party games?
  • What are the most disturbing trends in halloween party decorations over the past decade?
  • What are some true stories of unexpected scares that happened at halloween parties?
  • How are urban legends like Bloody Mary or the Ouija board incorporated into halloween party activities?
  • How do Halloween party playlists enhance the creepy atmosphere through sound effects?
  • How do costumes reflecting societal fears, like zombies or clowns, impact the mood at halloween parties?
  • What are some unique and unsettling food presentations at high-end halloween parties?
  • How have modern tech innovations, such as virtual reality or special effects, been used to create frightening experiences at halloween parties?

Scary Halloween History Essay Ideas

  • How did the ancient Celtic Samhain festival give rise to terrifying Halloween traditions? 
  • What chilling effects did medieval witch hunts have on the development of Halloween lore?
  • In what gruesome ways did 19th-century immigrants shape America’s Halloween fears?
  • Analyze how turning Halloween into a commercial holiday intensified its focus on fear and horror.
  • What horrifying origins led to the tradition of costume-wearing at Halloween? 
  • What were the most terrifying pranks and mischief associated with early Halloween celebrations? 
  • Examine how political anxieties during the Cold War shaped Halloween’s dark and eerie themes.
  • Which frightening historical events helped cement horror films as a Halloween staple? 
  • What dark transformations occurred when Halloween customs shifted from pagan to Christian practices? 
  • How did Halloween become a magnet for the supernatural and occult through its dark history?

Top Essay Topics on Trick-or-Treating and Other Halloween Traditions

  • In what ways did trick-or-treating transform from ancient Celtic customs to today’s practices?
  • Which unique trick-or-treating traditions are found in various countries around the world?
  • How did carving jack-o'-lanterns start, and what do they represent in Halloween celebrations?
  • What role do haunted houses play in enhancing the Halloween experience?
  • How have Halloween parades evolved from local events to significant public spectacles?
  • What is the historical background of Halloween-themed parties and their increasing popularity?
  • How do Halloween activities in schools, such as costume contests, reflect broader cultural trends?
  • What are the influences behind the evolution of Halloween masks and costumes from historical to modern times?
  • How has the commercialization of Halloween impacted traditional practices like trick-or-treating?
  • Where did popular Halloween games originate, and how do they add to the holiday’s enjoyment?

Halloween Essay Step-By-Step Tips

If you’re ready to write the ultimate Halloween essay, following a clear structure can help you stay on track. No matter if you’re focusing on folklore, history, or something frightfully fun, below are the key you’ll need to create a successful essay:

  • Choose a Captivating Topic
  • Do Some Festive Research
  • Craft a Strong Thesis Statement
  • Outline Your Essay Structure
  • Write the First Draft

Each of these steps will guide you from brainstorming ideas to polishing your final draft, so let our coursework help service break down each one.

Choose a Topic

The first step in writing your Halloween essay is choosing a topic that grabs attention. You’ll want something that not only interests you but also allows you to explore unique angles. This is where you can have some fun!

Think about what aspect of Halloween excites you. Is it the eerie folklore, like the origins of haunted houses? Or maybe the psychology behind why people enjoy being scared? For example, you could write about how trick-or-treating has evolved over the years or explore the cultural significance of Day of the Dead in comparison to Halloween.

Whatever you choose, make sure it’s specific enough to dig into but broad enough to find plenty of material. A strong topic sets the tone for the rest of your essay and keeps both you and your reader engaged.

Do Your Research

Once you've nailed down a topic, it’s time for the research. This step is important, whether you're writing about the history of Halloween, analyzing scary movies, or exploring cultural traditions. Gather credible sources like books, academic articles, or even documentaries that offer insight into your topic. For example, if you’re writing about the ancient origins of Halloween, look into how the Celtic festival of Samhain influenced modern celebrations.

The more solid your research, the easier it will be to build a strong argument or tell an interesting story. Just remember to keep track of your sources—you’ll need them when it’s time to cite!

See our dedicated writing guide about how to write coursework .

Come Up With a Thesis Statement

With your research done, it’s time to craft your thesis statement. This is the core idea of your essay, the main point you’re trying to make. Think of it as your essay’s guide.

Your thesis should be clear and to the point. For example, if you’re exploring Halloween’s impact on modern pop culture, you might write: “Halloween has shaped modern pop culture by introducing key symbols and traditions that influence media and fashion.” This statement sets up what your essay will cover and keeps your writing on track.

A well-defined thesis helps you stay focused and makes your argument clear for your readers.

Follow a Structured Outline

Now that you have your thesis, it’s time to create an outline. This will help you organize your thoughts and structure your points.

Start with an introduction that presents your thesis and outlines what you’ll cover. Then, plan out the main sections of your essay—these should support your thesis with clear, logical arguments or points. For example, if your thesis is about the origins of Halloween, you might have sections on its impact on the Celtic festival, modern celebrations and cultural impact.

End with a conclusion that wraps up your main points and reinforces your thesis. A structured outline keeps your writing organized and makes sure you cover everything you need to.

Section Details
🎃 Introduction Brief overview of Halloween's significance
Thesis statement
🌑 Origins of Halloween Celtic festival of Samhain
Evolution into modern Halloween
🎉 Modern Celebrations Common traditions (trick-or-treating, costumes)
Regional variations
📺 Cultural Impact Influence on entertainment and media
Changes in public perception
🔚 Conclusion Summary of main points
Restate thesis and final thoughts

Write the Final Draft

With your outline ready, it’s time to write the final draft of your Halloween essay. This is where everything comes together. Start with your introduction, clearly presenting your thesis and setting up what your essay will discuss.

Next, follow your outline to develop each section. Be sure to provide clear evidence and examples to support your points. 

After addressing each main point, wrap up with a strong conclusion. Summarize the key points you’ve made and restate your thesis, tying everything back together. Proofread your essay to check for any errors and make sure your ideas flow logically.

Your final draft should be well-organized, clear, and engaging. It’s your chance to present your best work and make a strong impression. Also, don’t forget to check out our special article on writing a book review .

Halloween Essay Example 

To make things clearer, let’s look at a concrete example of a Halloween essay. This will help you see how to apply the steps we’ve discussed. You’ll get a sense of how to organize your ideas, develop your points, and write effectively.

In Wrapping Up

As we wrap up our guide on Halloween essays, here’s a quick summary of what we’ve covered:

  • Origins of Jack-o'-Lanterns: We’ve learned how this tradition began with Celtic customs and shifted from turnips to pumpkins in America.
  • Writing Steps: We discussed how to choose a topic, do your research, craft a thesis statement, and use a structured outline.
  • Types of Essays: We looked at different essay styles—narrative, descriptive, and informative—and how each can bring a unique angle to your Halloween topic.
  • Essay Topics: We provided a variety of topic ideas to inspire your writing, from spooky tales to Halloween traditions.

With these points in mind, you’re set to start your Halloween essay. Use these tips and examples to guide your writing and make your essay both engaging and informative!

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How to Write a Story about Halloween?

What do you write in a halloween essay, how to write about halloween.

Daniel Parker

Daniel Parker

is a seasoned educational writer focusing on scholarship guidance, research papers, and various forms of academic essays including reflective and narrative essays. His expertise also extends to detailed case studies. A scholar with a background in English Literature and Education, Daniel’s work on EssayPro blog aims to support students in achieving academic excellence and securing scholarships. His hobbies include reading classic literature and participating in academic forums.

good hook for halloween essay

is an expert in nursing and healthcare, with a strong background in history, law, and literature. Holding advanced degrees in nursing and public health, his analytical approach and comprehensive knowledge help students navigate complex topics. On EssayPro blog, Adam provides insightful articles on everything from historical analysis to the intricacies of healthcare policies. In his downtime, he enjoys historical documentaries and volunteering at local clinics.

How to Write a Thematic Essay

Good Hooks for Essays: 14 Hook Ideas with Examples

Now here’s the clue.

If you want to wow your teacher, polish the introduction. Add something interesting, funny, shocking, or intriguing. Good essay hooks help you build an emotional connection right from the start. Think of an essay hook as bait for your readers.

Our expert team has prepared numerous examples of hooks for essays. You’ll find hook examples for an argumentative essay, personal story, history essay, and other types of papers.

For 100% clarity, we provided examples using each hook tactic. And a short part about how to write a good hook.

Teacher: "I won't forgive you for this essay."  Student: "But you gave me an A. What's wrong with it?"  Teacher: "I couldn't stop reading it, and I burned my dinner."

  • 💎 What Exactly Is a Hook & How to Write a Good One
  • 📜 Examples of Classical Essay Hooks
  • 💡 Try Some Informative Essay Hooks
  • 🦄 Here are the Most Uncommon Essay Hooks

✅ Good Hooks for Essays: Bonus Tips

  • 🔗 References for More Information

We highly recommend reading all the methods and examples, so you don’t have any questions.

💎 How to Write a Hook That Will Work for Your Essay?

The hook of your essay usually appears in the very first sentence.

The average length of an essay hook should be 3-7 sentences, depending on the topic.

But first, let’s quickly go through the key questions.

What Is an Essay Hook?

An essay hook (or narrative hook) is a literary technique that writers use to keep their readers engaged. It shows that the content below is worth reading.

The hook can have different lengths. Some writers make it last for several pages. Though, it better be a short paragraph or even a sentence.

Why Do You Need a Good Essay Hook?

Writing the right hook is essential for a few reasons:

  • It heats up your readers’ interest. If you did it right, they read the whole piece.
  • It shows off your skills . A right hook presents you as an expert in your field.
  • It attracts target audience. Only the readers you want will keep reading.
  • It keeps the tension on the right level. Use an intriguing question, and a reader dies to find out the answer.
  • It makes a good introduction. Starting your essay off a boring fact is simply not a good idea.

How to Write a Good Hook: Ideas and Examples

Hook ideasWhere to useHook sentence examples
Elon Musk once said, “We are running the most dangerous experiment in history right now, which is to see how much carbon dioxide the atmosphere can handle before there is an environmental catastrophe.”
Have you ever thought about how you can become happier?
It had been all summer since we’d seen each other, and now I was standing face to face with my old enemy – my Math teacher, Mrs. Parker.
According to the Annapolis Police Department, nearly 42% of teenagers have been bullied online, and almost one in four have had it happen more than once.
Sunlight is clear and colorless until it reaches the earth’s atmosphere. Then, spread by air molecules, it paints the sky blue.

Next, we will discuss these hook types in more detail. We’ll also provide essay hook examples of less common yet intriguing types: dialogue, story, contradiction, comparison, definition, metaphor, puzzle, announcement, and background information hooks.

💬 The Famous Quote Hook

Use a famous quote as a hook for your essay on history, literature, or even social sciences. It will present you as an established writer. It shows how knowledgeable you are and motivates the readers to engage in the text.

⬇️ Check out examples below ⬇️

Quote Hook Example: Political Science

Hilary Clinton once said that "there cannot be true democracy unless women's voices are heard." Which creates a discussion about how perfect democracy should look like. If it is a form of government that considers all opinions, why are women silenced so often even nowadays? The truth is that we need to ensure completely equal opportunities for women in politics before we talk about establishing the correct version of democracy. And even the most developed and progressive countries are still struggling to get to that level of equality. It can be achieved by various methods, even though they might only work in certain countries.

Social Sciences

"Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country." These words of wisdom from John Kennedy reflect the perspective we need to teach the younger generations. For some reason, it has become popular to blame the government for any problem arising in society. Is it their fault that we don't think about waste and keep trashing our home? Social responsibility is a real thing. The well-being of our countries starts with the actions of every separate individual. It is not entirely right to wait until the government fixes all the issues for us. The best strategy is to start thinking about what we can do as a community to make our home even a better place.

And excellent sources of quotes for you:

  • Brainyquote.com – you can search quotes by topic or by author.
  • Goodreads.com is not only a great collection of e-books but also quotes.
  • Quoteland.com has plenty of brilliant words for all imaginable situations.
  • Quotationspage.com – more than 30,000 quotations for unique essay hooks.

❓Rhetorical Question Essay Hooks

It doesn’t have to be rhetorical – any type of question addressed to your audience will do its job. Such a universal kind of hook can spike the interest of your readers immediately.

Some useful patterns of rhetorical questions:

  • What could be more important than…?
  • What if there was only one… (chance/day/hour)?
  • Who wouldn’t like to… (be a cat/turn visitors into clients)?
  • Why bother about… (inequality/imperfect education system)?
  • Which is more important: … (making money or realizing potential)?

And more in examples:

Example of a Question Hook on Education

Wouldn't free access to education for everyone be wonderful? The answer would most likely be positive. However, it is not as simple as it seems. As much as the governments try to achieve this goal, there are still many uneducated people. On the bright side, in the era of technology, learning has never been so easy. Of course, some young adults just prefer the shortcut option of taking a student loan. Other ways are much more challenging and require a lot of responsibility and patience. Finding free educational resources online and gaining experience with the help of video tutorials might sound unprofessional. Still, you will be surprised how many experts hired in different fields only received this type of education.

Question Hook Example: Health

Is there anything that can help you lose weight fast? You have probably heard of this magical keto diet that is getting more and more popular worldwide. People claim that it helps them shred those excess pounds in unbelievably short terms. But how healthy is it, and does it suit anyone? The truth is that no diet is universal, and thanks to our differences, some weight-loss methods can even be harmful. Keto diet, for example, leads your body into the state of ketosis. What happens is that you don't receive carbohydrates, and in this state, fat is used as the primary source of energy instead them. However, it carries potential threats.

😂 Anecdotal Essay Hooks

This type would usually be more suitable for literary pieces or personal stories. So, don’t use it for formal topics, such as business and economics. Note that this hook type can be much longer than one sentence. It usually appears as the whole first paragraph itself.

It wouldn't be Kate if she didn't do something weird, so she took a stranger for her best friend this time. There is nothing wrong with it; mistakes like that happen all the time. However, during only five minutes that Kate spent with the stranger, she blabbed too much. Thinking that she sat down at the table that her friend took, Kate was so busy starting on her phone that she didn't notice that it wasn't her friend at all. Sure enough, the naive girl started talking about every little detail of her last night that she spent with her date. It was too much for the ears of an old lady. Kate realized she took the wrong table only when it was too late.

Literature (personal story)

Do not ever underestimate the power of raccoons! Those little furry animals that may look overly cute are too smart and evil. It only takes one box of pizza left outside your house by the delivery person for the disaster to begin. When they smell that delicious pizza, no doors can stop them. They will join the forces to find a hole in your house to squeeze into. Even if it's a window crack four feet above the ground, they know how to get to it. Using their fellow raccoons as the ladder, they get inside the house. They sneak into the kitchen and steal your pizza in front of your eyes and your scared-to-death dog. Not the best first day in the new home, is it? 

📈 Fact or Statistic Hook

Looking deeper into your essay topic, you might find some numbers that are quite amusing or shocking. They can serve as perfect hooks for economics- and business-oriented writings. Also, it is better if they are less known.

Business/social sciences

The UAE workforce is culturally diverse since around 20% of employees (usually called expatriates) come from different countries. Ex-pats tend to take managerial positions, which makes communication within companies quite tricky. The training focused on raising cultural awareness is getting more common, but such educational strategies as games (or gamification) are still rarely applied in the UAE companies. Yet, gamification was a useful tool in other places, making it an attractive UAE team building method. It can significantly help integrate ex-pats and create a more culturally aware environment.

Statistic Hook Example in Economics

The United Arab Emirate's debt has been rising drastically in past years, from about US$17 billion in 2003, which is almost 19 percent of GDP, to US$184 billion in 2009. Only a small proportion of the debt can be tracked directly to the public sector. A report by UBS bank shows that most of the debt comes from the corporate sector. Most of the companies that hold the main section of the debt are financial institutions. The public sector partly owns them. Banks in the UAE have been accumulating their debt amounts in the years mentioned above and could now account for 75 percent of the total foreign debt. The discussion is about the reasons why the UAE debt has been rising at an alarming rate.

Some good sources for statistics

  • Finance.yahoo.com is perfect for business papers.
  • Usa.gov/statistics is an easy-to-use governmental engine for searching data and stats.
  • Unstats.un.org provides a massive collection of statistics published by UN organizations
  • Oecd-ilibrary.org is the online library of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), featuring its books, papers, and statistics and is a gateway to the OECD’s analysis and data.

🤯 Shocking Facts are Very Good Hooks for Essays

Very similar to a statistical hook, a fact can serve as a perfect engaging introduction. Search your field for some shocking phenomenon and gently insert it in the beginning.

Don’t forget to include a reliable source reinforcing your words!

Fact Hook Example in Economics

Nowadays, much attention is paid to the problem of shark finning around the world. Millions of sharks are killed annually for their fins, and many of them are dropped back to the ocean finless, where they die because of suffocation. In many countries, the idea of shark finning remains illegal and unethical, but the possibility of earning huge money cannot be ignored (Dell'Apa et al. 151). Regarding available technologies, market economies, trade relations, and cheap employment, it does not take much time to organize special trips for shark hunting. The Trade of shark fins is alive and well developed in countries like the United States and China. However, the number of people who are eager to try shark fin soup has considerably decreased during the last several years because of the popularity of anti-shark fin soup campaigns and laws supported worldwide (Mosbergen). The situation continues to change in China.

Daniel Stacey and Ross Kelly observed that long lines and a new gray market trend for bigger screen phones marked Apple's new iPhones debut. As expected, new phone models drew Apple fans outside retail stores (Stacey and Kelly). Global critics, however, noted that this year's lines were generally longer relative to previous periods mainly because of the developing gray market for Apple products. The new Apple's iPhones have larger screens than the previous models. Also, they boast of improved battery life, faster processors, and an enhanced camera. Tim Cook called them "mother of all upgrades" (Stacey and Kelly).

Sources to look for reliable facts:

  • Buzzfeed.com – news, videos, quizzes.
  • Cracked.com – a website full of funny stuff, like articles, videos, pictures, etc.
  • Webmd.com – an incredible collection of medical facts you will love.
  • Livescience.com – discoveries hitting on a broad range of fields.
  • National Geographic – needs no introduction.
  • Mental Floss answers life’s big questions, a compilation of fascinating facts and incredible stories.

🗣️ Dialogue as a Catchy Hook for Essays

Dialogue is another type of hooks that goes perfectly with pieces of literature and stories. It can even make your short essay stand out if you include it at the beginning. But don’t forget that it only concerns specific topics such as literature and history.

Here it is:

Dialogue Hook Example in Literature

– Why did you do it? – I don't know anymore… That's why I'm leaving for a little bit right now. I need time to think.

With these words, Anna stepped back into the train car and waved goodbye to Trevor. She couldn’t even find the right words to explain why she ran away on her wedding day. It wasn’t that she didn’t love Trevor, but there was this deep, natural, and unexplored feeling that told her it wasn’t time yet. But the only thing Anna realized was that the city made her sick. That day, she took off her wedding dress, bought a ticket on the next flight leaving that afternoon, and hopped on the train taking her to the airport. She couldn’t even remember the country’s name she was going to so blurry everything was from her tears.

Dialogue Hook for History Essay

– If we still had inquisition, we could probably set him on fire. – Some dark magic, indeed, my friend! It would have probably been a real dialogue if we knew who was the first automobile inventor for sure. People were undoubtedly shocked to see the cars moving by themselves without horses. However, since they started appearing around the globe around the same time, it is almost impossible to identify who was the original creator of the idea and the first automobile itself. The credit was usually given to Karl Benz from Germany, who created a gasoline car in 1885-1886. But there are also much earlier records of a gentleman named Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot, who built the first vehicle powered by steam in France in 1769.

🔮 A Story Looks Like an Extremely Good Essay Hook

A universal essay hook is a story. You can use this trick pretty much anywhere. The main challenge is to be as authentic as possible, try to tell something fresh and engaging. The more specific and narrow the story, the more chances for a successful introduction.

Story Hook Example for an Essay on Business

Dell started fast and strong. The original company was founded in 1984 when the founder was only a 19-year-old student at the University of Texas. Four years after the inception of the company, Michael Dell became the Entrepreneur of the Year. Eight years after he started the company from his dorm room's comfort, Dell was chosen as the Man of the Year by PC Magazine. […] The company was acknowledged as the world's leading direct marketer of personal computers. At the same time, Dell was known as one of the top five PC vendors on the planet (Hunger 9). […] However, the company's journey encountered a major hurdle down the road. Even after recovering from an economic recession in 2010, the company continued to experience declining sales.

🦚 Contradictory Statement – Queen of Good Hooks

Everybody loves to start an argument by contradicting some facts. Therefore, you simply need to add a controversial statement at the beginning of your essay. People of all ages and beliefs will not be able to stop reading it!

Challenging your readers works well for social sciences, business, and psychology topics.

Examples of contradictory statements essay hooks:

If you think being a manager is a calm and relatively easy task, try surviving on five cups of coffee, a sandwich, and two packs of cigarettes a day. You would rather believe that managers only walk around the office and give their staff orders, wouldn't you? Unfortunately, the reality is much harsher than such rainbowy dreams. The use of the internet in academic contexts is on the rise, and its role in learning is hotly debated. For many teachers who did not grow up with this technology, its effects seem alarming and potentially harmful. A whole set of personal qualities and professional skills must keep up with the successful strategic planning, assessment, and development. All the tasks the managers need to attend to are nerve-wracking and sometimes almost impossible to do. The stress from the demanding managerial position is often overlooked or underestimated.

Social sciences

Video games have been ruining our kids' lives and leading to an increase in crime. Since the gaming industry's development in recent years, the fear of its adverse effects on the younger generations' brains has become a significant concern. There is such a wide variety of games, ranging from educational to violent shooters and horrors. Almost immediately, caring parents jumped on the latter category, claiming that its impact is too significant and children become more aggressive and uncontrollable. Some supporters of this theory went even further. They decided to link real-life crimes to the effects of violent video games on child and adult behavior. However, as we will see later in this article, there is no or little scientific evidence supporting those ideas.

🔁 Vivid Comparison Essay Hook

Introducing your topic with an engaging, vivid comparison is a universal strategy. It is suitable for any kind of writing. The main idea is to grab your readers’ attention by showing them your unique perspective on the topic. Try to make the comparison amusing and exciting.

Comparison Essay Hook Options:

  • Comparison with daily chores (e.g., Proofreading your essays is like cleaning your teeth.)
  • Comparison with something everyone hates (e.g., Learning grammar is like going to the dentist.)
  • Comparison with something everyone loves (e.g., John was happy like a child eating a free vanilla ice cream.)
  • Comparison of modern and old-school phenomena (e.g., Modern email has much in common with pigeon post.)
  • Funny comparison (e.g., Justin Bieber is the Michael Jackson of his time)

Check out examples:

Environment

For many people, flying feels like a dream come true. More and more people take their first-ever flight thanks to the rapidly developing aviation technologies. Aircraft and airports are advancing, and air traveling is getting cheaper. However, except for transporting eager travel addicted and business people, planes are used in other ways. It appears that the whole economies across the world depend on the effectiveness and efficiency of airlines. Import and export demand this kind of transportation to work at all times. Aviation development seems like a great thing. However, just like any other technological breakthrough, it comes with a price. Environmental issues did not wait too long to show up.

Social sciences/psychology

Leaving home for the first time as a freshman can only be compared to the level of stress you had in childhood when your mother left you in the line at the checkout for too long. Indeed, becoming a student and moving out of the parent's house comes with a great deal of stress. All the unknown that lies ahead makes youngsters too anxious. Then, the difficulties of financial planning and increased academic pressure come as additional sources of worries. However, it does not have to be such a negative experience. Particular techniques can help students overcome their stress related to the separation from their parents.

📄 Definitions = Easy & Good Hooks for Essays

Another versatile essay hook option is introducing a qualitative definition. Try to make it capacious, and don’t fall into verbal jungles. This narrative hook is perfect for short scientific papers where there is only one focus subject.

Business Ethics

White-collar crime refers to the peaceful offense committed with the intention of gaining unlawful monetary benefits. There are several white-collar crimes that can be executed. They include extortion, insider trading, money laundering, racketeering, securities fraud, and tax evasion. Enron Company was an American based energy company. It was the largest supplier of natural gas in America in the early 1990s. The company had a stunning performance in the 1990s. Despite the excellent performance, stakeholders of the company were concerned about the complexity of the financial statements. The company's management used the complex nature of the financial statements and the accounting standards' weaknesses to manipulate the financial records. The white-collar crime was characterized by inflating the asset values, overstating the reported cash flow, and failure to disclose the financial records' liabilities. This paper carries out an analysis of the Enron scandal as an example of white-collar crime as discussed in the video, The Smartest Guys in the Room.

Motivation is the act of influencing someone to take any action to achieve a particular goal (Montana& Chanov, 2008). Employees' motivation depends on the job's nature, the company's organizational culture, and personal characteristics. In this case study, various theories influence and show how employees can be motivated in the workplace.

📚 Metaphor Hook for Essays

Naturally, using a metaphor as a hook for your essay comes with some limitations. You should only use this type in literature and sometimes in psychology. However, it serves as a great attention grabber if it’s engaging enough.

Let’s see how you can use a metaphor:

When life gives you dirt, don't try to squeeze the juice out of it. It's better to leave it alone and let it dry out a bit. Kate decided to follow this philosophy since nothing else seemed to work. After the painful divorce process, last week's ridiculous work assignments and managing two kids alone almost drove her crazy. No polite discussions, arguing, or bribing helped take care of seemingly a million tasks these little women had to deal with. Even letting out the anger just like her phycologist recommended did not help much. Instead, Kate referred to the last remedy. She put all the issues aside with the hope that it would get better later.

The recipe is relatively easy – take a cup of self-respect, two cups of unconditional love, half a cup of good health, a pinch of new positive experiences, and mix it all for a perfect state of happiness! We all wish it would be possible, right? However, the mystery of this state of being happy is still unsolved. The concept and its perception considerably change depending on time and values. Happiness is so complicated that there is even no universal definition of it. Besides, humans are social creatures, so associating your level of success with others is not unusual. Therefore, being happy means achieving a certain level of several aspects.

🧩 Puzzle? Yes! Amazing Hook for Your Essay

Doesn’t a good riddle grab your attention? Sometimes you just want to find out the answer. The other times, you want to figure out how it is related to the topic. Such a hook would be great for writings on psychology and even economics or business.

Here are the examples:

How many Google office employees you need to destroy a box of fresh donuts? Google is indeed famous for some of the most accommodating and unique working places around the whole world. However, the success of the company does not only appear from treats for employees. It seems that the organizational culture has many effects on business decisions and overall performance. All the staff working in Google share the same visions and values, helping them cooperate and lead the company to success. However, there is one aspect to consider. The organizational culture needs to be adapted to the ever-changing business environment.

Who survives on dirt-like substance, is never joyful, and only returns to the cave to sleep? It sounds horrible, but the correct answer is human. Nowadays, the demands for any kind of workers are rising, which brings tremendous effects on people. As the number of duties increases, it is getting harder for employees not to chug on coffee and come back home in time for a family dinner. The work-life balance is disturbed, leading to anxiety, relationship issues, and even health problems. Social life appears to be as important as making money. Therefore, the correct distribution of time between personal life and work duties is necessary for happiness.

📢 Announcement Is Also a Good Essay Hook Option

Announcements could be suitable for literary pieces and historical essays.

Such a hook doesn’t have to be too long. It should be significant enough to persuade your readers to stick to your writing. Make sure it aligns with your topic as well.

Ways to use announcements as essay hooks:

It was a revolution! The Beatle's first song came out in 1962, and almost immediately, hordes of fans pledged their loyalty to this new band. Nearly all youngsters became obsessed with their music. No one can deny that the Beatles are still considered the creators of some of the best songs in history. However, the arrival of the British band influences culture as well. Many photos depict girls going crazy on live concerts and guys shaping their haircuts after the Beatles' members. The revolution that the band brought left an impact, evidence that we can still trace in modern British culture and music.

I will never go to Starbucks again! Oh, no, mind me. I love their coffee. At some point in my life, I even thought I had an addiction and had to ask my friends to watch my consumption of Pumpkin Spice Latte. Then, the wind of change turned everything upside down. On my usual Starbucks morning run, I noticed a homeless man holding a paper cup begging for money. At first, I didn't pay much attention since it's a usual occurrence in our area. However, one day, I recognized my old neighbor in him. The only cash I had on me, I usually spent on my cup of coffee, but I decided it was not much of a sacrifice. From that moment, I only showed up on that street to shove a few bucks into that poor guy's cup. One day, to my surprise, he talked to me.

ℹ️ Background Information Essay Hook

Last but not least, give background information on your subject to make a good intro. Such an essay hook is effortless and suitable for practically any paper. Try to find the most unobvious angle to the background information. At the same time, keep it short and substantive.

Here are the ways to use background information essay hooks:

Air Arabia is among the leading low-cost carriers in the global airline industry. The airline is mainly based at the Sharjah International Airport in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (Air Arabia, 2012). The airline came into inception in 2003 after His Highness Dr. Sheik Mohammed Al Qassimi, the Ruler of Sharjah, issued an Emiri Decree. Later, Air Arabia was transformed into a limited liability company. For nearly a decade, Air Arabia has witnessed tremendous growth, resulting in increased fleet size and improved sales revenues. At the same time, Air Arabia has created a renowned brand that offers reliable and safe services (Dubai Media Incorporated, 2012). Air Arabia identifies itself as a low-cost carrier by providing low fares in the industry. Some of the key strengths of the airline include punctuality and safety. This aims to ensure that the airline serves its customers most efficiently by observing its safety requirements and adhering to the landing and takeoff schedules (De Kluyver, 2010).

Walmart was founded by Sam Walton in the Arkansas United States in 1962 as a grocery store. The company, which operates a chain of over 8,000 stores in fifteen countries, is estimated to employ over two million employees from diverse backgrounds. Wal-Mart was incorporated in 1969 and started trading in the New York Stock Exchange in 1972. […] Although the company can leave its consumers with a saving due to its low-price policy, it has faced some sharp criticisms over how it treats its employees and other stakeholders. Wal-Mart boasts of its ability to save its customers' money, an average of $950 per year. This, however, has been criticized as harming the community. Also, the feminists' activists have focused on Walmart's misconduct in offering low prices. (Fraedrich, Ferrell & Ferrell 440)

Now we won’t keep you for long. Let’s just go through simple points of essay hook writing.

Someone may think that you have to write your hook first. It comes first in the paper, right?

In reality, though, you can wait until your entire essay is nearly finished. Then go back and rewrite the very first paragraph. This way, you can have a fresh look at what you’ve written in the beginning.

Here’s a simple plan you can follow.

  • First, write a basic version of your thesis statement.
  • Then, provide supporting evidence for your thesis in every body paragraph.
  • After that, reword your thesis statement and write your concluding paragraph.
  • Finally, search for an attention-grabbing fact, statistic, or anything from the list above to serve as an engaging essay hook.

Add this essay hook to the beginning of your introduction. Make sure that your ideas still flow naturally into your thesis statement.

⚠️ Pro tip: choose various hooks and play around, adding each hook to your introduction paragraph. Like this, you can determine which one makes the most impressive beginning to your paper.

Some of your choices may sound interesting but may not lead to your essay’s main point. Don’t panic! Paper writing always involves trial and error. Just keep trying your essay hook ideas until one fits perfectly.

That’s it 😊

Good luck with your work!

🔗 References

  • Hook – Examples and Definition of Hook
  • How to Engage the Reader in the Opening Paragraph – BBC
  • Hooks and Attention Grabbers; George Brown College Writing Centre
  • Hook Examples and Definition; Literary Devices
  • What Is a Narrative Hook? Video
  • How to: Writing Hooks or Attention-Getting Openings-YouTube

Research Paper Analysis: How to Analyze a Research Article + Example

Film analysis: example, format, and outline + topics & prompts.

  • Grammar Checker
  • Paraphrasing Tool
  • Critique Report
  • Writing Reports
  • Learn Blog Grammar Guide Community Events FAQ
  • Grammar Guide

How to Write a Hook: Top 5 Tips for Writers

Hannah Yang headshot

By Hannah Yang

how to write a hook

How do you make people feel excited to read your work?

Well, for starters, you can write a great hook.

The “hook” refers to the first sentence, or first few sentences, of an essay, article, or story. That’s because these first few lines need to hook readers in, the same way fishermen use bait to hook fish in.

If you’re trying to figure out how to write a hook, you’ve come to the right place. Read on to learn how to write a fantastic hook and to see some examples of successful ones.

What Is a Hook in Writing?

Top 5 tips for writing good hooks, great examples of hooks, is writing a hook in an essay different from a story hook, conclusion on how to write a hook.

We use the term “hook” to talk about the very beginning of a written work—specifically the part designed to grab readers’ attention. The hook can be as short as a single sentence or as long as a full paragraph.

Writing hooks is a necessary skill for all types of writing—narrative essays, research papers, fiction writing, and more.

definition of a hook in writing

What Makes a Good Hook Important?

Good hooks make your reader feel excited to keep reading.

If you’re writing a book, you need a great hook so people decide to actually buy your work, instead of putting it back on the shelf.

If you’re writing a blog post or article, you need a great hook so people read to the end, instead of scrolling or flipping to a different article instead.

And if you’re writing an essay for school, you need a good hook so you can practice the skill of writing well.

What Are the Different Types of Hooks?

There’s more than one way to write a great hook.

Here are six types of hooks that will grab your reader’s attention.

  • Question hook : a question that provokes the reader’s curiosity and makes them keep reading to find out the answer
  • Statement hook : a strong declaration related to your topic that makes the reader keep reading to see you defend this statement
  • Statistic hook : an interesting fact or statistic that makes you sound knowledgeable, so your reader trusts your expertise
  • Quote hook : a memorable quote, often by a famous person, that the reader will find interesting
  • Description hook : a vivid description that immerses your reader into a specific scene
  • Anecdotal hook : a personal story that relates to your topic and makes the reader feel personally connected to the story

Here are our top tips for writing a strong opening hook.

Tip 1: Surprise the Reader

Readers crave the unexpected. If you start your piece in a surprising way, they’ll be more likely to keep reading.

You can even say something controversial. Readers will want to keep reading to see how you prove your own statement.

Tip 2: Raise a Question

When starting an essay or a story, you should try to create a question that the reader wants answered.

This doesn’t have to be a literal question that ends with a question mark—instead, it can simply be an unusual statement or a weird situation. Make sure it’s something your target audience will find interesting.

Tip 3: Keep Your Promises

If you open your essay with an interesting hook, you need to be mindful of what you’re promising to the reader. If you don’t keep that promise throughout the piece, your reader will feel tricked.

For example, you’d probably be unhappy if you read a story that started with, “The monster was coming for me” and then, later in the first chapter, said, “Then I woke up and realized it was just a nightmare.”

The first sentence is a strong opening hook, but it promises a dramatic scene, which doesn’t get fulfilled, because the hook turns out not to be real.

An equivalent in an essay would be writing a controversial statement and then failing to prove why that statement is true, or asking an interesting question and then failing to answer it later.

Tip 4: Keep It Relevant

Some writers try so hard to choose an interesting hook that they end up using something irrelevant to their essay. Readers will get confused if you open with a random quote or statistic that only tangentially connects to your thesis.

If you’re choosing between a fascinating hook that doesn’t have much to do with your topic, or a decent hook that’s directly related to your thesis statement, you should go with the latter.

Tip 5: Don’t Stop at the Hook

Some writers focus so much on nailing the opening hook that they forget to make the rest of the essay equally strong.

Your reader could still stop reading on the second page, or the third, or the tenth. Make sure you use strong and engaging writing throughout the piece.

One way to learn how to write hooks is to look at examples.

Here are examples of six hooks you could use to start a persuasive essay about artificial intelligence, plus three hooks you could use to start a sci-fi story.

Example 1: Question Hook

  • Will artificial intelligence someday become smarter than humans?

Example 2: Statement Hook

  • Artificial intelligence could become smarter than humans by 2050.

Example 3: Statistic Hook

  • As of 2022, the global AI industry is worth over $130 billion.

Example 4: Quote Hook

  • The scientist Stephen Hawking once said, “The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.”

Example 5: Description Hook

  • The Alexa AI blinks from the kitchen table, emitting a comforting blue light.

Example 6: Anecdotal Hook

  • Like many people of my generation, I used an AI for the first time when I was twelve years old.

Example 7: Sci-Fi Story Hooks

  • Samuel Gibson had friends. Sure, all his friends were AI robots that his parents had purchased for him, but they still counted as friends.
  • My father’s office is full of strange machines, which none of us are allowed to touch.
  • The AI revolt began on Christmas morning of the year 2068.

Both essays and stories require good hooks. After all, you’re still competing for your reader’s attention, no matter what kind of work you’re writing.

However, a story hook will look very different from an essay hook.

If you’re writing fiction, you most likely won’t use a statistic, question, or quote to hook your readers in. Instead, your best options will be a statement, a description, or an anecdote—or, or often, a sentence that combines a little bit of all three.

Just like with essays, you should try to raise a question in your reader’s head. This can be a strange character, an unusual setting, or a mysterious fact.

Here are some examples of strong hooks in novels:

“My first memory, when I was three years old, was of trying to kill my sister.”—Jodi Piccoult, My Sister’s Keeper

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”—Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

“Once upon a time, on the coldest night of midwinter, in the darkest heart of the forest, Death and Fortune came to a crossroads.”—Margaret Owen, Little Thieves

“The women gather in a YMCA basement rec room: hard linoleum floors, half-windows along one wall, view of sidewalk and brick.”—Maria Adelmann, How to Be Eaten

“I became what I am today at the age of twelve, on a rainy overcast day in 1975.”—Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner

“It did not surprise Fire that the man in the forest shot her. What surprised her was that he shot her by accident.”—Kristen Cashore, Fire

There you have it—a complete guide to writing a fantastic hook.

ProWritingAid's creative writer document types

ProWritingAid has specific settings for creative writers and students, so it can help you write your story or essay. Try it out the next time you need to write a hook.

Good luck, and happy writing!

good hook for halloween essay

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How to Write Great Essay Hooks (Tips + Examples)

How to Write Great Essay Hooks (Tips + Examples)

Table of contents

good hook for halloween essay

Yona Schnitzer

Blank screen. Cursor blinks. Clock ticks. Brain freezes.

You stressfully wonder, “How will I ever finish this essay?”

I’ve been there. 

Every time you write an essay, you want to catch your readers’ undivided attention from the very first word. The opening hook has to be *perfect* — no compromises. 

But, instead of reeling under pressure to come up with this elusively perfect essay hook at the eleventh hour, I’ve found a better way to write great essay hooks. 

In this guide, I’ll tell you what it takes to write the most compelling and attention-grabbing hooks. I’ll also break down six awesome types of essay hooks you can experiment with and share examples to inspire your next opening statement.

What is an Essay Hook?

An essay hook is the opening statement of an essay, written to capture readers' attention and nudge them to learn more about the topic. Also known as a lede or lead, this hook introduces readers to the topic/theme of the essay and piques their curiosity to continue reading. 

The hook creates the entire narrative for your essay. It tells readers what to expect from the rest of the essay and creates context around your main argument or thesis statement. 

6 Types of Essay Hooks You Can Experiment With

I’ve created this handy list of six different types of essay hooks. You can choose the one that best fits your essay’s context and create a stellar opening statement within minutes. 

1. Compelling fact or statistic

Lead with evidence and use a powerful fact or statistic as your essay hook. It’s one of the best ways to capture readers’ attention from the start and keep them intrigued throughout your essay. 

For example, if you’re writing about the importance of time management for freelancers, you have two options to create your opening sentence:

Generic : “Managing time as a freelancer is no easy feat.”

Impactful : “Nearly 70% of freelancers struggle to effectively divide and manage their time between multiple clients.” 

This data point, linked to the original research, sets a strong tone for your essay and draws people in to read more. It communicates  

Find a shocking statistic with AI

Finding relevant statistics for any topic is one of the hardest parts of the job. 

But you don't have to spend hours looking for these data points anymore. Wordtune can do this heavy lifting for you in three easy steps.

  • Open the Wordtune editor and add your essay title. 
  • Type in any content you've written, click on 'Add spice,' and select the 'Expand on' option.
  • Write 'statistics,' and Wordtune will add relevant data points to your content.

good hook for halloween essay

2. Bold claim hook

When working on an argumentative essay , I always write with the mindset that nobody has the time to read my thoughts from start to finish. So, I have to get to the point quickly and make a solid argument worth people’s time. 

That's when opening with a bold claim works best. Condense all your views on the topic into a few thought-provoking lines that would make readers go, hmmm…

But remember, you can't open with a claim that people already know and accept as fact. It has to be something original and unique to make your readers tick, nudging them to dive deeper into your essay. 

For example, if you’re writing about water crisis, you have two options to open your essay: 

‍ "In some regions, there is not enough clean water for people to use."
‍ "Imagine a world where every drop of water is a battle, a precious commodity fought over by scores of people and animals alike. This can become a reality as early as 2050."

This bold claim presents a convincing argument about the global water crisis. It also emphasizes the urgency of this argument with a research-backed statistic.

Create a bold claim suggestion using AI

Can’t think of a strong opening sentence for your essay? Wordtune can translate your thoughts into a bold claim and create a compelling essay hook. 

Open your Wordtune editor and write a few lines related to your topic. These sentences should have a consensus among your audience. Then, choose the 'Counterargument' option from the list of suggestions. 

And you’ll have a bold claim for your essay with no effort at all!

good hook for halloween essay

3. Story/Anecdote hook

In all my years of writing, I’ve noticed how stories have a unique effect on people. A good story can resonate with a bigger audience, pique their curiosity, and deliver a more personal message. 

That's why you can cite a personal anecdote or talk about a publicly known story as a good hook for your essay. This hook allows you to play with words and work in more storytelling . 

One of my favorite writing tips applies here: enter the scene as late as possible and leave as early as possible. You have to keep it crisp instead of rambling on and on. 

Consider these two examples:

good hook for halloween essay

Either of these hooks could work fine if we were just writing a personal essay about a move to a new place. But if we’re specifically writing about the sky, the second example is better. It sticks to the point — the sky and the color of the sky — and doesn’t stray into irrelevant details. 

Create a compelling story with AI

I get it—not all of us are natural storytellers. But you can use AI to your advantage to create a concise and exciting story for your essay.  

Wordtune can help you write a short story from scratch or trim down your writing into a quick anecdote. Click on the expand or shorten button to edit your story any way you like. 

good hook for halloween essay

4. Question Hook

Humans have a tendency to immediately look for answers every time they come across fascinating questions. Using questions as essay hooks can reel people into your essay and feed their curiosity.

But questions are also fairly overused in essays. You don't want to use a generic question that makes people say, " Not another question ." 

Instead, think of questions that approach your topic from a fresh angle. This means honing in on what was especially interesting or surprising from your research—and maybe even brainstorming different questions to find the most fascinating one.

For example, if you’re writing about the psychology behind why we buy, you have two options to open your essay:

‍ “Do you know what factors compel us to buy certain things?”

Plugged in :

“Before buying anything, have you ever taken a moment to pause and think about possible reasons driving you to this purchase?”

The latter is more descriptive and creates a realistic scenario for readers to truly think about the topic of the essay.

5. Description hook

A descriptive hook works best when writing an explanatory or opinion-led essay. Descriptive hooks, as the name suggests, illustrate a topic in detail to create context for the essay. It's a good way to build awareness for and educate readers on lesser-known themes.

But a descriptive hook can easily become too plain or unexciting to read. To make it work, you have to write an engaging description using imagery, analogies, and other figures of speech. 

Remember to make your hook reader-friendly by avoiding passive voice, mainstream cliches, and lengthy sentences.

Consider this example:

good hook for halloween essay

Describing a sunset is too cliche, so cross that one off the list. Describing the sky as it is on a normal day wouldn't be shocking or unexpected, so scratch that one, too.

This example creates something unique by using analogies to describe the color of the sky and painting a beautiful picture. 

Write a gripping description with AI

Writing an exciting hook for a boring topic is more challenging than it looks. But Wordtune makes it a breeze with just two steps:

  • Open the Wordtune editor and write your essay topic.
  • Click on Explain or Emphasize and let it work its magic.

You can also change the tone of voice to make the text more in tune with your theme. 

good hook for halloween essay

6. Metaphor hook

One of my favorite essay hooks is to open with a persuasive metaphor to contextualize the topic. Metaphors can help you approach the topic from a completely different lens and wow your readers with interesting insight. 

Metaphors are also super versatile to make your writing more impactful. You can write a one-line metaphor or create a scenario comparing one thing to another and linking it to your topic. 

For example, if you’re writing about the experience of working at a startup, you can open your essay with these two options:

Short & sweet: "Joining a startup is like strapping into a rollercoaster: be ready to witness thrilling highs and sinking drops."

Long & descriptive : “Picture a small sailboat navigating the unpredictable winds and tides in a vast ocean. That’s a startup operating in a massive market. And with the right vision, this journey is filled with risks and rewards.” 

Create a convincing metaphor with AI

Writing good metaphors takes up a lot of creative brain power. You can always use Wordtune to find some extra inspiration if you're out of creative ideas. 

Type your opening line in the Wordtune editor and click on the 'Give an analogy' option. You can ask for as many suggestions as you want till you find the best one! 

good hook for halloween essay

What to Know About Your Essay (and Topic) Before You Write the Hook

Whether you’re writing a research paper on economics, an argumentative essay for your college composition class, or a personal essay sharing your thoughts on a topic, you need to nail down a few things before you settle on the first line for your essay.

‍ Let me break them down for you. 

1. Gain in-depth knowledge of your topic

good hook for halloween essay

Before you start writing your essay, you need to know your topic — not just in name, but in-depth. You don't have to become a subject matter expert overnight. But you do need to research the topic inside out 

Your research will help you:

  • Narrow your focus
  • Build an argument
  • Shape the narrative

Your research insights determine your essay’s structure and guide your choice of hook. 

After organizing your research in a neat outline, think to yourself: ‍Did you uncover a shocking fact? A compelling anecdote? An interesting quote? Any of those things could be your hook.

⚡ ‍ Take action:  After finishing your research, review your notes and think through your essay. Mark or make a list of anything compelling enough to be a good lead.

2. Type of essay

good hook for halloween essay

In academic settings, there are generally three kinds of essays:

  • Argumentative: Making the case for a certain stance or route of action.
  • Expository: Explaining the who, what, when, where, why, and how of some phenomenon.
  • Narrative: Telling a true story as a way to explore different ideas.

‍ The type of essay you’re writing is key to choosing the best hook for your piece. 

A serious argumentative essay can start with a shocking statistic or a bold claim. And an expository essay can open with a descriptive hook while a metaphor hook would work best for a narrative essay.

⚡ ‍ Take action: Go through your list of potential hooks and cross out anything that doesn't fit the type of essay you're writing, whether it's persuasive , argumentative, or any other type.

3. Audience and tone

A best practice I often share with writers is to think of one reader and keep yourself in their shoes . This exercise can tell you so much about your audience — what kind of tone they like, what matters the most to them, what topics interest them, and so on. 

You can use these insights to create a compelling essay hook. Here’s how:

  • For an argumentative essay, you’re trying to convince someone who doesn’t agree with you that what you’re claiming is right or, at least, reasonable. You don’t want to turn them off with snarky or offensive language — but you do want to be authoritative. Your hook should match that tone and support your effort.
  • A narrative essay is likely to welcome more lyrical language, so starting with a colorful description or an anecdote might make more sense than, say, a bold claim or surprising fact. Whatever tone you choose for your narrative essay — comical or gentle or bold — should be used for your hook.
  • ‍ Expository essays can use all sorts of tones and be written to a variety of audiences, so think carefully about the tone that best fits your subject matter. An essay explaining how the human body shuts down when overdosed will likely require a different tone than one on the lives of circus masters in the late 1800s. 

⚡ ‍ Take action: Look at your list. Can you write these potential hooks in a tone that suits your subject and audience?

4. Length of essay

Are you writing a 10-page paper or a three-page reflection? Or is this your senior thesis, pushing over 100 pages?

‍ If you’re writing a shorter paper, you’ll want to keep your hook quick and snappy.  

Readers are expecting a quick read, and they don’t want to spend five minutes only going through the introduction. 

In contrast, you can approach a longer essay — like a senior thesis or a term paper — with a longer hook. Just make sure your hook relates to and supports the core point of your essay. You don’t want to waste space describing a scene that ultimately has nothing to do with the rest of your piece.

⚡ ‍ Take action: If you write out the items on your list, how long will they be? A sentence or paragraph? Perfect. Two to five paragraphs? Unless your essay is on the longer side, you may want to save that information for later in the piece.

‍ Now that you know the basic facts about what you’re writing, let’s look at some approaches you could use to catch those readers — and reel them in.

3 Approaches to Avoid When Writing Hooks 

I’ve read hundreds of essays — enough to recognize lazy writing from the first few words. It’s equally easy for readers to discard your essays as ‘poorly written’ just by reading the first line. 

So, I made a list of three types of essay hooks you want to avoid at all costs because these hooks can only disappoint your readers. 

1. Quotations

Quotes are probably the most overused type of hook in any form of writing. What's even worse is rinsing and repeating the same old quotes from Abraham Lincoln or Nelson Mandela in your essays. 

No matter how powerful a quote sounds, you shouldn’t slap it at the opening of your essay. It doesn’t give readers the excitement of reading something original and looks lazy.

For example, if you’re writing an essay on productivity, here’s what a good and bad lede looks like:

“Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work” – Stephen King
Did you know that consuming 100 gms of sugar can slash your productivity levels by over 50% in a day?  

2. Definitions

The New Oxford American Dictionary defines a hook as "a thing designed to catch people's attention." 

If I opened my article with this dictionary definition of a hook, you’d have either dozed off or left this page long back to find something more interesting. 

Here's the thing: definitions put people to sleep. Readers don't want to see a formal, jargon-heavy definition of a topic as the very first line of an essay. Your opening statement should have some personality in it to show readers they're in for an exciting read. 

For example, if you’re writing about happy hormones, here’s what a good and bad lede looks like:

Happy hormones are known to boost the happiness levels in your body by creating positive feelings.
Ever wondered why cat videos make you instantly happy, and ice creams give you an extra dose of energy? It's all about how happy hormones control our brain chemistry.

3. “Imagine this”

Opening your essay with "Imagine this" used to be an interesting way to put your readers in a scenario and set the context for your essay. But now, it's far too cliched and just another lazy attempt to write an essay hook. 

You can create a relatable scenario for users without asking them to imagine or picture it. Use the descriptive hook format with an interesting choice of words to convey the same ideas more creatively.

For example, if you’re writing an essay on preparing for higher studies abroad, here’s what a good and bad lede looks like:

Imagine this: You’ve been applying to multiple universities, writing SOPs, and preparing for exams without guidance. Everything can go south any minute. 
College application season is officially here. But with each passing day, you’re under more and more stress to apply to your chosen colleges and tick all the items off your list.

‍Our Go-To Trick for Writing Catchy Hooks

This opening statement can make or break your entire essay. While I’ve broken down my best tips to create the best essay hooks, here’s a surefire way to write compelling openings :

Go through your notes and either outline your essay or write the whole thing. This way, you’ll know the central thread (or throughline) that runs throughout your piece. 

Once your essay or outline is complete, go back through and identify a particularly compelling fact, claim, or example that relates to that central thread.

‍Write up that fact, claim, or example as the hook for your essay using any of the methods we’ve covered. Then revise or write your essay so the hook leads smoothly into the rest of the piece and you don’t repeat that information elsewhere.

Does your hook spark curiosity in you? 

Did that fact surprise you in the research stage? 

Chances are, your readers will have the same reaction.

And that’s exactly what you want.

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How to Get the Perfect Hook for Your College Essay

What’s covered:, developing your hook.

  • 5 College Essay Hook Examples

5 Tips and Examples for Crafting a Great Hook

Your essay is one of the best tools available for standing out in a crowded field of college applicants (many with academic portfolios similar to yours) when applying to your dream school. A college essay is your opportunity to show admissions committees the person behind the grades, test scores, and resume. To ensure your college essay receives the full attention of admissions committees, you need to lure them in with a great hook—that is, a compelling opening that makes your audience hungry for more.

You need a strong start to capture the attention of the admission committees. When it comes to college essays, first impressions are everything. In fact, there’s no guarantee that anyone is going to read more than your first sentence if you bore them to tears within a few words, which is why it’s essential to craft an effective and engaging hook.

There’s no one-size-fits-all strategy for composing an attention-grabbing hook. A well-crafted hook can be anything from an image to an anecdote to an interesting fact while factors like writing style, essay structure, and prompt can all influence what makes for a good hook. That said, memorable hooks share a number of attributes, most notably they draw readers in,  connect with the topic you’re writing about, and leave a lasting impression, often in a creative or unexpected way.

For example, let’s construct a hypothetical essay. Let’s say that after some careful consideration, Jane Doe has decided to write her personal essay about her experience running canine obedience classes. She isn’t quite sure how to start her essay, so she’s practicing with some proven essay hooks. If you’re ready to develop your own hook, check out four of our favorite college essay hook strategies and how they work for Jane below!

College Essay Hook Examples

There are a number of proven strategies that Jane can use to craft a compelling hook. A few tried-and-true hooks include:

1. Open with an Anecdote

People love stories, so it makes sense that telling one is a great way to attract readers. Detailing a relevant anecdote provides context for your essay and can give the reader an idea of what you are up against if you’re overcoming an obstacle or rising to a challenge.

On the day that I told my mother I wanted to start my own canine obedience school, she smiled and muttered something under her breath about the irony of my youthful disobedience and my newfound passion for enforcing rules. What she didn’t know then was that it was not in spite of, but rather because of, my tendency to push the boundaries that I was confident in my ability to succeed.

2. Set the Scene

One fantastic way to get your essay moving and to draw your readers in is to plunge them into the middle of an important scene. Provide readers with descriptive details and dialogue to make them feel like they’re watching a movie from your life and have just tuned in at a critical moment.

I jumped back as the dog lunged for my leg, teeth bared and snarling. “It’s okay, Smokey, it’s okay,” I soothed as I tried to maneuver closer to the post where I had tied his leash. In the back of my head, I heard my brother’s taunts swirling around.

“A dog trainer?” he had scoffed. “What kind of person would hire you as a dog trainer?!”

I pushed the thoughts away and grasped the leash, pulling it tightly to my side as Smokey, surprised by my sudden confidence, fell into stride beside me.

3. Ask a Question

Asking a question at the beginning of your essay can activate your reader’s critical thinking and get them hungry for the answer that you won’t offer until later. Try to come up with a question that’s broad enough that they won’t know the answer right away, but specific enough that it isn’t a generic hook that could work on just any college essay.

How do you respond when you’re faced with a very real physical threat to your safety, yet you literally can’t afford to back down? This is the question I faced on my very first day as a dog trainer.

4. Use a Metaphor or Simile

A metaphor or simile can pull readers in by helping them make connections between seemingly unrelated topics or by encouraging them to think about topics from a different point of view.

Running canine obedience classes is a lot like navigating high school. It’s a dog-eat-dog world with a lot to learn, many personalities to manage, peril around every corner, and everyone anxious to graduate.

Selecting the right hook is a great first step for writing a winning college essay, but the execution is also important.

1. Narrow Down Your Scope

Sometimes the best way to tackle big projects like writing an attention-grabbing hook or captivating college essay is to think small. Narrow down on a specific incident or even a moment that leads into your topic.

It’s my first time teaching a canine obedience class. I’m surrounded by strangers and the dogs are barking so loud I can’t hear myself think, but I have a gnawing feeling that I’m losing control. I put my fingers to my lips and let out the loudest whistle I’m capable of. Suddenly there was silence.

2. Use Adjectives

Adjectives are used to add a description and make your writing clearer and more specific. In other words, they’re the details that make your writing stand out and suck readers in. Jane didn’t simply reward the dog for sitting, she…

It was a battle of wills between me and the eight-month-old Australian Shepherd—defiance was in his sparkling blue eyes, but so was desire for the bit of hot dog hiding in my hand. Reluctantly he sat, earning his treat while I claimed my alpha status.

3. Use Emotion

Use emotion to connect and entice your reader. Emotions make readers feel, pulling them into your essay, and are memorable. You can use them for everything from sharing a fact about yourself to putting the reader in your shoes.

When I was young, I would have been extremely lonely if not for my dog Trevor. I struggled to make friends and Trevor provided companionship, helped me overcome my shyness (he was a great icebreaker), and is responsible for shaping who I am today. When Trevor passed away in high school, I set out to train canine obedience and help dogs become the best versions of themselves—just like what Trevor did for me.

4. Short and Sweet

Admissions committees have a lot of essays to read, so the quicker you get to the point and capture their attention, the better.

Mere moments into my dream job, someone had already peed on the floor and another had bitten a person. Welcome to the life of a dog trainer.

5. Just Start Writing

Sometimes the hook of your college essay isn’t clear. Rather than getting hung up, start developing your essay and see if it adds clarity as to how to best implement a hook. Some students even find that it’s easiest to write a hook last, after writing the body of the personal statement.

Where to Get Feedback on Your Essay Hook

Wondering if you created an effective hook? It’s difficult to evaluate your own writing, especially a line or two you read and reworked numerous times. CollegeVine can help. Through our free Peer Essay Review tool , you can get a free review of your hook, and overall essay, from another student. Then you can pay it forward and improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays.

If you want a college admissions expert to review your essay, advisors on CollegeVine have helped students refine their writing and submit successful applications to top schools. Find the right advisor for you to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

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good hook for halloween essay

Write an Attention-Grabbing Opening Sentence for an Essay

  • M.Ed., Education Administration, University of Georgia
  • B.A., History, Armstrong State University

You can think of the first sentence of your essay as you would a fishing hook. It grabs your reader and allows you reel the person into your essay and your train of thought. The hook for your essay can be an interesting sentence that captures a person's attention, it can be thought-provoking, or even, entertaining.

The hook for your essay often appears in the first sentence . The opening paragraph includes a thesis sentence . Some popular hook choices can include using an interesting quote, a little-known fact, famous last words, or a statistic .

A quote hook is best used when you are composing an essay based on an author, story, or book. It helps establish your authority on the topic and by using someone else's quote, you can strengthen your thesis if the quote supports it.

The following is an example of a quote hook: "A man's errors are his portals of discovery." In the next sentence or two, give a reason for this quote or current example. As for the last sentence (the thesis) : Students grow more confident and self-sufficient when parents allow them to make mistakes and experience failure.

General statement

By setting the tone in the opening sentence with a uniquely written general statement of your thesis, the beauty is that you get right to the point. Most readers appreciate that approach.

For example, you can start with the following statement: Many studies show that the biological sleep pattern for teens shifts a few hours, which means teens naturally stay up later and feel alert later in the morning. The next sentence, set up the body of your essay, perhaps by introducing the concept that school days should be adjusted so that they are more in sync with the teenager's natural sleep or wake cycle. As for the last sentence (the thesis) :  If every school day started at ten o'clock, many students would find it easier to stay focused.

By listing a proven fact or entertaining an interesting statistic that might even sound implausible to the reader, you can excite a reader to want to know more. 

Like this hook: According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics , teens and young adults experience the highest rates of violent crime. Your next sentence can set up the argument that it's dangerous for teenagers to be on the streets at late hours. A fitting thesis statement might read: Parents are justified in implementing a strict curfew, regardless of a student's academic performance.

The Right Hook for Your Essay

The good news about finding a hook? You can find a quote, fact, or another type of hook after you determine your thesis. You can accomplish this with a simple online search about your topic after you've developed your essay .

You can nearly have the essay finished before you revisit the opening paragraph. Many writers polish up the first paragraph after the essay is completed.

Outlining the Steps for Writing Your Essay

Here's an example of the steps you can follow that help you outline your essay.

  • First paragraph: Establish the thesis
  • Body paragraphs: Supporting evidence
  • Last paragraph: Conclusion with a restatement of the thesis
  • Revisit the first paragraph: Find the best hook

Obviously, the first step is to determine your thesis. You need to research your topic and know what you plan to write about. Develop a starting statement. Leave this as your first paragraph for now.

The next paragraphs become the supporting evidence for your thesis. This is where you include the statistics, opinions of experts, and anecdotal information.

Compose a closing paragraph that is basically a reiteration of your thesis statement with new assertions or conclusive findings you find during with your research.

Lastly, go back to your introductory hook paragraph. Can you use a quote, shocking fact, or paint a picture of the thesis statement using an anecdote? This is how you sink your hooks into a reader.

The best part is if you are not loving what you come up with at first, then you can play around with the introduction. Find several facts or quotes that might work for you. Try out a few different starting sentences and determine which of your choices makes the most interesting beginning to your essay.

  • Examples of Great Introductory Paragraphs
  • The Ultimate Guide to the 5-Paragraph Essay
  • How to Write a Narrative Essay or Speech (With Topic Ideas)
  • How to Write a Good Thesis Statement
  • Tips for Writing a "What I Did on Vacation" Essay
  • Practice in Supporting a Topic Sentence with Specific Details
  • 100 Persuasive Essay Topics
  • How to Start a Book Report
  • What Is Expository Writing?
  • Writing an Opinion Essay
  • 501 Topic Suggestions for Writing Essays and Speeches
  • Tips on How to Write an Argumentative Essay
  • How to Write a Personal Narrative
  • How to Start an Essay: 13 Engaging Strategies
  • 50 Argumentative Essay Topics
  • An Essay Revision Checklist

How to Write a Hook that Captivates Readers

blog image

A hook is a compelling opening sentence or paragraph in an essay or article. Its purpose is to grab the readers’ attention and entice them to continue reading. A hook must evoke an emotional response or pique curiosity to keep the readers engaged.

Are you trying to figure out how to write a hook? Stick around because this blog has all the guidelines you need to write one like an expert  paper writing service  provider. So, let’s get started!

Table of Contents

Types of Hooks for Essays

Your essay or  research paper’s  hook can be in any of the five types:

Anecdotal Hook

Starting with an anecdote is a good way to keep the readers interested. Ensure that the anecdote relates to your topic and makes your readers feel like they’re part of the narrative.

For example:

“Sarah sat at the edge of the cliff. The wind whipping through her hair as she stared into the vast expanse of the Grand Canyon. Little did she know that this moment would be the catalyst for a life-changing decision.”

This hook introduces a character, Sarah, and a dramatic setting, the Grand Canyon. Doing so creates intrigue and leaves readers wondering about Sarah’s decision. Here, the reader is immediately invested in the story and eager to learn more.

Question Based Hooks

Another effective hook is to pose thought-provoking questions. This type of hook encourages readers to engage with the content right from the start actively. 

Here’s an example:

“What if everything you thought you knew about success was wrong? What if the key to achieving true fulfillment lies in embracing failure and redefining your definition of success?”

This hook presents a series of thought-provoking questions challenging the conventional wisdom about success. 

Statistical or Factual Hook

This hook type is particularly effective when the statistic or fact is relevant to the main content. 

“Did you know that 80% of New Year’s resolutions fail by February? Discover the secrets to making lasting changes and achieving your goals beyond the first month of the year.”

This hook uses a surprising statistic about the failure rate of New Year’s resolutions to capture readers’ attention. It entices readers to continue reading to uncover shared strategies and insights.

Witty or Humorous Hooks 

Humor and wit can be great ways to keep your readers interested and make their reading experience more enjoyable. If the content is funny or lighthearted, this kind of hook can grab people’s attention.

“They say the early bird catches the worm, but what about the night owls? Discover the surprising advantages of embracing your nocturnal nature and redefining productivity on your own terms.”

This hook puts a fun spin on a well-known phrase about night owls and productivity. 

Scenario Based Hook

This kind of hook appeals to their senses and feelings, establishing an instant bond.

“The sun dipped below the horizon, casting a warm, golden glow over the tranquil beach. As the waves gently lapping against the shore, a sense of peace and possibility filled the air. Beckoning those who dared to chase their dreams!

This hook paints a picture of a beautiful beach at sunset, creating a sense of tranquility and motivation. It provides a vivid image full of detail that draws readers in and captures their imaginations. 

Understanding How to Write a Killer Hook 

A hook is like a doorway to your content. It sets the tone for establishing a connection with your readers. 

It can be a stirring statement, an interesting question, an amusing anecdote, or a shocking fact.

Why is a Strong Hook Crucial in Capturing Readers’ Interest?

Having an eye-catching hook can be a major game-changer when grabbing people’s attention. It’s like a magnet, luring them in and making them want to read your writing.

If you don’t have a good hook, people might not stick around to hear what you have to say. Moreover, a strong hook also sets the tone for your entire writing. 

Examples to Understand the Impact of a Strong Hook

Compelling Statement:

“In today’s busy world, have you ever thought about how you can get more done in a shorter amount of time?”

This hook immediately grabs readers’ attention by talking about a common problem. It plays on people’s need to be more efficient and leaves them wanting to find the solution.

Thought-Provoking Question

“What if the key to happiness lies not in acquiring more, but in letting go?”

This hook gets people thinking by asking a thought-provoking question that goes against the grain. It makes readers question their own opinions and views. Luring them in to see what kind of answers the piece offers.

Intriguing Anecdote

“As the clock struck midnight, she found herself standing on the edge of a decision that would change her life forever.”

This hook straight away pulls readers into a dramatic scenario. Trying to spark their curiosity about the character’s problem. Makes them desperate to find out the results of their choice.

Surprising Fact

“Did you know that the human brain can process images 60,000 times faster than text?”

This hook throws out an unexpected and captivating fact that gets readers interested. It brings up an interesting piece of info. Also gives a hint at what more can be discovered in the rest of the article.

Pro Tips to Craft a Killer Hook

You can use the following techniques to write a killer hook.

Target Audience – Identification, Preference, and Interest

Before you write a hook, it’s important to understand your audience well.

To identify your target audience, consider the following factors:

  • Demographics: Age, gender, location, education level, occupation, etc.
  • Psychographics: Values, beliefs, hobbies, lifestyle choices, etc.
  • Behavior: Online habits, preferred platforms, browsing patterns, content consumption habits, etc.

Understanding Target Audience Preferences and Interests

After identifying your audience, it is important to know their interests. Here are some guidelines from the expert research paper writing services provider. 

Surveys and Questionnaires 

Send out surveys to your audience to get their thoughts and feelings directly. Ask what they like, what interests them, and what captures their attention. Look at the answers you get to find out what people usually think.

Social Media Listening 

Keep an eye on social media sites where your desired demographic hangs out. Check out what they’re interacting with, what they’re talking about, and the kind of lingo they use.

Effective Hook for Effective Writing

Once you’ve figured out what your audience likes and dislikes, you can craft a hook that resonates with your audience. Here are a few ideas to help you do that while writing an essay:

Pinning the Pain Points 

Identify the challenges, problems, or pain points your audience faces and address them directly in your hook. For example, “Tired of struggling to find time for self-care? Discover a simple solution that fits into your busy schedule.”

Appeal to Their Aspirations

Tap into your audience’s aspirations, goals, or desires and use them to create an emotional connection. For instance, “Imagine a life filled with adventure and travel. Uncover the secrets to fulfilling your wanderlust dreams.”

Use Their Language 

Pay attention to the language, phrases, and terminology your audience uses. Incorporate those words in your hook to make it relatable and resonate with their communication style.

Focus on Relevancy 

Ensure that your hook directly relates to the topic or content you’re offering. Make it clear how your content will provide value or satisfy their interests. For instance, 

“Discover the latest fashion trends that suit your body type perfectly.”

Create Curiosity 

Intrigue your audience by hinting at valuable insights or solutions they can expect to find in your content. Pose a question or make a statement that sparks their curiosity and leaves them wanting more.

Impactful Hook for a Perfect Write-up

Stick to these guidelines below for writing an effective hook:

Keep Your Opening Sentence Concise 

The first line of your hook matters in getting people to pay attention. Keep it short, powerful, and interesting right away. Don’t waste time with long intros or too much background info. Drop a punchy sentence that sets the tone for the rest of your content.

Consider the following example:

“Unravel the mysteries of the universe in just five simple steps.”

Creating a Sense of Curiosity or Suspense

Creating intrigue can capture your readers’ attention and keep them hooked. Think of it like this: curiosity and suspense are like bait to draw people in. 

For example, you could open with a question or Statement that will make your readers want to know more. Or you could set up a scene that creates a sense of anticipation for what comes next.

“She stood at the crossroads, a single decision separating her from the life she had always dreamed of.”

This opening sets up a suspenseful situation. Makes readers eager to find out what choice the character will make and what the consequences will be. 

Add Emotions to Evoke a Strong Reaction:

Feelings resonate with readers and get an intense response. By tapping into people’s emotions, you can create an instant link and interest.

“Heart pounding, palms sweating, she took a deep breath and stepped onto the stage. It was her moment to shine.”

It creates an emotional connection and builds anticipation as readers root for the character to do well. Stirs up many feelings and encourages readers to continue reading to find out what happens next.

Key Ingredients of a Good Hook 

While writing a hook, ensure:

Clarity and Conciseness 

Make sure the hook is simple and to the point. Cut out any extra words that could weaken its effects.

Emotional Appeal 

See if the hook gets the emotions out of the readers you want. Think about adding or making the elements stronger to get the readers feeling something.

Relevance and Connection 

Make sure the hook is closely connected to the rest of the article. Tweak the hook to strengthen the link between the start and the rest of the text.

Language and Tone 

Be mindful of the words you use, how you say it, and the type of writing in the hook. Try to make sure it’s something that your target audience will like and expect.

Common Mistakes to Avoid 

Overly long or complicated hooks.

Avoid making a hook statement overly long. Long and convoluted hooks for writing can confuse or overwhelm readers. As a result, they will lose interest before they dive into the main content.

Using Clichés or Generic Openings

Using clichés or generic openings in your hook can make it predictable and uninteresting. Generic openings fail to capture readers’ attention because they offer nothing new or intriguing.

“Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a brave hero who embarked on an epic journey to save the world from evil.”

This opening might sound familiar and reminiscent of classic fairy tales. Still, it doesn’t provide any unique or surprising elements. 

To avoid clichés and generic openings, strive for originality and fresh perspectives. Here’s a revised hook that takes a different approach:

“In the darkest corners of a forgotten realm, a reluctant outcast discovers an ancient secret that holds the power to reshape destiny.”

Failing to Deliver on the Promises Made in the Hook

When readers are hooked by an intriguing statement or a compelling question, they expect the content to deliver on those promises. Failing to do so can lead to disappointment and a loss of trust.

Ensure that the hook in essay accurately reflects the main content and sets realistic expectations for readers. Here’s an example:

“Discover the ultimate secret to becoming a millionaire in just one month!”

If the content that follows this hook doesn’t provide a legitimate and achievable path to wealth creation, readers will feel misled and may lose interest. While writing hooks, ensure that the hook’s promises align with the content and deliver valuable information or insights.

Writers need to use a catchy hook in their write-ups. It is like setting the tone for your entire piece, and it can create an emotional connection between you and your readers.

Hopefully, this blog post helped let you know how to write a hook for an essay. If you are still confused, don’t hesitate to count on the professional expertise of  our writers .

What is the purpose of hooks in writing?

How can i make my hook more captivating.

To grab people's attention with your hook;

  • Stir up the reader's curiosity
  • Paint a vivid picture in their mind
  • Ask questions that make them think and say something that piques their interest
  • keep tweaking until you get the perfect hook!

How do I ensure my hook is relevant to my content?

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  • Writing Tips

How to Write the Ultimate Essay Hook

How to Write the Ultimate Essay Hook

4-minute read

  • 6th May 2023

Never underestimate the power of an essay hook . This opening statement is meant to grab the reader’s attention and convince them to keep reading. But how do you write one that’ll pack a punch? In this article, we’ll break this down.

What Is an Essay Hook?

An essay hook is the first thing your audience will read. If it doesn’t hook them right off the bat, they might decide not to keep reading. It’s important that your opening statement is impactful while not being too wordy or presumptuous.

It’s also crucial that it clearly relates to your topic. You don’t want to mislead your readers into thinking your essay is about something it’s not. So, what kind of essay hook should you write? Here are seven ideas to choose from:

1.   Story

Everyone likes a good story. If an interesting story or anecdote relates to your essay topic, the hook is a great place to include it. For example:

The key to a good story hook is keeping it short and sweet. You’re not writing a novel in addition to an essay!

2.   Fact

Another great essay hook idea is to lay out a compelling fact or statistic. For example:

There are a few things to keep in mind when doing this. Make sure it’s relevant to your topic, accurate, and something your audience will care about. And, of course, be sure to cite your sources properly.

3.   Metaphor or Simile

If you want to get a little more creative with your essay hook, try using a metaphor or simile . A metaphor states that something is something else in a figurative sense, while a simile states that something is like something else.

Metaphors and similes are effective because they provide a visual for your readers, making them think about a concept in a different way. However, be careful not to make them too far-fetched or overly exaggerated.

4.   Question

Asking your audience a question is a great way to hook them. Not only does it make them think, but they’ll also want to keep reading because you will have sparked their curiosity. For example:

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Try to avoid using questions that start with something along the lines of “Have you ever wondered…?” Instead, try to think of a question they may never have wondered about. And be sure not to answer it right away, at least not fully. Use your essay to do that!

5.   Declaration

Making a bold statement or declaring a strong opinion can immediately catch people’s attention. For example:

Regardless of whether your reader agrees with you, they’ll probably want to keep reading to find out how you will back up your claim. Just make sure your declaration isn’t too controversial, or you might scare readers away!

6.   Common Misconception

Laying out a common misconception is another useful way to hook your reader. For example:

If your readers don’t know that a common belief is actually a misconception, they’ll likely be interested in learning more. And if they are already aware, it’s probably a topic they’re interested in, so they’ll want to read more.

7.   Description

You can put your descriptive powers into action with your essay hook. Creating interesting or compelling imagery places your reader into a scene, making the words come alive.

A description can be something beautiful and appealing or emotionally charged and provoking. Either way, descriptive writing is a powerful way to immerse your audience and keep them reading.

When writing an essay, don’t skimp on the essay hook! The opening statement has the potential to convince your audience to hear what you have to say or to let them walk away. We hope our ideas have given you some inspiration.

And once you finish writing your essay, make sure to send it to our editors. We’ll check it for grammar, spelling, word choice, references, and more. Try it out for free today with a 500-word sample !

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IMAGES

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COMMENTS

  1. 73 Essay Hook Examples (2024)

    Techniques for Good Essay Hooks. Here are a few techniques that you can use to write a good essay hook: Use a Quotation: Sometimes, a relevant quotation from a well-known author or expert can help establish the context or theme of your essay.Next time you're conducting research for an essay, keep an eye out for a really compelling quote that you could use as your hook for that essay.

  2. Halloween Essay Writing Guide: Sample Essay + 40 Topics

    Like any other essay, a Halloween paper has three parts; introduction, body and conclusion. Below is a brief description of this structure: The introduction should contain catchy facts and ideas on Halloween that would immerse the reader into your essay. The beginning can also have proverbs, citations, some wise words, or quotes on Halloween.

  3. Halloween Essay: How to Write, Topics and Essay Ideas

    Writing Halloween Essays: Way #2. Another easy and exciting way to prepare a Halloween essay is to make up a scary story. Think about a good idea for your story involving ghosts, witches, dead men. Mind that descriptions, vivid details will make your Halloween essay more impressive. Just in 1 hour!

  4. How to Write a Hook for an Essay: Guide, Tips, and Examples

    Set the Scene. When wondering how to write a good hook for an essay, consider setting the scene. Open in the middle of a key moment, plunge in with vivid details and conversation to keep your essay flowing and attract the reader. Make the reader feel like they are seeing a moment from your life and have just tuned in.

  5. 50+ Catchy Hook Examples for a Compelling Reading Experience

    Question Hook: If you're writing an art essay, philosophy paper, or business coursework, choosing a compelling and interesting question will leave the readers pondering throughout your text. The reader will automatically try to look for the answer within your research paper. Strong Statement: The opening lines can be controversial, a bold claim - the best hooks for argumentative essays are.

  6. Halloween Essay Topics

    Types of Essays: We looked at different essay styles—narrative, descriptive, and informative—and how each can bring a unique angle to your Halloween topic. Essay Topics: We provided a variety of topic ideas to inspire your writing, from spooky tales to Halloween traditions. With these points in mind, you're set to start your Halloween essay.

  7. 50 Spooky Writing Prompts and Horror Story Ideas

    These are all from my book 5,000 Writing Prompts: A Master List of Plot Ideas, Creative Exercises, and More. The book has 100 additional spooky writing prompts and horror story ideas, as well as master plots and idea starters for all kinds of writing. If you are easily scared and have an over-active imagination, just skip this one.

  8. 78 Halloween Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

    Looking for a good essay, research or speech topic on Halloween? Check our list of 76 interesting Halloween title ideas to write about! IvyPanda® Free Essays Clear

  9. How to Write a Hook (40 Good Examples)

    1) Know Your Audience. The effectiveness of your hook entirely depends on its ability to resonate with your audience. Consider their demographics, interests, and challenges. For example, a hook for a teenage fashion magazine will differ vastly from one aimed at retirees interested in financial planning.

  10. Free Essays on Halloween, Examples, Topics, Outlines

    Some Halloween essays concentrate primarily on the Celtic origins of this holiday, while other essays on Halloween explore modern-day practices and traditions. Halloween is celebrated annually on October 31. It was believed that on this day evil spirits roamed free, so people were putting on costumes to trick the spirits into leaving people ...

  11. Halloween

    18 essay samples found. Halloween, celebrated on October 31st, has ancient roots tied to the Celtic festival of Samhain, but has evolved over centuries into a holiday synonymous with costumes, trick-or-treating, and a celebration of the spooky and macabre. Essays could delve into the history of Halloween, exploring its pagan origins, its ...

  12. How to Write a Hook for an Essay

    One possible approach to this hook is the classic: "if you can't beat'em, join'em.". For example, you could always begin your literary analysis with a quote from the literature in question. You then follow this up with interesting commentary that helps to contextualize the rest of your intro.

  13. How to Write a Hook: 10 Ways to Capture Your Readers' Attention

    Writing a compelling hook takes skill. But you can use any of the following ways of writing a hook to get you started: 1. The Surprising Statistic Hook. Presenting a surprising fact or statistic is a great way to grab the attention of your audience. For example, an essay on the orphan crisis may begin with:

  14. EssayPro Blog

    Narrative Halloween Essay. Crafting a narrative Halloween essay involves recounting a series of events, whether real or imaginary. For instance, share the details of your most recent Halloween as an illustration. Alternatively, let your imagination run wild and pen a story about an encounter with a haunted house. Descriptive Halloween Essay

  15. Good Hooks for Essays: 14 Hook Ideas with Examples

    Then, spread by air molecules, it paints the sky blue. Next, we will discuss these hook types in more detail. We'll also provide essay hook examples of less common yet intriguing types: dialogue, story, contradiction, comparison, definition, metaphor, puzzle, announcement, and background information hooks.

  16. How to Write a Hook: Top 5 Tips for Writers

    Tip 5: Don't Stop at the Hook. Some writers focus so much on nailing the opening hook that they forget to make the rest of the essay equally strong. Your reader could still stop reading on the second page, or the third, or the tenth. Make sure you use strong and engaging writing throughout the piece.

  17. How to Write Great Essay Hooks (Tips + Examples)

    2. Bold claim hook. When working on an argumentative essay, I always write with the mindset that nobody has the time to read my thoughts from start to finish.So, I have to get to the point quickly and make a solid argument worth people's time.. That's when opening with a bold claim works best. Condense all your views on the topic into a few thought-provoking lines that would make readers go ...

  18. How to Write a Strong Essay Hook, With Examples

    4 Anecdote. Anecdotes are often used as hooks in personal essays. A personal story makes the essay relatable, creating familiarity with the reader that makes them want to read more. An example of an anecdote hook is a persuasive essay about rerouting traffic on campus that starts with a personal story of a vehicular close call.

  19. How to Get the Perfect Hook for Your College Essay

    5. Just Start Writing. Sometimes the hook of your college essay isn't clear. Rather than getting hung up, start developing your essay and see if it adds clarity as to how to best implement a hook. Some students even find that it's easiest to write a hook last, after writing the body of the personal statement.

  20. How to Write the Hook of an Essay

    Here's an example of the steps you can follow that help you outline your essay. First paragraph: Establish the thesis. Body paragraphs: Supporting evidence. Last paragraph: Conclusion with a restatement of the thesis. Revisit the first paragraph: Find the best hook. Obviously, the first step is to determine your thesis.

  21. How to Write a Hook

    Types of Hooks for Essays. Your essay or research paper's hook can be in any of the five types: Anecdotal Hook. Starting with an anecdote is a good way to keep the readers interested. Ensure that the anecdote relates to your topic and makes your readers feel like they're part of the narrative. For example: "Sarah sat at the edge of the cliff.

  22. How to Write the Ultimate Essay Hook

    Here are seven ideas to choose from: 1. Story. Everyone likes a good story. If an interesting story or anecdote relates to your essay topic, the hook is a great place to include it. For example: In January 2023, two children were playing outside in a Los Angeles neighborhood.