1. Writing with Style
Chapter 3:
Openers

2. The challenge:
You have 3-4 sentences maximum to gain the reader’s interest and attention.
Your boredom is revealed right away if you:
show unwillingness to use your imagination
show indifference towards the reader
show that you are unclear in your thinking

3. A good opener… Has a good thesis– bold, fresh, clearly focused
Uses a direct, “front-door” approach:
Shows assurance, eagerness to share opinion
Shows that authors know what they think, and why they think it.
Example: p. 26-7

4. A weak opener… May give a boring or unrelated plot summary
Example: p. 27
May show the art of saying nothing profoundly
Example: p. 28
Shows use of the “back-door approach”

5. The back-door approach shows…
The writer has trouble formulating a point of view, little to argue, and little reason to argue.
The writer is still preoccupied with getting ideas on paper instead of showing consideration of the reader.
The writer does not write for a well-informed reader but instead for a vague, general audience, which leads to padding (= non-essential information, wordiness, b.s.).
Example: p. 28 (top)

6. Final tips
Read pages 29-31