Visionary Writing Techniques #007
by John Onorato
When writing pieces for an audience — any audience — introductions and conclusions are important.
Why? Because your message is important. As a coach, you want people to hear your message. As ambassadors of Earthwaking University, whose mission it is to wake up the world, it’s important for people to hear your messages of Love, Light, and Connection.
And repetition gets the point across. Therefore, when preparing a message for an audience, it is vital to:
- Tell people what you’re going to tell them (introduction and provide context)
- Tell them (get your message across)
- Tell them what you just told them (conclusion, takeaway, and Call To Action)
In this Visionary Writing Techniques piece, I’m going to talk about introductions and conclusions.
Why Intros and Conclusions?
Intros and conclusions are different parts of the same puzzle.
Another way to think of introductions and conclusions is as “framing” for your essay.
Just as a beautiful frame enhances the beauty of a picture contained within it, proper framing enriches the content inside.
Good framing helps your reader better understand your essay.
An introduction prepares your reader to ingest the ideas within your article. It gives them some idea of what to expect.
A conclusion reminds your reader about important key points from your essay. It also gives you a chance to leave a lasting impression on your reader. When you tell them what you’d like them to get from your efforts, that’s your takeaway.
Grabbing Attention
Nearly each moment of every day, there are at least a thousand things competing for our attention.
Therefore, the first few lines of your introduction are critical.
Why should anyone read your piece, when there is a plethora of other articles on the same subject?
Think of your first few lines as a “hook.” Your hook grabs the attention of your readers. It also serves to introduce the general topic.
Just as there are many different ways to catch fish, there are many ways to write good hooks. Here are a few suggestions:
- Tell your reader about a common misconception regarding your topic
- Give your reader a humorous short story (or anecdote) which captures your topic
- Share an interesting statistic or fact
- Set the scene for the rest of the story: Who, what, where, when, why, how?
- Ask a rhetorical question (a question intended to make a point or to create dramatic effect)
Your Final Thoughts
As with introductions, conclusions can be presented in many ways.
Use the last few lines of your essay for your concluding remarks.
Use your conclusion to remind your reader of how the evidence you’ve provided contributes to your topic. What’s the scoop — what’s your take on the larger implications of your topic?
Another approach is to broaden your focus. Your last sentence can provide your reader with material to think about, or remind them of a concept illuminated by your preceding words.
Rather than merely summarizing the key points of your piece, recommend a specific course of action. Warn your readers of the possible consequences of not addressing the issue you talk about.
You can also use the last few lines to drive your point home. Give your reader a quotation to lend authority to the conclusion you’ve reached. Or provide a startling fact or statistic which illustrates your point.
Relevant narrative drawn from your own life experience is also a good thing to include here.
You can also “come full circle”: If you used a quotation, anecdote, or other example in your introduction, return to it in your conclusion. Add some additional inside which comes from the body of your piece.
In Conclusion
Clearly, introductions and conclusions are linked closely. The techniques I’ve outlined for introductions also work in conclusions, and vice versa.
Remember the musical analogy I used in VWT #004, “Read Your Own Writing”? Your essay is a symphony made of words all working together to create a whole more magnificent than any one piece taken by itself. An introduction can be thought of as an “intro” to that song, and the conclusion the “outro.”
With a beautiful frame, you’ll have a beautiful message. Think of an introduction as part of the puzzle which includes the body and your conclusion, and you’ll have an easier time writing.
