ESTABLISHES THE TONE OF THE PASSAGE.KIND OF SITES YOU ARE TALKING A...

3. establishes the tone of the passage.kind of sites you are talking about—or even that theyhave been on the Internet. You will need to brieflydescribe those sites to give your readers sufficient context.

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Techniques to grab attention include opening with:Many of the same introductory techniques can beused to help make conclusions memorable:

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a question

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a quotation

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a surprising fact or statement

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an anecdote

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an imaginary situation or scenario

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a prediction

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a solution or recommendation

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interesting background information

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a call to action

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a new twist on a familiar phraseFor example, the conclusion to an essay about aFor example, a more attention-grabbing introductionhealthy diet might end with a call to action:to the Batman passage in the pretest might be somethinglike the following:Take a good, long look in your refrigerator andPow! Bam! Zap! Batman triumphs again, savingpantry. What unhealthy foods call your icebox andcabinets their home? Find them, get rid of them,the citizens of Gotham City from evil.and stock up on foods that will help you live alonger, healthier life.This opening plays upon a convention of comic stripsand the Batman television series. And because it isunique and action-filled, it generates interest and excite-

E f f e c t i v e E s s a y s a n d

ment in the reader.

t h e W r i t i n g P r o c e s s

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^ONCLUSIONS

Conclusions, too, should be powerful. After all, peopleExperienced writers know that good writing doesn’t hap-pen all at once. Rather, it develops in stages. That’stend to remember most what comes first and last, andbecause writing is a process, not just a product. And it’sthe final words have the power to ring in readers’ ears fora long time afterward. A good conclusion will:difficult to get a good product without going througheach step in the writing process.