Hooking Your Reader

Great story openings that keep readers turning the page

Series 1 | Lesson 2

Creators | Mat Larkin & Lili Wilkinson

How do attention-seeking authors grab readers from the first page?

Hear all about brilliant opening lines and gripping first-page action. And we’ll learn how storytellers create amazing beginnings that make us HUNGRY to turn the page!

Key Concepts:

Different tools for students to approach the beginnings of their stories
Focus on writing engaging first lines and opening paragraphs

Takeaways:

Techniques for grabbing their readers’ attention
Guidelines of what to consider, and what to avoid, when writing story openings

Resources for Hooking Your Reader

Resources include lesson plans for middle and upper primary students, each with their own activities and supporting resources.

Different ways which to make readers sit up and take notice
How to keep readers hooked on the story
Re-write a story opening to make it more attention-grabbing

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"If you're looking for some additional resources for your classroom, check these out…these are a great addition to the already well-loved product."

- Karys, Secondary educator

About Hooking Your Reader Creators

Mat Larkin

Mat writes children’s adventure stories with heart.

After starting out on the Zac Power junior fiction series, his debut middle-grade novel, The Orchard Underground, was voted Best Children’s Book of 2018 by Readings Books customers.

Mat lives on Wurundjeri land in Naarm-Melbourne. He’s working on more books, and for the last time, he didn’t invent chips.

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Lili Wilkinson

Lili is the author of sixteen books, including Green Valentine, After the Lights Go Out and Clancy the Quokka.

Lili has a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Melbourne, and now spends most of her time reading and writing books for teenagers.

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