Rewrite exercise
Open with people reacting to a story before revealing the story.
Test your versionHenry James · 1898 · Project Gutenberg #209
The Turn of the Screw
The story had held us, round the fire, sufficiently breathless, but except the obvious remark that it was gruesome.
hook Strength48
curiosity Gap44
mobile Readability54
shareability44
Pattern
Nested audience reaction before the story proper.
The first proof is not the ghost. It is the listeners’ reaction. That borrowed fear tells the reader how to receive the coming account.
What to keep
- - A specific signal such as a time, number, place, or name makes it easier to remember.