In Search of Better Introductions

In Search of Better Introductions

I couldn’t watch another minute of the movie. Because I had this idea next, related to a classic writing tip: Go back to the movie you were watching and see if you paused it at 20-minutes in. The 20-minutes-in theory Since I’m not the first, and I won’t be the last, fickle airplane movie watcher, I returned to In Search of Fellini and had two options on my screen: Resume Playing Start from the Beginning I tapped “Resume Playing” and to my delight, I had paused the movie at 20 minutes and 33 seconds. The first scene should have been the one the writer chose to insert at 20 minutes into the story. All talk, no action I watched 20 minutes of backstory about Lucy and Claire — and I didn’t care about them at all. For the writer’s characters to hold my attention, I needed to see action immediately. By the time the action started in the movie, the only action I wanted to take was … turn it off. All those details make the story richer, but they have to be inserted with care and precision. Try this article introduction challenge I loved how this experience reminded me of the importance of action in our writing. Don’t save your best part for “20 minutes into your article.” What “action” do they need to see now that will allow them to care into the future?

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In Search of Better Introductions

Pause. I couldn’t watch another minute of the movie.

It was a 10-hour flight, though, so I had to find something else to do …

Fidgeted in my seat a bit. Let out a loud sigh to see if it would get my boyfriend’s attention.

Nope. He was heavily involved in watching Tomb Raider (2018) and eating our last airplane meal with a spork.

We were on our way home from two weeks in Japan, and my writer instincts must have then sensed I’d be back to work soon.

Because I had this idea next, related to a classic writing tip:

Go back to the movie you were watching and see if you paused it at 20-minutes in.

The 20-minutes-in theory

Since I’m not the first, and I won’t be the last, fickle airplane movie watcher, I returned to In Search of Fellini and had two options on my screen:

  • Resume Playing
  • Start from the Beginning

I tapped “Resume Playing” and to my delight, I had paused the movie at 20 minutes and 33 seconds.

And it wasn’t because the plot was getting boring at this point — it was actually getting interesting — but the prior 20 minutes of backstory was boring.

The first scene should have been the one the writer chose to insert at 20 minutes into the story.

All talk, no action

I watched 20 minutes of backstory about Lucy and Claire — and I didn’t care about them at all.

I…

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