How to HOOK Your Audience (Writing Advice)

Summary

In this informative video, author Brandon McNulty explores the concept of narrative hooks, essential for engaging an audience from the start. He defines hooks, discusses their importance in storytelling, and provides strategies for effective use. McNulty illustrates his points with examples from films like 'The Thing' and 'Breaking Bad,' offering tips to avoid common pitfalls in creating compelling openings. His insights aim to guide writers in crafting stories that captivate and maintain audience interest throughout.

Takeaways

• 📚 A hook is a narrative device designed to grab the audience's attention and invest them in the story.
• 🎬 Hooks can be placed at the beginning of the story, at the start of subplots, or at the opening of scenes.
• ❓ Raising questions in the audience's mind is an effective way to hook them.
• 😲 Surprising or shocking events can serve as strong hooks.
• 🤝 Establishing a strong emotional connection with the protagonist helps in hooking the audience.
• ⚔️ Showing conflicting ideas or emotions creates tension and hooks the audience.
• 🚀 Starting the story in the middle of dramatic action (in medias res) can be an effective hook.
• 📝 It's important to open with a strong hook but smaller hooks throughout the story are also effective.
• 🔀 Combining multiple types of hooks strategically can create a greater impact.
• 🚫 Avoid too much description, info-dumping, or overwhelming the audience with too many hooks at once.

Q & A

What is a narrative hook?

A narrative hook is a device used to grab the audience's attention and get them invested in the story. It may or may not be the story's inciting incident, which is an event toward the beginning that shakes up the main character's world.

Can a story have multiple hooks?

Yes, a story can have multiple hooks. These can appear at the opening of the story, the beginning of a subplot, or at various scenes throughout the story.

What is the primary purpose of a narrative hook?

The primary purpose of a narrative hook is to grab the audience's attention and keep them engaged in the story.

How can raising questions act as a narrative hook?

Raising questions puts intriguing thoughts in the audience's mind, making them curious about what will happen next in the story.

What is an example of a narrative hook from the movie 'The Thing'?

In 'The Thing,' the opening scene features a helicopter chasing and shooting at a dog, raising questions about why the dog is being hunted and what will happen if it isn't killed.

How can showing something surprising or shocking serve as a hook?

Showing something surprising or shocking grabs the audience's attention with a punch, making them eager to understand the unexpected event.

What is an example of a surprising narrative hook from the movie 'Frailty'?

In 'Frailty,' the opening scene where a man claims to know who a serial killer is and reveals it's his brother creates a surprising and engaging hook.

How can establishing an emotional connection to the protagonist serve as a hook?

Establishing an emotional connection by showing the protagonist's suffering, sacrifices, or private moments can make the audience sympathize and root for the character.

What is an example of an emotional narrative hook from the movie 'Joker'?

In 'Joker,' Arthur Fleck being attacked and beaten while trying to recover his stolen sign makes the audience sympathize with him and wonder how he will respond.

What is in medias res and how does it serve as a narrative hook?

In medias res is a technique where the story starts in the middle of dramatic action, immersing the audience in high-stakes conflict from the beginning, which can effectively capture their interest.

What are some strategies for using narrative hooks effectively?

Effective strategies include opening with a strong hook, building toward a major hook with smaller ones, scattering hooks throughout the story, raising new questions as old ones are resolved, and combining different types of hooks strategically.

Why should writers avoid too much description or info dumping at the beginning of a story?

Too much description or info dumping can overwhelm the audience and detract from engaging them in the characters and their goals. It's better to introduce details gradually after the audience is invested.

What is a common pitfall when using multiple hooks in a story?

A common pitfall is overwhelming the audience with too many hooks, which can cause confusion and dilute the impact of the story's engaging elements.

What should writers consider when opening a story with action scenes?

When opening with action scenes, it's crucial to provide context and stakes to ensure the audience cares about the action and understands its significance.

How can vague or inconsistent openings negatively impact a story?

Vague or inconsistent openings can confuse or bore the audience, making it hard for them to understand the story's direction or feel compelled to continue watching or reading.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Introduction to Narrative Hooks

In this introductory paragraph, the speaker, Brandon McNulty, sets the stage for a discussion on narrative hooks. He introduces himself as an author and the channel's focus on writing. The main topic is narrative hooks, with an explanation of what they are and their purpose in storytelling. Hooks are narrative devices designed to capture the audience's attention and engage them in the story. The speaker outlines the structure of the video, which includes defining a hook, exploring ways to use them to grab attention, providing strategies for their effective use, and warning against improper use. Examples from various movies are promised to illustrate these points.

05:01

🎬 Techniques for Capturing Audience Attention

This paragraph delves into the various techniques for capturing an audience's attention using narrative hooks. The speaker discusses five main methods: raising questions to pique curiosity, showing surprising or shocking events, establishing an emotional connection with the protagonist, presenting conflicting ideas or emotions to create tension, and starting the story in the middle of dramatic action. Each method is exemplified with a movie reference, such as 'The Thing' for raising questions, 'Frailty' for surprising revelations, 'The Joker' for emotional connection, 'Gran Torino' for conflicting emotions, and 'in medias res' technique illustrated by 'Breaking Bad'. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of a strong opening but also notes that hooks can be effectively used throughout the story.

10:03

📝 Tips for Using Narrative Hooks in Storytelling

The speaker provides five practical tips for employing narrative hooks in storytelling. The first tip is to start the story with a strong hook. If that's not possible, the second tip suggests building towards a major hook with smaller ones along the way, as demonstrated in 'The Menu'. The third tip advises against limiting hooks to the beginning, suggesting their use throughout the story, including when introducing subplots or side characters, with '1408' as an example. The fourth tip is about raising new questions once old ones are resolved, as seen in 'Alien'. The fifth tip is about combining multiple types of hooks for greater impact, using 'Breaking Bad' as a successful example. The paragraph concludes with a caution against overwhelming the audience with too many hooks at once, as seen in the movie 'Neza'.

❌ Common Mistakes to Avoid When Using Hooks

In the final paragraph, the speaker outlines common mistakes to avoid when crafting narrative hooks. These include excessive description or info dumping at the beginning, which can bury the audience in details without engaging them with characters or goals. Overwhelming the audience with too many hooks is also cautioned against, as seen in the chaotic opening of 'Neza'. Starting with action scenes lacking context or stakes is another pitfall, especially in novels where the reader needs a reason to care about the action. Vague or inconsistent openings that leave the audience confused or bored are highlighted, using the 'Justice League' theatrical cut as an example. The speaker emphasizes the need for clarity and effectiveness in the opening scene to ensure the audience's engagement.

Keywords

💡Narrative Hooks

Narrative hooks are storytelling devices designed to capture the audience's attention right at the start of a story. They are integral to engaging readers or viewers and setting the tone for what's to come. In the video, the concept is explored through various examples from films, illustrating how different hooks like raising questions or showing surprising events can immediately draw in the audience.

💡Inciting Incident

The inciting incident is an event that occurs near the beginning of a story and serves as the catalyst for the protagonist's journey. It disrupts the character's world and propels them into the main narrative. The video mentions that while a hook can be the inciting incident, they are not always the same; a story might have multiple hooks but only one inciting incident.

💡Raising Questions

Raising questions is a technique used to pique the audience's curiosity about future events in the story. By presenting something unusual or interesting without immediate explanation, the storyteller creates a sense of mystery that keeps the audience engaged. The video uses 'The Thing' as an example, where a helicopter chasing a dog raises numerous questions, compelling viewers to continue watching.

💡Surprising Revelations

Surprising revelations are unexpected plot twists or disclosures that shock the audience and add a layer of intrigue to the story. In the context of the video, 'Frailty' is cited as an example where the protagonist's brother is revealed to be a serial killer, an unexpected twist that immediately captures the audience's interest.

💡Emotional Connection

Establishing an emotional connection with the protagonist is a way to ensure the audience feels invested in the character's journey. By showing the character in moments of suffering or sacrifice, the audience is more likely to empathize and become emotionally invested. The video references 'Joker', where Arthur Fleck's struggle as a clown being beaten up creates an immediate emotional bond with the audience.

💡Conflicting Ideas

Conflicting ideas or emotions are used to create tension within a story. This tension arises when opposing emotions or values are juxtaposed, signaling that conflict is imminent. In the video, 'Gran Torino' is mentioned, where the main character's sorrow at a funeral clashes with his family's indifference, setting up the story's conflict.

💡In Meduis Race

In medius race is a Latin term meaning 'into the middle of things' and refers to starting a story in the midst of the action. This technique drops the audience into a high-stakes situation, creating immediate tension and engagement. The video explains that this method can be effective but requires careful execution to ensure the audience understands the context and stakes involved.

💡Info Dumping

Info dumping is the act of providing excessive background information or details at once, often overwhelming the audience. The video warns against this practice, emphasizing the importance of engaging the audience with characters and their goals before delving into the intricacies of the story world.

💡Overwhelming the Audience

Overwhelming the audience refers to the pitfall of introducing too many hooks or plot elements at once, which can lead to confusion. The video uses 'Neza' as an example, where an overload of information in the opening minutes can disorient viewers and detract from the story's appeal.

💡Contextual Action

Contextual action is action that is meaningful and relevant to the story, providing a reason for the audience to care about what is happening. The video advises caution in starting a novel with action scenes, emphasizing the need for context and stakes to ensure the audience is invested in the outcome.

💡Vague Openings

Vague openings are introductory scenes that lack clarity or purpose, potentially leaving the audience confused or disinterested. The video cites the theatrical cut of 'Justice League' as an example, where a disjointed opening scene fails to engage the audience and establish a compelling hook.

Highlights

Introduction to the topic of narrative hooks and their importance in engaging an audience.

Definition of a hook as a narrative device to grab audience attention and potentially invest them in the story.

Explanation of how a hook may or may not be the story's inciting incident.

Discussion on the possibility of having multiple hooks throughout a story.

Strategy of raising questions in the audience's mind to create curiosity.

Use of surprising or shocking elements as a method to grab attention, exemplified by the movie 'Frailty'.

Establishing a strong emotional connection with the protagonist as a hook, demonstrated in 'The Joker'.

Creating tension through conflicting ideas or emotions, as shown in 'Gran Torino'.

The technique of starting a story in the middle of dramatic action, or 'in medias res'.

Tip to open a story with a strong, impactful hook for immediate audience engagement.

Suggestion to build towards a major hook with smaller ones if a strong opening hook is not feasible.

Advice against limiting hooks to the beginning of the story, advocating for their use throughout.

Importance of raising new questions when old ones are resolved to maintain audience interest.

Recommendation to combine multiple types of hooks for a greater impact, using 'Breaking Bad' as an example.

Warning against overwhelming the audience with too much description or info dumping at the start.

Caution against using too many hooks at once, which may lead to audience confusion.

Advice to avoid starting a story with action scenes that lack context or stakes.

Warning against vague or inconsistent openings that may bore or confuse the audience, using 'Justice League' as an example.

Final advice to focus on a clear and effective hook to engage the audience from the start.

Transcripts

get ready because today we're going to

discuss what it takes to win your

audience over and keep them on board by

the way my name is Brandon McNulty I'm

the author of bad parts also the author

of Entry wounds and welcome to my

writing channel one of my subscribers

requested a video on the topic of

narrative hooks how to use them and how

not to use them so what we're going to

do today we're going to start off by

answering the question what is a hook

then we'll explore different ways to

grab your audience's attention and I'll

give you some strategies for using Hooks

and I'll also wrap things up with a

warning on how not to hook your audience

I'll also be giving examples from

several different movies today I'll put

them all up on your screen most of these

examples are going to focus on things

that happen at the very beginning of the

stories but if you are concerned about

spoilers just keep this list in mind all

right now let's answer the question what

is a hook and a hook is a narrative

device that grabs the audience's

attention and gets them invested in the

story and it may or may not be your

story's inciting incident and the

inciting incident of course it's an

event toward the beginning of the story

that shakes up your main character's

world and sends them on their Story

Journey that may be the hook in your

story or you may have a hook before that

you may have several hooks throughout

the story and that's another thing to

keep in mind you can have multiple hooks

you can have a hook at the opening of

the story then maybe at the opening of a

subplot the opening of one scene or

several scenes there are a lot of

different times you can use hooks you

don't have to limit them to the very

beginning of a store now as I mentioned

the main purpose of a narrative Hook is

to grab the audience's attention and now

I want to share with you a few different

ways of doing this first way is by

raising questions putting questions in

your audience's head making them curious

about what will happen down the line and

this is the best way to get their

attention you want to show the audience

something interesting or unusual that

Spurs their curiosity and makes them

wonder what will happen later on in the

story a great example of this comes from

the 1982 movie The Thing and this movie

opens with a scene where a helicopter is

flying over Antarctica and it's tracking

down a dog and the people inside the

helicopter are shooting at the doctor

trying to kill it and this scene raises

a lot of questions because nothing is

explained to us we're just left with the

image of these people trying to kill the

dog and we're wondering why is this dog

so important why are those people trying

to kill it what will happen if they

don't kill it second way to grab an

audience is by showing something

surprising or shocking this works

basically the same way as raising

questions but it has more of a punch to

it an example of this comes from the

2001 movie Frailty and this one opens up

with an FBI agent who is in the midst of

an investigation he's trying to track

down a serial killer known as the gods

hand killer and the FBI agent he returns

to his office and he finds a mysterious

man waiting there for him and this man

says that he knows who the Killer is and

then the two characters have this

exchange listen this may sound a little

bit crazy but

I know who the goddamn killer is nobody

just walks into the office and tells you

who the Killer is it just doesn't happen

that way

sometimes truth defies reason agent

don't yeah

so who is it then

my brother so the Revelation here is a

surprising one and it lights up the

story right at the start it puts

questions in the audience's head who is

this mysterious man what is it that he

wants why is he willing to reveal his

brother's involvement and then those

questions get answered over the course

of the movie third way to grab an

audience you establish a strong

emotional connection to the protagonist

and this usually means that you'll show

characters suffering or making

sacrifices or experiencing a private

moment we see this in the opening of The

Joker movie Arthur Fleck is trying to

make a living as a clown who Twirls a

sign on the sidewalk then he gets his

sign taken away from him he tries to

recover it but then he gets attacked and

beaten up and it's a hook that makes us

sympathize with the character and it

also makes us wonder how the character

will react going forward another way to

grab your audience's attention is by

showing conflicting ideas or emotions

and this is how you create tension in

your story and a great example of this

comes from the movie Gran Torino if you

remember at the very beginning there's

that serious setting where are in the

church there's a funeral mass being held

and we see the main character Walt

Kowalski he's mourning the loss of his

wife then his family disrespects him

they show up late they're dressed

inappropriately they're bad-mouthing him

behind his back and these clashing

emotions Walt being sorrowful while his

family is indifferent this creates

tension and signals that there's plenty

of conflict yet to come and then one

last way to grab your audience's

attention is by starting the story in

the middle of dramatic action this is

called in medius race and this is where

your story is already in motion you drop

your audience into a tense moment and

you're right there alongside the

characters experiencing some high

conflict high stakes okay so we talked

about different ways of grabbing your

audience's attention now let's shift

gears and focus on five tips five simple

yet effective tips for using narrative

hooks in your stories and the first tip

is to open your story right off the bat

with a strong impactful hook if you're

writing a novel find a way to get a

strong hook in your opening chapter your

opening page or even your open line and

if you're writing a movie a TV show or

something similar find a way to get an

impactful hook in your opening scene or

even your opening image tip number two

if for some reason you can't open up

your story with a strong impactful hook

then build toward one with smaller hooks

along the way an example of this comes

from the 2022 movie the menu and this

one opens up with a conversation between

two people who are about to visit an

exclusive restaurant that's on a private

island and the two characters Tyler and

Margo they're about to board a boat

Tyler is a huge food Enthusiast he can't

wait to go to this restaurant and he

invites Margo along as his date now

Margo on the other hand she doesn't

really care about fancy food at all and

in this case she's a total Outsider and

it creates tension here because we have

a situation where their attitudes over

food Clash so that's your small hook at

the very start later we get another

small Hook when everyone is checking in

we see that Margot isn't Tyler's

designated guest welcome to Hawthorne Mr

Ledford and Miss Westervelt

um sorry yeah no that was uh it's not

miss what the change of plans so miss

Westervelt this is Miss

I'm Marco this is an awkward moment that

builds an emotional connection to the

character it once again establishes her

as an outsider which works as a small

hook and then once they get to the

restaurant we get a major hook the

mysterious celebrity chef who runs the

island he notices Margot and reacts as

though he's alarmed by her presence and

it raises some serious questions and it

propels the story forward tip number

three don't limit hooks to the very

beginning of your story oftentimes

you'll hear people say that the

beginning of a story needs to hook the

audience and that's true but you can

also have hooks scattered throughout

your story sometimes you can even use

them when you're introducing a side

character or a subplot an example of

this comes from the movie 1408 and this

is about a man who doesn't believe in

the Supernatural and he does he goes to

various haunted locations and writes

books about them and then he receives a

postcard daring him to visit a haunted

hotel room in New York City and he takes

up the challenge and then right before

he leaves for New York City we get a

subplot Hook when his editor talks to

him over the phone yeah uh the more

personal though

are you sure you want to come here yeah

of course it'll make a solid closing

chapter of the book yeah yeah I know the

routine but

I mean it's New York

all that happened you really want to put

yourself through that so this is a minor

hook but it's an effective one and it

sets up the emotional heart of the story

tip number four when one question gets

resolved raise another one and this goes

back to the idea of scattering hooks

throughout your story an example of this

comes from the movie Alien if you

remember early on there is a major Hook

when the Facehugger creature latches on

to Kane's face and this raises all sorts

of questions like what is that thing on

Kane's face what is it doing to him why

won't it let go then eventually it does

let go and then that raises the question

well what was the whole point of all

that and then in the middle of the story

we get our answer with the chest burster

scene and then beyond that there are

still more questions where did that

chest burster creature go and then

what's going to happen next how are the

heroes going to resolve this issue how

are they going to stop the alien and

then the fifth tip strategically combine

multiple types of hooks I'm not saying

throw every single type into your story

or every single type into your opening

scene but in some cases you can combine

multiple types of hooks in order to get

a greater impact an example of this

would come from Breaking Bad in the very

first scene of Breaking Bad it drops us

into the middle of dramatic action as

Walt is driving away and then he ends up

crashing his vehicle and we see unusual

things like Walt wearing a mask and

driving around in his underwear and then

there's strong emotion when Walt

nervously addresses his family through a

video recording and finally the scene

ends with Walt pointing his gun in the

direction of approaching Sirens which

raises tons of questions like what's

going to happen next how will this guy

get out of this mess and why is he even

here in the first place okay now before

we wrap up this video I want to give you

some quick tips on how not to hook your

audience and these are some things you

want to avoid doing especially at the

very beginning of the story the first

thing to avoid is too much description

or info dumping most audiences do not

want to get buried under a pile of

details at the start of a story instead

get your audience invested in the

characters and their goals once you've

established the characters then you can

start unloading heavy details and

describing the history of your story

world second thing you want to avoid is

overwhelming your audience and when you

start a story there's going to be a

temptation to use a ton of different

hooks in order to find something that

works something that actually grabs the

audience but you need to be selective

you can't just throw everything you can

at them and if you do you may end up

confusing or overwhelming people an

example of this comes from the 2019

movie Neza and this one opens up with an

info dump about a special item known as

the chaos Pearl then we get introduced

to two Side characters who battle the

chaos Pearl and then there's fast-paced

action there's magic there's humor

there's backstory there's a wizard

master who saves the day and then the

cast Pro gets divided into two parts

before we get another info dump that

sets up the main storyline and the thing

is there's just too much going on in the

span of three minutes and thankfully the

movie gets better once it settles down

but the hectic opening can create a lot

of confusion now as I mentioned there's

nothing wrong with combining multiple

hooks like in the breaking bad example I

gave you however that example works

because it keeps things so simple it

focuses strictly on Walt and his

immediate situation Neza on the other

hand hits us with a whirlwind of

information right at the start and some

of the most interesting details get

buried among others another thing to

avoid is opening up your story with

action scenes that don't have context or

Stakes now movies and TV can get away

with this if they're visually stylish

but if you're writing a novel be careful

if you're starting things off with tons

of action it's critical that you give us

a reason to care about the action that's

happening don't just show us a bunch of

explosions or gunshots or swinging

swords answer the question why should we

care and then the last thing to avoid is

vague or inconsistent openings and

sometimes a writer will start a story

with a scene that tries to be clever but

in the end it only leaves the audience

feeling bored or confused it's important

to consider what types of questions you

want to put in your audience's heads

when that opening scene ends you want

them wondering what will happen next you

don't want them wondering what did they

just watch an example of this comes from

the movie Justice League the theatrical

cut and this one opens up with a kid

interviewing Superman on a cell phone

and this scene is just weird it the tone

the direction the purpose is just all

over the place and it's hard to know how

to feel after watching this intro it

definitely doesn't hook the audience and

in most cases it's only going to

alienate them so when you are coming up

with your intro scene try and settle on

one good hook if you want to include

some others like in Breaking Bad you can

do that as well but at least focus on

getting a clear effective hook in there

as long as you get your audience on

board you can have success with your

story so I hope this helps question of

the day what is your favorite movie and

at what point did it grab your attention

let us know in the comments section

below thank you for watching if you want

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