Everyone knows how important the right headline is … I’ve spent time on this before, and I will again. But I love writing letter openings…

The first line after "Dear Friend" is where I could easily spend
hours. I’ll write portions of the letter and then make a note about the
opening line. I’ll craft the BRC and if inspired, go back to the
opening line.

Sometimes, I’ll write the opening first and the letter can easily just flow out of me from there.

Perhaps it’s from my brief career as a stand-up comic. What you say
to the audience, those first words to a joke or story, will set the
tone for everything else. There’s no HEADLINE in comedy, so everything
hinges on how you open.

Today, I read this and just loved it … "Space smells like ‘a burned almond cookie’ …"

This
was written by Anousheh Ansari, the first female space tourist, in her
blog. It’s a perfect opening line to the rest of her post. Arresting.
Visual. Visceral. And I could smell that smell as I read the words. I’ll never think about space, the final frontier, the same way. Ever.

Brilliant. One of my other favorite openers was written by the journalist, Russell Baker, in his memoir, Growing Up. I can’t find the exact quote, but it read something like, "My mother’s mind wandered freely, unfettered and …" It was so beautifully crafted that I read it dozens of times before I moved on to the next page.

Maven’s Maxim
Think about your opening and spend time crafting it. Ask a provocative question. Make a provocative statement. You’ll have your reader riveted and hanging on every word. 

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