My wonderful eight year old niece, Daisy, was given some of the best writing advice that I’ve ever heard. Her teacher assigned an essay about a personal historical event. Daisy faithfully reported back on a time that one of her much older siblings (you know who you are) hid behind bushes and jumped out to scare her. The piece started with the basics: When, Who, What, Where.
Ms. Stewart suggested that she rewrite it, unburying the lede. Daisy’s final draft started with a rhetorical question that had previously come later in the piece.
“Shouldn’t brothers be illegal in the United States of America?”
Boom, lesson learned.