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Writing ■ Developing the First Draft

Carefully develop each part of your essay, following these guidelines.

Beginning ■ The beginning should grab your reader’s attention and state your thesis. Begin your essay with one of the attention-getting ideas that follow. Then write your thesis statement using the formula below as a guide.

• Start with an amazing fact:
  

  The first record of the northern lights comes in a 30,000-year-old cave painting in France.

• Start with a powerful anecdote:
  

  Imagine being a Viking warrior after battle and seeing the Valkyries sweep down to carry your fallen friends away. . . .

• Start with an intriguing question:
  

  Have you ever seen the glowing curtain of our planetary defense?