Article Intros: 3 Reader’s Digest-Inspired Frameworks For Writing An Epic Opening

And How You Can Train ChatGPT To Write Them For You

Did you know you can find all our ChatGPT prompts in one place?

Each week we update our Prompt Vault so you can create viral-worthy content, build an engaged audience, and grow your digital business—10x faster. Bookmark it now—and never miss out on our new frameworks.

---

Ahoy, Digital Writers!

Today we want to give you 3 Reader's Digest-inspired formulas for crafting killer introductions using ChatGPT!

Here’s the thing:

A mediocre introduction is a death sentence for your content.

No matter how groundbreaking the rest of your writing. You may as well not have written anything at all. Harsh? Maybe. Necessary to hear? Absolutely.

You've got .5 seconds to yank the reader down the page.

Fail, and you're throwing your hard work into a black hole. Once you’ve hooked the reader with a headline and poked their curiosity with a single sentence opener, you want the reader thinking:

“This is something I can't afford to ignore!”

Your intro sets the stage for everything you write.

But…

Crafting The Perfect Intro Is A Losing Battle—When You Don’t Know Where To Start

Most writers make a huge mistake by diving straight in, hoping inspiration will strike mid-sentence. Others recycle clichés, thinking familiarity will do the trick.

Neither of these work.

Which is why inside Ship 30 for 30 we teach you how to “assemble” your writing first. And only after you’ve done the thinking, do you come back and color in the lines, write your introduction, and elaborate on each main point with examples, tips, stories, lessons, etc.

So, let’s assume you’ve got a working title and you know the main points you want to cover.

How To Lay Down A Solid Intro (At Lightning Speed)

Don’t re-invent the wheel!

Study the titans of industry:

• "The Atlantic"

• "The New Yorker"

• "Harvard Business Review"

• And yes—your grandma’s "Reader's Digest."

Each of these publications has been around for over 100 years!

And Reader’s Digest wasn’t just a staple coffee table staple. No, it democratized information and storytelling by condensing articles, offering easy-to-digest insights, and providing practical advice that appealed to the masses. They mastered the art of simplicity and accessibility—long before tweets, threads and TikTok’s. It’s a testament to content that gets to the point while still delivering value.

If you're serious about standing out online, it’s worth giving your attention.

The good news?

You don’t have to visit “Mom and Pop” to learn from these staple publications. Your Digital Intern has studied them up to ChatGPT’s cut-off (GPT-4 can now access information up to January 2022 for GPT-4 and September 2021 for GPT-3.5).

But before we call in the intern, let’s look at 3 different Reader’s Digest intros that never fail!

3 Simple Frameworks To Write An Irresistible Opener For Your Next Article, Newsletter, or Email

Let’s go!

Framework #1: The Storyteller