What advice does Peak's English teacher give him?

• A. Start with a hook
• B. End with a cliffhanger
• C. Use long paragraphs
• D. Avoid metaphors

Answer: (A)

Grabbing the reader’s attention from the very start is the key idea here. Starting with a hook means opening with something that piques curiosity or stakes the moment you begin—like a surprising fact, a vivid image, a provocative question, or a bold statement. This sets the tone, signals what the piece is about, and gives readers a reason to keep reading, which is exactly what a good English opening should do.

Ending with a cliffhanger tends to work best in fiction or episodic storytelling, where you want to leave the reader eager for what comes next. For a typical English piece, especially an essay or analysis, a strong opening matters more for drawing you in and framing your argument or narrative right away. Long paragraphs at the start can overwhelm the reader and make the opening feel dense, reducing the impact of whatever you’re trying to say. Avoiding metaphors is too restrictive a rule—when used well, metaphors can illuminate ideas and make writing more memorable rather than simply be avoided.

So, starting with a hook best fulfills the goal of engaging the reader immediately and guiding them into what you’ll argue or describe.