How to Write a Topic Sentence

The first sentence of any short article is the MOST important sentence in the entire article. 

The first sentence is referred to as the topic sentence. It represents the main idea of the article. The topic sentence is made up of two parts; a limited subject and a precise opinion. For example, the topic sentence of this article consists of a limited subject; “The first sentence of any article” and a precise opinion; “is the most important sentence in the entire article”. This article will show you how to choose a limited subject, how to express your opinion about the limited subject, and how to write the topic sentence.  

Choose a Limited Subject: The key here is to select a subject that’s limited enough to be covered within the confines of the short article. In other words, you should be able to fully support the limited subject using between 300 and 600 words or so. For example, the limited subject of this article, “the first sentence of any short article,” is limited enough to support in a short article. Imagine how long it would take to write an article detailing everything you’ve done over the course of a year. That would be one very long article. Now, imagine writing an article detailing everything you’ve done in just one day. I’d bet you could do that in 300-600 words.  

Express Your Opinion: You can express your opinion by telling the reader exactly what you think about the limited subject. What, precisely, is your opinion on the subject you have chosen? Does it taste great or is it less filling? Which side are you on? More importantly, why? You mustn’t be vague when you express your opinion. Words like nice, good and interesting are vague. They beg the reader to ask, “What do you mean?” Words like beautiful, delicious and dangerous leave little to the imagination.  

Writing the Topic Sentence: The basic structure for writing the topic sentence is very simple. First, state the limited subject and then state the precise opinion. 

Here are a few examples:  

• The Godfather is the greatest movie of all time
• Broccoli rabe is my favorite vegetable
•  Learning to draw cartoons is the best way to enhance creativity
• Starting your own internet business is the easiest, fastest and cheapest way to ensure a lifetime of financial stability

Conclusion:  I could go on and on but I’m sure you get the point. I hope this will help you write powerful topic sentences in your own articles. It’s pretty easy as long as you remember to stick to a limited subject and as long as you remember to clearly state your precise opinion about that subject. This will help set the level of expectation for the reader and will allow you to focus on supporting your assertion that [insert YOUR limited subject] is [insert YOUR precise opinion].

About the Author  

RC Bonay is an engineer with a passion for writing and drawing. He started reading comic books at an early age and soon discovered he had a flair for telling stories of his own. As he grew, he dreamed of following in the footsteps of comic book legend, Stan Lee. His passion ebbed and his dream faded as it became necessary to pursue a more traditional lifestyle in order to raise his growing family. The dream was rekindled in early 2009 as the youngest of his four children blossomed into young adulthood. 

RC’s vision is best summed up by his mottos; 

“The world would be a better place if we all just learned to draw.” 

“Learn from the best, forget it all, and just write.”