Rolling Stone

Strauss opened his Rolling Stone profiles with one moment that showed the subject. His Howard Stern opening starts with Stern asking a crude question and ends on the twist that the person being asked is Strauss himself. The Hugh Hefner opening ends on 'He is 72 years old.' Each is a short, simple observation that ends on a twist and shows who the subject is.

Strauss says an interesting opening that lacks the spirit of the subject fails. In his words: "Your sentences, your paragraphs contain the coding for what the book is and what the purpose of it is."

How I Write▶ 56:08