February 11, 2023
Jill Hedgecock is an award-winning and internationally published author who speaks to organizations on a variety of writing topics. She writes freelance articles and monthly pet and book review columns for The Diablo Gazette, a local entertainment newspaper covering the East San Francisco Bay Area. Jill’s work has been published in various anthologies, Bark Magazine, and Books N Pieces Magazine. Jill released the sequel, Queen of the Rhino, to her award-winning debut novel, Rhino in the Room in 2022. She is currently working on the next novel in her two Doberman-inspired books (Between Shadow’s Eyes and From Shadow’s Perspective). Jill served as the Program Chairperson for Mount Diablo California Writers Club and was a two-time recipient of the club’s Distinguished Service Award. Follow her at www.jillhedgecock.com.
It’s a sad truth. A reader’s attention span was 12 seconds in 2000. In 2022, it had shrunk to only 8 seconds, which is about the time it takes to read one average-length sentence. Therefore, it is critical for authors to draw a potential customer in quickly with a compelling, succinct premise. The great news is that a versatile version of a book hook can serve many vital functions for writers, including:
• A quick oral summary of your book whenever you speak about it—whether while in line at a grocery store, or approaching a bookstore owner about carrying your latest release
• The opening line on the back cover book blurb
• Backmatter for a series starter
• Ad copy
During this Writers Table, Jill will discuss essential elements that should be included in a hook and provide different ways to construct hooks using a minimum number of words. This will be an interactive meeting where Jill will present an approach then give participants time to write hooks for their books or works-in-progress.
