Transitioning from One Paragraph to

the Next
Types of Transitions
1) Standard devices
2) Paragraph hooks
3) Combinations of 1 & 2

Standard Devices

Simple and obvious

Use of specific transition words and phrases (you have a bank of these in your notebook)
For example:
Puppies are a nuisance; nevertheless, they are wonderful.
Admittedly, the project had value, but it was wasted time.
He was, to be sure, a brilliant actor; yet he often performed miserably.

Transition words and phrases are easy to use and can be very useful
however, they can become overused and ineffective

Paragraph Hooks

Hooks words from the previous paragraph into the next

Done by repeating words or phrases
Often the hook links the last sentence of one paragraph to the first sentence of the next
For example, using a standard device:
Mark Twain is established in the minds of most Americans as a kindly
humorist, a gentle and delight funny man. No doubt his photographs have helped
promote this image. Everybody is familiar with the Twain face. He looks like every
childs ideal grandfather, a dear old white-thatched gentleman who embodies the
very spirit of loving-kindness.
But Twain wrote some of the most savage satire ever produced in America .
..
Now, using a paragraph hook:
Mark Twain is established . a dear old white-thatched gentleman who
embodies the very spirit of loving-kindness.
The loving-kindness begins to look a little doubtful in view of some of his
writing, for Twain wrote some of the most savage satire in American literature

The last word of the previous paragraph hooks into the first sentence of the next
paragraph and provides a connection between the two paragraphs
The last words of your paragraph are not the only way to create a hook.

A deeper paragraph hook can look like this:

. . . a dear old white-thatched gentleman who embodies the very spirit of
loving-kindness.
This dear old white-thatched gentleman happens to be the author of
some of the most savage
satire in American literature. . .

Dont insult your reader by making the connection too obvious

In other words, dont repeat huge sections or whole sentences from the preceding
paragraph
Usually a few words will do the job

The Idea Hook

Another variation of the paragraph hook is the idea hook

Same principle: hooking into the preceding paragraph
Instead of repeating an exact word or phrase, however, you refer to the idea just
expressed
Recall our paragraph: Mark Twain as kind, dear, loving
Such a view of Twain would probably have been a source of high amusement to
the author himself. For Twain wrote some of the most savage satire . . .
---- OR --- Any resemblance between this popular portrait and the man who reveals
himself in his writing is purely imaginary. For Twain wrote . . .

The Combination

Uses a variety of combinations of the three techniques

Usually combine a standard transition device with a paragraph hook or an idea hook
The loving-kindness begins to look a little doubtful, however, in view of . . .
---- OR --- Yet this dear old white-thatched gentleman . . .
---- OR --- But to accept such an image . . .
---- OR --- Such a view of Twain, however, would probably . . .

Source: Payne, Lucile Vaughan. The Lively Art of Writing. New York: Penguin, 1965. Print.