Inverted Pyramid
In one sentence
A structure that states the conclusion first, then the background, then the detail.
Analogy Mental model
A news broadcast. The first sentence is that the launch succeeded, and how it happened comes afterwards, because the viewer may leave at any moment.
In practice What you actually do
The first hundred words carry the direct answer, the primary term, and a reason to keep reading. That paragraph is what a snippet lifts and a summary quotes, so write it as though it will be read alone.
Where people get burned Pitfalls
Building up to the point is fatal online. Three seconds without an answer and the reader is back on the results page, and the carefully constructed argument two screens down is never seen.
This entry was written in English from the Chinese original, not machine-translated. Read the Chinese version →