Comment by firefoxd
14 days ago
I wrote my story and titled it, "My experience at work with an automated HR system". I sent it to a few friends, only a couple of them read it.
A week later, I renamed it to "The Machine Fired Me". That seemed to capture it better. The goal wasn't to make it click bait, but it was to put the spoiler, and punch line right up front. It blew up!
I had just read Life of Pi, and one thing I like about that book is that you know the punch line before you even pick up a copy. A boy is stuck with a bengal tiger in a boat. Now that the punch line is out of the way, the story has time to unfold and be interesting in its own merit. That's what I was trying to recreate with my own story.
Reminds me of Veritasium's recent videos, really driving that initial hook and maintaining the viewer's attention. He had an explanation video about it which explained how people who would be interested in something like "the Lorenz equation" probably don't know what it's called, so it might be more accurate to phrase it in terms that someone would search for or initially peak their interest.
And I think it fits neatly with making people care first. I want to learn more about the machine that fired you, that's more the start of a narrative arc. It's almost like I have more trust that you will make it interesting, since you put a little more work up front.
That's the LinkedIn "broetry" formula.
LI only shows a sentence as a teaser, and good "broets" have learned to write a good teaser line.
This is such a perfect term for it. Thank you for starting my day with a chuckle. I feel validated.
More about this weird phenomenon: https://fenwick.media/rewild/magazine/dead-broets-society-be...
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"The Machine Fired Me" is one good hook. I found the original post and its good: https://idiallo.com/blog/when-a-machine-fired-me
The Machine Fired Me - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17350645 - June 2018 (554 comments)
> The goal wasn't to make it click bait, but it was to put the spoiler, and punch line right up front.
For those who are really adverse to that kind of thing and have trouble with thinking "but it is is just making it sound like clickbait" in the comparison above: You don't have to go as far with it either. Just inserting inserting that one detail without changing the style or shortening it makes the reader's mind go from "maybe some person complaining about automated form requirements in benefits sign up or some first week onboarding program or something" bore to "fired by an automated HR!?" interest.
I have rule on Youtube. If the title of the video is click baity then I pick "Don't Recommend Channel", always and without exception.
"The Machine Fired Me" would not get me to block the channel but I've blocked hundreds of channels.
I also block any channel that appears to be a rando repeating the latest hot topic.
Same.
Also I tend to do the "Don't recommend -> I don't like this video" for those that have the thumbnails with "that face" (you know, the YouTube Thumbnail Clickbait Face, I don't even know if there's an actual term for it).
When I actually enter a video, you have my attention by default and you'll get an instant dislike for:
- "Don't forget to like and subscribe."
- Showing those like and/or subscribe buttons on screen.
- If I get suspicious that you're padding video length, talking just for the sake of stalling.
Great example, thanks for sharing.
>I had just read Life of Pi, and one thing I like about that book is that you know the punch line before you even pick up a copy. A boy is stuck with a bengal tiger in a boat. Now that the punch line is out of the way, the story has time to unfold and be interesting in its own merit. That's what I was trying to recreate with my own story.
For me this is a perfect example of what I hate about clickbait.
A boy trapped in a boat with a tiger is interesting. But the rest of the story really wasn't worth the read.