I'm about to let you in on one of the biggest secrets to writing a front-page article at Bitmob.

...Are you curious? Did I grab your attention? You probably want to keep reading until I tell you what the key is, right? Here's a hint: You're looking at it right now.

That's right -- it's the introduction. A good intro can catapult your article forward, giving it energy and momentum. A bad one can prevent any reader from clicking through, no matter how worthy your topic.

Fortunately, Bitmob co-founder/editor Shoe and the rest of the crew know what makes an intro pop. Read on for a few surefire tips to start your articles on the right track.

1) Capture the readers' attention right away.

You can't count on patience from your audience. The average Internet user has too many other shiny things to occupy his attention...so you have to make sure you catch it first.

One good way to do this is to jump right into things. Take this example, right from the first paragraph of an old Gears of War story that Shoe wrote for EGM:

Cliff Bleszinski clearly likes being a dick. "Run, bitches, run!" he screams as he gleefully drags a giant orbital laser beam across the map, scorching anything that gets in its way in a multiplayer test session.

I don't need to know anything else -- I'm definitely reading the rest of that article.

2) Get to the point.

You can't spend too long setting the scene. You need to let readers know what the story will be about, or they'll get bored. Check out this intro from a recent article by Bitmob staffer Alejandro Quan-Madrid: 

After dinner, my girlfriend casually asks if I would like to play video games. To most guys, this is the best post-dinner proposition second only to sex...and possibly ice cream. Yet, I know that when she says "video games," she doesn't mean slaughtering zombies in Call of Duty: Black Ops or seeing who throws a meaner red shell in Mario Kart Wii. She means, "Let's work off some of the calories we just ate with Dance Central!"

At this point, I deflect the question and think about my issues with the game that rarely leave me in the mood to get my groove on. But now, with the new co-op mode in the upcoming Dance Central 2, developer Harmonix will soon take away all of my excuses not to play.

Boom. By the end of the first paragraph, you already know Dance Central is the topic at hand, and you've got a funny anecdote as well. By the end of the second, you know exactly what to expect.

3) Skip the history lesson.

It's easy to give too much background info at the start of a story. Trust us -- you can work that stuff in later or slim it down. Here's the first draft of an intro I wrote for this article:

This week, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto helped celebrate the 25th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. at the Nintendo World Store in New York City. During the event, Miyamoto let on that he does have a favorite game in the series. It's Super Mario World, due to its map features and freedom of choice.

Hard to argue with Miyamoto's selection. The thing about Mario games, though, is that they're all so consistently great. You could make an argument for just about any one of them as the best in the series. In fact, we're about to do just that.

Dullsville, right? Shoe told me to rework it, and here's the end result:

Since he's the father of the Mario series, you'd think Shigeru Miyamoto wouldn't have a favorite child. But he does.

At an event in New York City this week, the Nintendo legend proclaimed Super Mario World as his favorite in the series. And that got us to thinking...which game is actually the best?

Much better. No unnecessary backstory -- just a catchy first sentence to draw the reader in.

4) Forget the "hourglass" or "keyhole" structure.

This technique might have worked for your ninth-grade English paper, but it's no good here. You don't need to start with a broad, sweeping statement about the game industry or generic fluff about a certain genre. Just make your point and move on.

Here's a perfect example from Bitmob writer Rus McLaughlin:

When Team Fortress 2 went the free-to-play route a few weeks ago, two things happened. First, it shot up to the top of Steam's most-played online-games list, which is only fitting and right. Three years after its debut, TF2 remains unsurpassed in the class-based shooting arena.

Second, a few TF2 vets started figuring out ways to lock out all those new players.

Rus could have rambled about the state of PC gaming or the free-to-play model...but he didn't. He gave the readers just what they needed to know. Consequently, his intro has a ton of forward momentum.

Follow these rules, and you're sure to see an improvement in your writing. And you just might see your articles on the Bitmob front page more often, too.

Want more? Take a look at the whole Bitmob Writing Tips series. And check out this piece on "writer's schlock" from industry veteran Crispin Boyer while you're at it.