Topic sentences are THE MOST IMPORTANT part of your paragraph, because they guide the quotes you will you use and how you will use them. Without a good topic sentence, your paragraph is likely to be aimless, rambling and mostly summary. Here are basic rules of writing topic sentences:
1. Refer to (but do not summarize) the text being used
2. Identify the controlling idea/literary element to be discussed in paragraph
3. Clearly present a general analysis or interpretation to be proven by examples
An example: In his science-fiction novel Flight, Sherman Alexie (reference to text) writes his character Zits into numerous settings (reference to literary elements) and other characters’ bodies in a way that crosses time and space. One reason for this “flight” is to illustrate how individual circumstances affect Zits’ journey of self-discovery in a positive way (general analysis).
This topic sentence forces the writer to choose examples that display/prove the positive quality of Zit's self-discovery while using Setting for support.
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