Write a lead sentence in simple past tense. For simple past tense, regular verbs will end in "ed" while irregular verbs have different endings in past tense. Familiarize yourself with past tense irregular verb endings like gone, gave, and took.
Address the "Five Ws and H." Answer the who, what, when, where, why and how without giving too many extra details. These details can be explained further in the body of the article.
Write the subject first, then the verb and follow with the object. This is a simple and easy-to-follow format that will help you get your message across clearly. For example, in the sentence "Brooke saw a dog," Brooke would be the subject as she is doing the action, "saw" is the verb because it is the action and the object is "dog" because it is the result of the action.
Use active voice rather than passive for strong, compelling writing. For example, write "Three men robbed a bank..." instead of "A bank was robbed by three men ..."
Grab your audience's attention. Add a sense of conflict, suspense or other item of interest to your lead that will introduce readers to the action and drama of the story. A major function of the lead sentence is to make the reader want to keep reading. An unexciting lead will result in a bored reader and an unread article.