Headline Hacks
24 Headline Templates That Lead to Magnetic Titles
With over 40 examples of how top writers use them to wow their readers
They were mortified.
But they had to go through with it.
The interview, that is. With this woman who came into this conservative government organization for a shot at a job — wearing a far-too-casual cotton striped flannelette top and torn jeans.
This first impression couldn’t be erased from their memories.
She was obviously worth interviewing — she had passed the application stage. Yet in person, she raised a huge question mark before one word had left her mouth.
Like this woman, you can write the most informative, entertaining, helpful post you’ve ever written — but if you don’t get your headline right, you’ve screwed yourself over.
And your reader won’t be as gracious and discreet as the interviewers were. They went ahead with the interview. Your readers won’t even bother to click.
You don’t need to let this happen. Spend a few extra minutes on your headline.
Here are the headlines of three dedicated Medium writers who have gained thousands of views on these headlines — Tom Kuegler, Shannon Ashley, and Shaunta Grimes. You’ll learn why the headlines work and get templates you can use to create your own headlines.
Tom Kuegler
Headline: How To Become Ridiculously Self-Aware In 20 Minutes
Why it works:
- Teaches something
- Uses an unusual, unexpected word, ‘ridiculously’
- We’re busy — he promises we’ll learn in the time it takes to line up for coffee
Headline template:
How To
Headline: How to Figure Out What The Hell You Want To Do With Your Life
Why it works:
- Casual
- Conveys frustration
- Promises a solution to a common struggle
Headline template:
How To
Headline: Why I’ll Never F***** Freelance Ever Again
Why it works:
- Strong stance
- F***** conveys anger
- Makes us wonder why
Headline template:
Why I’ll Never
Headline: 9 Business Lessons I Learned Making $100,000 Online in the Past 3 Years
Why it works:
- A How-to without saying “How-to”
- Builds curiosity as it’s a topic many people are interested in
- Credibility in a specific timeframe and amount
Headline template:
Headline: My Powerful 1-Hour Routine For Quick Success On Medium
Why it works:
- People are drawn to quick successes; he promises it
- Credible because of who the writer is
- Builds anticipation
Headline template:
My Powerful
Headline: 1 Terrible Thing You Need to Get Used To As A Blogger
Why it works:
- “Terrible” creates suspense and curiosity
- The belief we’ll get valuable insight because he’s a credible person
- Builds anticipation of a good story
Headline template:
Shannon Ashley
Headline: It’s Time To Quit My Job
Why it works:
- Relatable
- It’s a big deal
- Creates anticipation for an entertaining story
Headline template:
It’s Time To
Headline: I Had A Threesome And It Was Awkward AF
Why it works:
- Entertaining, shocking, magnetizing
- Unusual
- Casual
Headline template:
I
Headline: How I Write (and Publish) So Damn Much
Why it works:
- Builds anticipation of practical tips
- Casual and relatable
- Offers help to fulfill the desire of many struggling writers
Headline template: How I
Headline: 7 Self-Care Lessons You Might Have Forgotten
Why it works:
- Listicle — our brains are wired for numbers
- Curiosity about what may have been forgotten
- Addresses a topic we can all relate to
Headline template: X
Headline: I Wish I’d Known My Mother Couldn’t be Trusted When I Was Young
Why it works:
- Goes against our perception of mums
- Builds Curiosity
- The anticipation that it will be a shocking, entertaining, true story
Headline template: I Wish I’d Known
Headline: What To Do If You Ever Feel Like You’ve Wasted Your Life
- Common problem
- Gives hope that it’s not too late
- The anticipation of a solution we can start immediately
Headline template: What To Do If You Ever Feel Like
Shaunta Grimes
Headline: Five Steps to Changing Your Life (they boil down to one thing)
Why it works:
- A practical process we can follow
- Common struggle
- A promise of one thing to work on, digestible, doesn’t overwhelm
Headline template:
Headline: Here I am. Still fat after all these years.
Why it works:
- Raw, real, relatable
- Self-deprecating
- We are drawn to other people’s vulnerabilities
Headline template:
Here I am. Still
Headline: The Truth About Earning $15,000 a Month as a Writer
Why it works:
- Anticipation
- Curiosity
- Many writers would dream of making this much
Headline template: The Truth About
Headline: I Earned 50K With a 6-Week-Old Email List
Why it works:
- Curiosity
- Extraordinary result
- Challenges perceptions about what’s possible
Headline template:
I
Headline: Medium’s Changes Kick in Monday. Here’s a 30-Day Master Plan.
Why it works:
- Curiosity about what the changes are
- Builds anticipation of how the changes will impact writers
- Practical ways we can thrive
Headline template:
Headline: You Don’t Suck, You Just Haven’t Put in the Time
Why it works:
- Addresses struggle
- Shares solution upfront
- Direct and honest
Headline template:
You Don’t / Are Not
Additional Headlines From Medium Editor’s Picks
Headline: How Do I Make My Husband Stop Giving Money To His Parents? — Kristin Wong
Why it works:
- Conversational topic you can imagine would we shared over coffees (or on Quora)
- Frustration
- We anticipate a good story
Headline template:
How Do I
Headline: My Son Doesn’t Need Your Blessing — marie myung-ok lee
Why it works:
- Curiosity
- Strong statement
- Conveys defiance and anger
Headline template:
Headline: The Science of “Sleeping on It” — Markham Heid
Why it works:
- Conveys credibility
- Expect an informative read
- Stirs curiosity
Headline template:
The Science of “
Headline: How Sci-Fi Creates Better Doctors — Ashley Abramson
Why it works:
- Alludes to fascinating examples
- Surprising combination
- Curiosity
Headline template: How
Headline: Thankfully, Life Is Full of Problems — More To That
Why it works:
- Sounds entertaining
- A surprising and curious statement
- Expect valuable insights
Headline template:
Thankfully,
Headline: Eating Roadkill Is Our Future, and That’s Okay — Yasmin Tayag
Why it works:
- Sounds like we will learn something interesting
- Provides a surprising perspective
- Incites curiosity
Headline template:
How to Use These Templates
These headlines appeal to our emotions, intellect, or sense of self in different ways. The best way to see what suits your content is to brainstorm headlines.
Alternatively, you could use the templates to brainstorm topics.
For instance, let’s take three of the examples from the list above and brainstorm topics.
Writing ideas
Writing Ideas: Example 1
Headline: Thankfully, Life Is Full of Problems
Headline template: Thankfully,
- Thankfully, My Car Crashed On My Way To Work
- Thankfully, I Caught A Flu On Holidays
- Thankfully, No One Read My Last Post
You could also modify this template to:
Thankfully,
So:
- Thankfully, I Didn’t Make $20,000 Again Last Month
- Thankfully, I Didn’t Get Along With My Last Date
- Thankfully, My Home Loan Application Got Rejected
Writing Ideas: Example 2
Headline: Here I am. Still fat after all these years.
Headline template:
Here I am. Still
Ideas:
- Here I am. Still addicted to sugar after all these years.
- Here I am. Still an alcoholic after all these years.
- Here I am. Still desperate and dateless after all these years.
- Here I am. Still in an abusive relationship after all these years.
Writing Ideas: Example 3
Headline: How to Figure Out What The Hell You Want To Do With Your Life
Headline template:
How to
Ideas:
- How to Figure Out How To Leave Your Good-For-Nothing Partner
- How to Keep Calm When Your Kid Drives You Friggin Crazy
- How to Deal With A Housemate From Hell
- How to Figure Out What The Heck To Leave Out Of Your Suitcase
Brainstorm headlines for your chosen topic
Now, let’s say you already have a topic in mind — or have written your content. Then you could use these different formulas to brainstorm headlines.
For any post, it’s ideal to write more than one headline. I like to write at least five — you’ll be surprised at how many creative, powerful headlines you’ll come up with when you get into the groove.
Say you were writing about why social media is ruining your life — and that getting off it has been a great decision. Let’s use the headlines to brainstorm:
Headline template: How To <Do Something> In <Short Time> Headline idea: How To Become Awfully Productive In 20 Minutes (Get Off Social)
Headline template: It’s Time To <Do something people are usually reluctant to do> Headline idea: It's Time To Delete My Facebook Account
Headline template: <Number> Steps to Changing <Something significant> (It All Boils Down To This) Headline idea: 7 Steps To Changing Your Addiction To Facebook Notifications (It All Boils Down To This)
Headline template: <Something unexpected>, and That’s Okay Headline idea: Social Media Addiction Is Our Future, And That’s OK
Headline template: How I Do / Did Something (And did something even more incredible) For <Duration of time> Headline idea: How I’ve Lived Without Posting (Or Checking) Social Media For A Whole Damn Year
Subheadings
Use subheadings to supplement your headlines. Give readers more enticing information that will get them to open and read more.
Summary
Give your reader a good reason to click on your post. You’ve just read 43 ways to create powerful headlines.
Keep these 24 headline templates handy for your next post.
24 headline templates
- How To
In - How To
- Why I’ll Never
Ever Again Lessons I Learned in the Past - My Powerful
For Quick Success On Terrible Thing You Need To Get Used To As A - It’s Time To
- I
And - How I
(And do something even more incredible) So Damn Much - X
Lessons You Might Have Forgotten - I Wish I’d Known
When - What To Do If You Ever Feel Like
Steps to Changing (it boils down to this one thing) - Here I am. Still
after all these years. - The Truth About
as a - I
With a . Here’s - You Don’t / Are Not
, You Just Haven’t - How Do I
? - The Science of “
” - How
- Thankfully,
, and
Have fun and may the headlines be with you…
