A introductory course in news writing The News Story A introductory course in news writing This mini-writing course is intended for the staff of the SJS Spartan Times

Welcome! Journalism is a skill and practice that takes years to master; however, everyone must start at the beginning. For this mini-course prior to the year starting, that is exactly where we will begin! This course will teach you the basic building bocks of news writing that includes writing leads and story structures.

Lesson 1 Writing Leads “Whether you're a newspaper journalist, a lawyer, a doctor. You have to organize your thoughts.” --Frederick Wiseman

Your Story, Your Leads First, you must identify the main point of your story before you write it! A good journalist always asks “So what?” or “What’s this about?” or “What’s my point?” when considering gathered information The lead is what opens any piece of journalism. Other than the headline, the lead is the only chance to “catch” your reader’s attention!”

Writing Your Lead Readers spend only 3 seconds deciding whether to read your story based on your lead! There are many types of leads; however, we will work with the most popular: a direct news lead. This consists of 1 or 2 sentences in the opening paragraph that contains the most important parts of the story This consists of 1 or 2 sentences in the opening paragraph that contains some of the most important parts of the story (who, what, where, when, why, how)

Leads The following 2 examples are direct news leads that accurately tell the reader the most important information about the story! Local police captured two juvenile thieves Wednesday after the robbery of Rob’s Mini-Mart. The Student Council has made plans to donate 100% of all its proceeds from Friday night’s social event. The group plans to split the money between two local charities.

Lead Wrap Up Don’t be afraid to toy with leads until you create the best one! If you are having trouble, create as many different lead combinations in a short time. The pressure will help you to organize the most important elements! This concludes lesson 1 on writing leads. There are two lessons to complete before returning to SJS.

Lesson 2 Story Structures “A newspaper should be the maximum of information, and the minimum of comment.” --Richard Cobden

Organizing Your Story Now with a strong lead, the time has come to develop the rest of your story that includes the most interesting facts! Choosing the correct structure to benefit your readers is critical to the success of your story! There are 3 typical structures you will be using as a journalist: Inverted Pyramid Storytelling Pattern Chronological Order Pattern You will see all three structures in the examples. However, Spartan Times will be written using primarily the Inverted Pyramid structure.

Inverted Pyramid LEAD Most interesting news stories use this style for many reasons; it benefits: Hurried readers Beginning journalists Headline writers Page layout editors Most Important Details Less important details Least important details This style is beneficial to many different people because less time will be spent on the parts of the story that aren’t as important!

Storytelling Pattern Lead This narrative form captures a reader’s interest without being as obvious as the inverted pyramid. After a beginning, middle, and end, the writer includes a clincher or a kicker which gives the reader something to remember without repeating previous information; a circle kicker returns back to the opening paragraph! Fact Clincher Fact

Chronological Pattern Lead Though similar to the narrative style, this pattern works very well when a writer is trying to convey critical points of a story! Foreshadowing Chronological Storytelling Climax at End

Story Structure Wrap Up Obviously the type of story structure you choose is based a great deal on the content. Keep your readers in mind when organizing your information, drafting your story, and finally revising!

Practice Using Leads Read the following lead and think about which news writing tools are used! *STATE COLLEGE--- The State College Area school board’s $102 million plan to reconfigure State High could be expected to cost more or less by early next month. Why? Who? What? How? Where? When?

Practice Using Leads Now, use the following tools to create your own lead. Who: The Senior Class Executive Committee What: Fundraiser Where: South Bend Senior High School When: October 2006-December 2006 Why: To raise money for a local children’s charity How: By collecting donations from all grade levels during homeroom Why? Who? What? How? Where? When?

Practice Using Leads What did you come up with?? Share your results with a friend or Teacher! Below are possible suggested leads: Students at South Bend recently began taking monetary collections during the second marking period for children in need at the local shelter. Or 2. Beginning in October, The Senior Executive Committee at South Bend will be raising funds for the local children by collecting donations in homerooms. Why? Who? What? How? Where? When?

Congratulations! You’ve finished the introduction to the Saint Jerome School Spartan Times! Please try to study this information. You can practice by looking at Newspaper articles online and identifying the lead and different parts of the Inverted Pyramid since this will be the format you use most often. See you at SJS soon!