Writing & Re-Writing

 Writers Must be Versatile ▪ To be successful  They must learn to ▪ Write in different voices ▪ Cover wide variety of topics ▪ Deliver topics as expected by readers ▪ Dry & newsy ▪ Dramatic & suspensful  Video Clip Video Clip

 A good article ▪ Needs to have ▪ An attention getting beginning ▪ A good middle ▪ A solid ending ▪ Additionally ▪ Have clear writing ▪ Accurate & thorough reporting  To become a great feature writer ▪ You should absorb lessons, techniques & pitfalls

 In order to become a great writer  You must ▪ Learn to use words as tools ▪ Stand back from your own copy ▪ Study it on its structure and thoroughness ▪ Be able to spot your mistakes ▪ And weed them out  Tip for good writing ▪ If time allows ▪ Wait a couple days, then re-read your article

 Who is James Lake?  From Chapter 9?  Someone tell me who James Lake is ▪ How did James Lake become a feature article writer

 Revising Your Copy ▪ One of the toughest things to learn  Good word order, Tone & Quality ▪ Come after copy has been refined  Video Clip Video Clip

 Use anecdotes in your copy  Giving a story to show your subject ▪ In action ▪ Going through an experience ▪ Dealing with life ▪ Keeps your readers interested  To get info for anecdotes – Ask leading questions ▪ What’s the strangest thing that’s occurred on the job ▪ What’s an embarrassing moment you’ve had ▪ However, many anecdotes come from just listening

 Show, Don’t Tell ▪ Use language to give the reader a visual ▪ Remember from earlier - Be Specific ▪ (Ex, The professor acted strange…) ▪ Does this give you a visual?  Describe Scenes ▪ Use vivid details to put your reader in the scene ▪ Strong scene and setting descriptions help immensely ▪ Can also help hold readers attention ▪ Someone describe the picture in this slide

 Use vivid figures of speech  Be creative, make sure it’s fitting ▪ Avoid clichés ▪ Avoid dull or boring statements ▪ (ie, “That’s all folks”, “A friend in need…”)  Use analogies ▪ Comparisons that give readers understanding ▪ Good ones can create amazing clarity in copy ▪ Poor ones can confuse the readers ▪ “The young man has the talent to be the next….”

 Use Humor ▪ For quotes and analogies (if applicable) ▪ These can spruce up your copy ▪ Be careful though ▪ Humor can be difficult ▪ Usually is poorly applied when forced

 Use direct address  Put your readers in the story  Use the question asking device ▪ Ask readers a question ▪ Then provide the answer shortly after  Use overlapping words or ideas ▪ Both are ways to bridge sections of your paper together ▪ Transitions

 Above all ▪ WRITE CLEARLY  Audience can’t read your mind  They only have your words ▪ Give them what they need for clarity & understanding ▪ Incorporate YOUR style as you improve  Video Clip Video Clip

 Avoiding Common Mistakes ▪ Speling and grammer mistake can hapin too enyone  Work with copy editors ▪ Get feedback ▪ Learn from your mistakes and improve on them  Writers who repeat mistakes ▪ Will lose their sales, article placements or job  Learn when to use ▪ Formal, conversational, and informal language

 Common writing problems ▪ These often creep into general English  Eliminate Unnecessary Words  Eliminate Clichés ▪ Needle in a haystack ▪ Busy as a bee ▪ Straight as an arrow ▪ If they sound too familiar avoid them

 Don’t overuse adjectives & adverbs ▪ They can be juicy for your copy ▪ They also can slow the pace  Don’t use too many big words ▪ You feel smart, but the reader quits reading  Don’t misuse words ▪ A very common error ▪ Use a dictionary when writing ▪ Lie/Lay, Sit/Set, Affect/Effect, etc

 Other things to avoid  Jargon  Sexist language  Mind-read ▪ Used when say a person feels ▪ “The mayor feels businesses are struggling” Poor ▪ “The mayor SAYS businesses are failing” Good  Partial Quotes ▪ Get a full quote to give reader best understanding

 More things to avoid ▪ Redundancies ▪ Switching tenses ▪ Keep it consistent ▪ Especially in the same sentence ▪ Inconsistent style ▪ Grammatical errors ▪ Exclamation points!!! ▪ “Punctuation & quotation mark errors”. ▪ Going, comma, crazy,

 All of you received at the beginning of the semester an AP style guide for writing feature articles for Magazines and newspapers  How many of you have referred to it when writing your articles?

 Writing Subjectively ▪ Many writers love opinion pieces ▪ They allow you to incorporate your ▪ Thoughts ▪ Viewpoints  To be successful you need to ▪ Be able to remove yourself ▪ Write based on facts & information

 Even a well rounded writers ▪ Have trouble “breaking in”  Some writers (especially reviewers) ▪ Demonstrate their abilities for free or low pay ▪ Build up a portfolio then get regular work

 Putting It All Together  Be able to ▪ Write for the specific audience ▪ Be versatile ▪ Revise your copy ▪ Using various writing devices ▪ Spot and avoid common mistakes ▪ Spelling, grammar, etc ▪ Write subjectively ▪ Opinion is easy