Communicative Writing Week 6 MMC120 Instructed by Hillarie Zimmermann MMC120 Instructed by Hillarie Zimmermann

Today’s Class Review radio spots with Ron Lead writing practice Newsletter and magazine writing Complete an in-class assignment Review homework Review radio spots with Ron Lead writing practice Newsletter and magazine writing Complete an in-class assignment Review homework

The Lead – Engaging or not? Why?

The Lead: For a magazine/newsletter story, there are two types of leads

Straight News Story Lead Writing Practice See p. 81 for an example The lead includes the most important details of the 5Ws & 1H

The Straight Lead – Writing Practice

Find That Feature Lead Read p. 85 in the text describing the different kinds of leads, then search through a magazine to find two good examples of leads that are not straight news leads.

Newsletter and magazine stories Inform or inform/entertain Rarely announce breaking news Often target a well-defined audience whose members share a common interest

Newsletters Often not that expensive to produce Public relations tool that can draw attention to a business/topic Target audience is often customers, potential customers, the media, people with like interests

Newsletters - The Format Print or Length varies Where will it be printed Often 2 column Often sent monthly, quarterly Often includes a boilerplate paragraph at the bottom of every issue Golden rule: a headline for every article, a caption for every picture

Newsletters - Hold the Interest of Your Reader Kick it off with catchy headlines Your writing style should fit well with your readers Know your readers (research) - what are they interested in, what information can you provide to benefit them Keep reader’s attention with pictures, short written pieces, personality profiles, editorials, new product announcements, Q&A, events, coming attractions, contact information

Magazine stories Many magazines have regular writers Can do a traditional pitch to a magazine or can research whether the magazine has submission requirements

Magazine stories - The format Consider the audience - magazines generally have a niche audience - write for their needs Magazine articles should be written so that they are relevant for a longer period of time Still answers the 5W’s and H questions Elaborates on these questions, often in some detail Goes into depth on a subject and provides detail and perspective Often incorporate story telling skills

Newsletter and magazine stories Three categories Straight news stories (to inform) – 5Ws &1H, inverted pyramid. Features (to inform and entertain) – Incorporates all of the important details in a creative way. Not in inverted pyramid form. Often incorporate a “nut paragraph”. Conclusions are strong. Hybrids (to hook with entertaining lead; then inform)

Newsletter and magazine stories Feature stories - organization xGold coin theory xWall Street Journal styles #1 and #2 xPeople magazine personality profile xEpic poetry strategy xBookend strategy xTheme strategy

Analyze a Magazine Article What organizational strategy does the article use? Is the article a hybrid/feature/straight news story? Describe the lead. Does it incorporate the 5Ws & 1H or is it more a hook? Does the story follow an inverted pyramid format? Can you find the “nut paragraph”?

Complete in-class assignment Complete assignment number 5 – Newsletter/Magazine story. This assignment is due at the beginning of the next class.

What to expect next class… Overview of Writing SpeechesOverview of Writing Speeches Introduction of Second Portfolio AssignmentIntroduction of Second Portfolio Assignment

Homework Read “Speeches” p Read “Speeches” p Due February 21 – Digital Media KitDue February 21 – Digital Media Kit Due February 21 – Magazine/Newsletter StoryDue February 21 – Magazine/Newsletter Story Read “Speeches” p Read “Speeches” p Due February 21 – Digital Media KitDue February 21 – Digital Media Kit Due February 21 – Magazine/Newsletter StoryDue February 21 – Magazine/Newsletter Story