Feature writing journalism pdf

Here, wed like to share what weve learned with you. As stated in the week 1 lecture mchugh 20, features arent an excuse for literary pyrotechnics. Features usually have the highest word count of all journalism types. The different types of journalism freelancewriting. Introduction to journalism student activities book by dianne smith publisher.

By jeanne acton, uililpc journalism director feature writing. Feature journalism has developed from being a marginal and subordinate supplement to hard news in newspapers to becoming a significant part of journalism on all platforms. The basics of good journalism and good writing in general all apply to feature writing. Journalists resource, will teach students how to write compelling feature articles. Using information for extortion is not investigative journalism. Writing, sports news writing, yearbook feature writing, yearbook sports feature writing and yearbook theme copy writing. Types of feature stories in journalism study lecture notes. Feature journalism has become an increasingly popular part of digital news outlets.

The feature desk initiates ideas for feature writeups, allocates them to writers, edits. Online newspapers have experimented with digital formats for feature journalism since the late 1990s, first with technologydriven multimedia feature journalism and later with storydriven longform feature journalism. If youre even luckier the work placement might lead to a staff job. More than 2,500 girls auditioned for the 75 spots in the summer camp. Some writers follow the socalled 404020 rule when writing features, which outlines how to divide their time. When writing your feature, remember that you can be a storyteller over a news reporter. This type of story has its basis upon timely news happening with a humaninterest angle is called a news feature often a news happening can be made much more interesting or newsworthy by writing it in a semi feature sort of thing. Niblock argues that the proportion of feature journalism in british newspapers has. However, at the very heart of it, the purpose is the same it aims to explore a range of issues, opinions, experiences, and ideas while. These features commemorate important dates in history or turning points in our. In addition to the obvious audience in journalism for whom its primarily intended. It comes with a lot of elements that should come together to make it whole. Over the summer, junior lisa munoz was selected to attend a weeklong dance camp hosted by the new york city rockettes in new york city.

Personalities character sketch usually short emphasize more on the person. The top eight entries of the following categories will be recognized at the nsaa state journalism contest at the awards ceremony. Feb 21, 2015 this journalism lecture focuses on the basics of feature writing. Writing style differences in newspaper, radio, and television news 2 of stylistic features should be a handy reference tool. This class aims to find, report, write and sell news features to magazines, newspapers and websites. How to write a feature story popular content of print, electronic and internet media what are feature stories. How to create mindy mcadams multimedia news packages. Most students pitch at least one of their three stories during the semester. The pursuit of excellence 7th edition mysearchlab series for communication. Writing style differences in newspaper, radio, and television.

Mar 27, 20 tips for writing a features article dont worry if you have never written an article before, read some top tips for people who are brand new to feature writing wed 27 mar 20 09. Jul 23, 2017 we learned tips and tricks about feature writing to help us improve how we share stories on. The subject of this article is a sahidic manuscript fragment kept in the coptic museum in cairo inv. First, write a straight news lead for each of the following stories.

The basics of feature writing journalism lecture youtube. News writing, editorial writing, column writing and feature. This type of story has its basis upon timely news happening with a humaninterest angle is called a news feature often a news happening can be made much more interesting or newsworthy by writing it in a semifeature sort of thing. Feature writing can stand alone, or it can be a sidebar to the main story, the mainbar. Jan 22, 2010 the best journalism engages as it informs. Features are more indepth than traditional news stories and go beyond providing the most important facts. Column is the creative expression covering all fields of journalism. Investigative reporting has many, sometimes widely divergent, meanings. Effective writing essentials of journalistic style. Writing feature articles covenant university repository. Also, the style of writing a feature may vary depending on the writer or the subject. This is very different from an essay, which presumes that the audience will stick around to the end, and can therefore build to a finish.

Feature writing leaguetown high school, located in texas, has an enrollment of 1,800 students in grades 912. The 32nd annual society for features journalism excellenceinfeatures contest, which honors the craft of feature storytelling and the people who do it for a living, is taking entries for 2020. It is the product ol tactual reporting and reporting to which are added story elements of. We will discuss the various types of features, including profiles, short features, news features, trend features and personal essays. The writer learns about the topic through education, experience, research or interviews with experts.

We have drawn on our work in writing feature stories ricketson. Write a feature story about the trip, or about the garden or some interesting plants. The pursuit of excellence 7th edition mysearchlab series for communication edward jay friedlander, john d. Feature writing is similar to any other expository or narrative writing as the main body of the feature is developed in the same way as that of any good piece of writing. When articles or scripts succeed at this, they often are cast as what is known as features or contain elements of a story. News writing, editorial writing, column writing and. It therefore seems that a literary discourse has dominated feature journalism from the. The main subtypes are the news feature and the humaninterest story a feature story is distinguished from other types of nonfiction by the quality of the writing. It uses quotes liberally and allows the reader to see the story through detailed description and vivid writing. Info graphic, indepth newspaper coverage, newspaper layout, photoartistic illustration. The new deadline for the contest is march 7, our final extension. In this class you will learn the basics of feature writing.

This journalism lecture focuses on the basics of feature writing. Writing style differences in newspaper, radio, and. Feature stories are humaninterest articles that focus. It emerged as a key force driving the popularization and tabloidization of the press. Related titles published by focal press basic radio journalism paul chantler and peter stewart broadcast journalism andrew boyd broadcast news writing, ted white reporting and producing flash journalism. Feature writing, online, multimedia, analytics, journalism education, print. This portion must be forceful enough to awake interest in readers to read the complete feature. Please refer to this powerpoint presentation for better understanding on the subject matter.

If youre considering a career in journalism, your success can hinge on knowing the difference between writing a straight news piece and a feature story. Pdf on jan 1, 2006, olusola oyero and others published writing feature articles find. A feature story is a piece of nonfiction writing about news. They were something which grew out of colour magazines. Tips for writing a features article dont worry if you have never written an article before, read some top tips for people who are brand new to feature writing wed 27 mar 20 09.

But to create an engaging feature, writers must build upon those skills by utilizing storytelling methods often associated with fiction writing, such as description, character and dialogue. A feature story is any piece of writing that falls between the cutanddried news story on the one hand, and the w holly fictionalized story or opinionated essay 011 the other hand. A sidebar runs next to the main story or elsewhere in the same edition, providing an audience with additional information on the same topic. This course covers the news writing and news gathering skills which every writer needs to master before they can become a competent feature writer. Society for features journalism promoting the craft of. Feature writing calls upon some of the same skills used in news writing, especially reporting and interviewing. Think of the feature as the journalistic equivalent of an essay, it will then be. When articles or scripts succeed at this, they often are cast as what is known as. Feature writing techniques and style study lecture notes. However, this does not mean that clear writing is less important in features than in any other form of journalism. There are different types of feature stories feature stories are created to inform, entertain, persuade, or simply satisfy the audiences curiosity about a certain topic. This course will teach students how to write compelling feature articles, substantive nonfiction stories that look to a corner of the news and illuminate it, often in human terms. Students have considerable flexibility in choosing stories, including in.

Tips for writing a features article global development. Here we will discuss in detail the different types of feature stories in journalism. There was a time that feature articles lived only in print articles. Jul 05, 20 a feature story is any piece of writing that falls between the cutanddried news story on the one hand, and the w holly fictionalized story or opinionated essay 011 the other hand. The central idea or the keynote is also introduced to the readers. Feature journalism can be defined as a family of genres that share a common exigence, understood as a publicly recognized need to be. According to a 1949 textbook on feature writing, the feature article is a. True, very few newspapers would put a feature on the front page where a lead story ought to be although it has been known, but many writers would say that a lot. The monograph may also be used as a student text, providing a quick guide to features of style and their rationales. Journalism writing rubrics feature story rubric objectives accomplished 1011 points skilled 89 points developing 67 points needs improvement 5 points or less total points. You can comment here or you can comment via fb for you questions. The purpose of feature writing writing for strategic. Feature journalism oxford research encyclopedia of.

A study at the university of michigan shatters some myths. Pdf feature writing in journalism caven masuku academia. In the united states, for example, longform nonfiction narratives became a completely unique category of journalism. A feature story is often defined by its length and style, not its subject matter. Experience and adventure featurettes first person point of view.

Journalism writing rubrics feature story rubric objectives accomplished 1011 points skilled 89 points developing 67 points needs improvement 5 points or less. It is the product ol tactual reporting and reporting to which are added story elements of imaginative writing and interpretation. Feature writing commonly wins prestigious awards when it manages to achieve this goal. Some editors dispute the emphasis on soft writing and refer to it as jello journalism. But, having said that, feature writing is, actually, required across all platforms. It also contains personal opinion of the writer, which is not welcomed in other form of news story writing.

A column may pass the projected judgements, make recommendations and may write freely without following the accepted boundaries of news writing. If youre interested in pursuing any of these different forms of journalism, there are a number of journalism courses available. Investigative journalism is also sometimes confused with stalking powerful or wellknown people and writing intimate details about their. You will learn how to develop ideas for features and how to pitch stories to editors, including writing effective query letters. Chapter 1 defining investigative reporting what makes it different from other types of journalism. Feature stories hard news articles are written so the reader can stop reading at any time, and still come away with the whole story.