Writing Workshop

Starting Point

In any story you should answer who what where when why how

In a news story you should try to answer these questions briefly in the first and second paragraphs then elaborate in the bulk of the story. This relates to the inverted pyramid structure

In a feature story there is room for creativity. Writers opinion and the choice of data presented can follow a less defined format. However these questions should still be answered and in a feature there should generally be more depth and added extras; background research, personal accounts, descriptions, etc..

Inverted Pyramid

The most important info is put at the top of the story, generally in the first paragraph. Paragraphs ar usually a sentence long, with the paras in the lower pyramid becoming longer if necessary. The details are then added as the story gos down. Quotes should be early in the story as they enhance the story's credibility.

This structure operates under the premise that the reader should be grabbed with the important stuff asap, people get bored so try to get out the info... indymedia readers may however have a longer attention span if they sought out the site. Corporate news also req's this format as stories will be cut by editors from the bottom.

* Readers tend to skim so put the stuff you know might be missed at the bottom of your story.

Corporate News Values

What makes a story a story. The corporate media generally looks for a story that comes under more than one of the criteria. Although news values are fuct they do strangely makes sense when you examine what makes you stop and read/consume something.

Keeping them in mind can be handy when criticising and writing media. Misappropriate at will.

1. timeliness News dates fast. The beauty of online media is that it can be the most up to date.

2. prominence Famous people. ie politicians, celebrities.. Stories with big quotes and nice pics.

3. proximity What happens locally to the reader involves the reader.

4. significance What involves the reader. ie. Issues that affect the reader. eg. Education stuff for students.

5. oddity egs. Man bites dog. OR German man eats German man.

6. human interest The human elements/aspect of a story... personal accounts, struggles. etc. Personalises by humanising.

7. conflict Blood and violence and struggle attract attention. Disharmony, Discord, Disagreement, Disputes...

8. newness If its new people will wanna know... can be a novelty thing too.

Introductory Paragraphs

*Types of Intros/Leads

1. direct
2. attribution
3. summary
4. decision
5. delayed
6. question
7. quotation
8. direct address

1. direct intro

Straight to the point. A flat statement of fact without attribution.

eg. the Age of 2 Feb 96

The Victoria Police withheld details of an internal inquiry into allegations of paedophilia from the office of the state ombudsman.

The stronger the statement, the greater the need for attribution, so that readers can immediately assess the statement's credibility.

Stories with an investigative or interpretive flavour do not always attribute sources. Intros without attributionare common when the reporter acts as 'critic and interpreter'

2. attribution intro

Often intros incorporate opinion that needs to be sourced.

eg. the Weekend Australian 13-14 April 96

Forty years after the introductionof television in Australia, progress in telecommunications has upset the balance between education and entertainment, "propelling Australians into an entertainment wonderland", a conference was told yesterday.

When quoting directly the quote should be put between "quotation marks." Ommiting parts of a long quote shouyld be signified with elipses... The attribution to source should be done with unemotive words such as said . Exclamation marks shouldn't be used. The quote should speak for itself without the obvious addition of emotion by the author, which can undermine story credibility... but this is indymedia so rules are bendy.

eg. the Courier-Mail 18 March 96

The rate of temperature change on earth next century would be larger than any for at least 10,000 years, a prominent atmospheric physicist told a University of Queensland public lecture yesterday.

Paraphrasing can be good to summarise long quotes. Generally a direct quote has more weight with a reader than a paraphrased one but you should only quote directly if you know the quote.... otherwise the source may contest the accuracy/get really pissed off/sue which would kill your story/and your credibility. If you're not sure paraphrasing is best.

Generally the source of attribution should lead a sentence only when the who element is important. Try to avoid long titles in the lead.

eg. comparing a long and winding vsion to the straight to the pt vsion

Senator Bill Bloggs, the chairperson of the Senate's Corporation and Securities Comittee inquiry, which is investigating trading in casino shares in Australia, said yesterday there was '"inappropriate" owenership in the gaming industry. [32 wds]

"Innapropriate" ownership exists in Australia's gaming industry, the chairperson of a Senate inquiry into casino share trading said yesterday. [19 wds]

para 2 could be shortened further by reducing the attribution to 'a Senator said yesterday' or 'Senator Bill Bloggs said yesterday'

3. summary intro

The summary or 'round up' intro, is the most common. It condenses complex subject manner to bare essentials and puts them all in the first para. The summary intro summarises an event or circumstance and, in drawing conclusions, gives the reader the big picture... or a really oversimplified broad vsion of it.

eg. the Courier-Mail 13 April 96

An historic meeting of Prime Minister John Howard and ACTU secretary Bill Kelty yesterday failed to ease tensions between unions and the Government over workplace reforms.

eg. combined summary and attribution intro in the Daily Telegraph 8 March 96

One in three young Australians are psychologically distressed, with girls worse affected than boys, according to a study published yesterday.

4. the decision intro

The decision intro is frequently used in stories about governments and other 'noteworthy' bodies. Its strength rests in the importance of the decision made.

eg. the Courier-Mail 26 Sept 96

Queensland Telstra network maintenance technicians yesterday voted to authorise their union, the Communications, Electrical and PLunmbing Union, to take industrial action in a dispute with Telstra over staff cuts.

5. the delayed intro The delayed intro is also called the 'buried lead'. It consists of two or more sentences or paragraphs and relies on contrast or surprise.

It raises expectations to make readers feel they need to read on. Danger: that the reader says 'so what'

eg. the Sydney Morning Herald 12 March 96

Glenn Whitley seemed an unremarkable man - assistant manager of a butchery in the Roselands Shopping Centre, earning about $40,000 a year, a jovial person who would go for a beer after work. But on Sunday his middle Australai facade cracked when he was shot dead after robbing an antique store in Dural.

eg Perth Indymedia 29 april 03

I missed it for a month and didn't miss it.. and yet the glowing box still manages to pull me in via it's hypnotic holds. It amazes me the levels of crap that you find on the thing.. worst of it is the stuff presented as 'real'. Reality TV shows, Game shows and more disturbingly the News are more for entertainment value than a basis in reality. As told to me by one of my quirkier tutors (who claims to not have watched TV in 10yrs!) EVERYTHING IS A NARRATIVE. From the ads you watch to the 'facts' you see... everything is perception skewed and subject to bias. (Sh*t even THIS IS!!)

6. the question intro ...aparantly to be avoided as a story is meant to a answer q's not ask them.. i say a story that makes people think through question+/answer is a good story

eg. Sunday Age 25 feb 96

He was driving along the road, minding his own business and obeying the law, when the dog in the back seat suddenlt suffered an attack of diarrhoea. What elsa can you do ina situation like that? ...yikes

eg. the Sydney Morning Herald

Overweight? Middle-aged? Spend more time in the pub than in the gym? Don't give your dreams of being an Olympian ...dear god.

eg Perth Indymedia

7. the quotation intro Quotation intros are even more rare than question intros but are effective if a comment (the quote) aptly sums up a situation.

The language of the chosen quote should be colourful or eloquent, relevant to the story and capable of making sens on it's own.

eg. the Australian 18 June 96

I tend to be Joe cautious-and it hasn't done too badly for me,' says Anthony Warlow. ..good on ya Joe.

8. the direct address intro This intro is more often used in features. It speaks directly to the reader and employs the second person pronoun 'you'.

...work in progress.. if you find any non corporate media examples pls add em!! still to come; the direct address intro.. the donts (according to this bk) and CONLEY'S SHOCK HORROR GUIDE TO INROS (+more after that..)

Audio Lectures Coming SOON

mostly stolen from: Conley, David. "The Lead: Will the Reader Follow?" The Daily Miracle: An Introduction to Journalism. Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1997. pp138-154

---

-- WoWi - 30 Jul 2004 - started
-- WoWi - 01 Aug 2004 - more work
-- GarconDuMonde - 02 Aug 2004 - moved topic to ImcOceaniaConf2004

to top