Feature writing techniques pdf

There are a range of techniques available to writers that serve many different purposes, some help you. Offer a term used when a figure gazes at another object in the image encouraging us to look at that object, the viewer is a detached onlooker. Scott atkinson is a features writer for the flint journal and teaches writing at the university of michiganflint. The art and craft of feature writing, william blundell, plume, 1988 note. Good writing comes from the creativity inside you, making it hard to teach. Please refer to this powerpoint presentation for better understanding on the subject matter.

The rescue teamlibrarians who save your necks during research paper time. Advantages, as we have seen, are more persuasive than features. Descriptive language is used to help the reader feel almost as if they are a part of the scene or event being described. 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. Good writers know who their audience is before they start writing. Metaphor an implied comparison between two unlike things. But once your creative juices are flowing, writing techniques can act as the foundations for your work.

Blundell, one of the best writers on one of americas bestwritten papersthe wall street journalhas put his famous journal featurewriting seminars into this stepbystep guide for turning out great articles. The desired effect is to get your message across as concisely and effectively as possible, by choosing vocabulary very carefully and employing a range of persuasive techniques. Jan 22, 2010 the art and craft of feature writing, william blundell, plume, 1988 note. Aneesa noorgat, basics of feature writing i enjoyed the course it was fun but challenging at the same time.

Feature stories arent defined so much by subject matter as they are by the style they are written in. Some are betterwritten than others, but they all exist to fulfill a simple purpose. Satirical techniques definitions the following techniques to make a comment or criticism about a particular subject or character. The techniques are based on those used by adult authors of narrative text, presented in a stepbystep format to meet the needs of elementary students. Lecture 8 is about using dialogue to evoke character and tell a story and about integrating dialogue seamlessly into the rest of the narrative. A feature article is a creative article that deals with real events, issues, and trends. Simile a stated comparison between two unlike things. Sa writers college basics of feature writing course. My tutor lisa was extremely supportive and helpful. Descriptive writing techniques about descriptions a good description creates a vivid picture of a person, place or thing and, sometimes, how the author feels about it. If your objective is freelance feature writing, a staff job for a while will enable you to build a network of contacts.

A feature can trail off like a news story or it can be concluded with a climax. Gaze refers to where the figure in the image is looking. All the instruction available on how to bang sentences together gracefully and theres a lot of it will produce nothing but glitz if the right material, and a pleasing variety of it, is missing. Unusual jobs or students who meet famous people as a result of their parttime job 4. Feature writing is the primary form of writing that concordias student newspaper produces. Good writers keep their audience in mind as they write every sentence in their paragraph.

These skills the students will use repeatedly over the course of the year. English writing techniques you can use several different writing techniques to make your writing more engaging and exciting and keep your audience reading until the end of your piece. Exaggeration to enlarge, increase, or represent something beyond normal bounds so that it becomes ridiculous and its faults can be seen. We hope you will pick up many useful tips and tools, as well as affirm the techniques you already use in your writing. Like a newspaper feature, a magazine feature is delivered in a style that is more entertaining or thoughtprovoking, weaving a story, even when delivering the news. This book claims to be a practical introduction and it is. This step is skipped most often by the nonwriting student, although it is the most important. This step is skipped most often by the non writing student, although it is the most important. Guide to writing feature films 1 a guide to feature film writing a screenwriters workbook by j. What follows is a proven process for researching, writing, and submitting professional feature articles the meet editors needs and enhance your reputation as a writer.

Feature writing can stand alone, or it can be a sidebar to the main story, the mainbar. Magazines, newspapers, and online sites must provide their readers with content in the form of wellresearched, wellwritten feature articles. Handouts techniques for teaching writing 6 some basic guidelines to writing 1 brainstorming. As a part of the homework assignment, give students the feature articles handout and ask them to label their selected feature article with one of seven choices. The list below includes just a few literary and narrative writing techniques you can try the next time youre writing and you want to try something new. The key to writing a good feature article is to select the proper venue for your article and then to. Text feature vocabulary text feature techniques used in nonfiction writing that draw the readers attention to the text and make it easier and quicker to read boldface dark black words that are used to get the readers attention example. Dec 09, 2019 writing a feature article involves using creativity and research to give a detailed and interesting take on a subject. It shows how a characteristic, or feature, can be used and applied. The placement of two or more ideas, characters, actions, settings, phrases or words sidebyside for a particular purpose, for example to highlight contrast or for rhetorical effect. However, unlike straight news articles, it places emphasis on the. How to write a feature article with pictures wikihow. Oliver pomfrett, basics of feature writing course the course was easily understandable and very accessible. Simple techniques like reading your work outloud, or reading from the bottom up with help you catch any grammar or punctuation.

Features are more indepth than traditional news stories and go beyond providing the most important facts. 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. Feature writing caven masuku, gweru, zimbabwe introduction a good feature writer is neither wordy nor flowery. These techniques help us to write in a different style and format. The complete guide to article writing, a nononsense guide to the world of writing articles for online markets, magazines, newspapers, and more.

These types of articles are different from typical news stories in that they often are written in a different style and give much more details and description rather than only stating objective facts. He is precise and straight to the point and is guided by the abc of journalism that is accuracy, balance and clarity. 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 experience allowed me to sharpen my writing skills, with practical tips and techniques. To the soldiers in his unit, jacobs walks on water. Once you have put the feature article together, it is essential to edit. Humaninterest personality how to the best past event informational note. The fomors creatures exploded into the hallway on a storm of frenzied roars. Tips on writing a good feature article yourdictionary. Teaching students feature article writing and informational. It uses quotes liberally and allows the reader to see the story through detailed description and vivid writing. Placing visual elements side by side to create contrast or interaction.

Process writing can often be frustrating for many students. Jul 02, 2014 the complete guide to article writing, a nononsense guide to the world of writing articles for online markets, magazines, newspapers, and more. Lecture 7 explains the mechanics and grammar of dialogue, including tips on when and when not to use dialogue tags and adverbs. 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. 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. So how much detail, description, and background information is too muchor too little. A guide to feature film writing a screenwriters workbook by j.

There are more than seven types of feature articles. 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. I will recommend the course to anyone who is willing to learn, whether its with putting yourself out there in interviews or just writing in a different style. Feature articles are detailed pieces of writing which explore a range of issues, opinions, experiences and ideas. If youre even luckier the work placement might lead to a staff job. Use the sense of smell for generation of ideas the sense of smell is strongly attached to memory recall. A unit that explores the writing of the feature story indepth and looks at the different types of feature stories profiles, backgrounders, etc. Tips for writing a features article global development. But features are meant to be longer and to tackle their topics in greater depth and detail. Feb 21, 2015 this journalism lecture focuses on the basics of feature writing. A sidebar runs next to the main story or elsewhere in the same edition, providing an audience with additional information on the same topic. Many journalists find this element of technique difficult. Each chapter is introduced with brief points on what is covered.

Writing a feature article involves using creativity and research to give a detailed and interesting take on a subject. Jul 11, 2017 in the english language, you will learn many language techniques. This class discussion should focus on the techniques and pitfalls of. Feature writing techniques and style study lecture notes. Of course, interesting characters and engaging dialog are important, but writing gripping action scenes is a skill all its own. Text feature vocabulary text feature techniques used in. Conclusion the end can be a comment a concluding quote a question a summary of the article 31. This journalism lecture focuses on the basics of feature writing. A personality profile is written to bring an audience closer to a person in.

Often the author will describe what happens or what something or someone is like as well as expressing their emotions. Writing as craft and magic second edition, carl sessions stepp, 2007, oxford university press. Description is useful because it helps readers engage with the world of the. Moreover, these are the base of the writing techniques. While somewhat dated, this book explicitly frames a strategy for approaching the kinds of researchbased, public affairs features this course encourages. In other words, anything written in a featureoriented way is a feature story. Making a comebackstudents or faculty who have overcome incredible odds. The secret to writing stronger feature articles writers.

Pdf feature writing in journalism caven masuku academia. William blundell, the art and craft of feature writing. Caricature is the exaggeration of a physical feature or trait. Viewing angles and distance are very similar to film shot. There are a range of techniques available to writers that serve many different purposes, some help you highlight a point. Audience the second element of good writing is to keep your audience in mind as you write. Often, a feature ends where the lead started, with a single person or event. In features, the immediacy of the event is secondary. The secret to writing stronger feature articles writers digest.

Descriptive language literary techniques bbc bitesize. It is the product ol tactual reporting and reporting to which are added story elements of imaginative writing and interpretation. Wherever possible, please buy and read all the texts referenced within. Nothing puts editors off more than a poorly written article that requires copious amounts of editing to even come close to being print ready. The students will learn the steps of writing an effective feature story including interviewing, taking notes, writing the lead, and deciding on an overall theme to the piece. Feature writing techniques are similar to the techniques of expository writing since it makes use of. Jul 30, 2019 beginning feature writers often wonder how much of each ingredient to include. The key to writing a good feature article is to select the proper venue for your article and then to write the article directed at that audience. With your download, get the 36 best papers relevant to this one, including 20 top related papers. Feature writers have the extra time to complete background. Description is useful because it helps readers engage with.

Beginning feature writers often wonder how much of each ingredient to include. The basics of feature writing journalism lecture youtube. The feature writer will have to know all the techniques of reporting and will develop central charac ters that the readers get. Hard news stories are typically an assemblage of facts. In the english language, you will learn many language techniques. This unit is aimed at helping you to appreciate the importance of features in the contents of a newspaper and acquaint you with the technique of feature writing.

News story hard news stories move briskly through the five ws and the h, packing in just enough detail to give readers a clear picture of the news. Students write a draft and a final paper as part of the unit. Feature writing techniques figurative language helps recreate scenes or sensations. Storytellinghow to catch and hold a readers interest through artful narration of factual material william e. The purpose of feature writing writing for strategic. Looking for some tips on writing a good feature for magazines.

Difference between hard news and features in magazines. Text feature title usually found at the beginning that names the text italics slanted words that are used to get the readers attention example. Steps to develop a feature story prewriting writing revising proofreading 32. Journalists resource, will teach students how to write compelling feature articles.