How to Write Articles for Newspapers and Magazines

by Sova, Dawn B.

• ISBN13: 9780768910797
• ISBN10: 076891079X
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-07-15
• Publisher: Peterson's Guides

Summary

A diverse collection of handy desk references designed to help students, business professionals, and all readers become more productive in school, the workplace, and everyday life.

A journalist shows the ins and outs to professionals and amateurs who want to break into the business.

Table of Contents

Getting Started	1	(12)
Generating Ideas	2	(4)
Focusing On The Subject	6	(3)
The Query Letter	9	(4)
Gathering Information	13	(10)
Fact Versus Opinion	13	(3)
Observation	16	(1)
Interviews	17	(3)
Background Research	20	(1)
On-Site Records Research	21	(2)
Writing the Effective Article Lead	23	(12)
The Hard News Lead	23	(7)
The Soft News Or Feature Lead	30	(5)
Building an Effective Foundation	35	(14)
Writing Effective Sentences	35	(6)
Organizing Paragraphs	41	(1)
Exploiting The Potential Of Grammar	42	(7)
Creating Invisible Transitions	49	(8)
The Building Block Approach	49	(1)
The Jigsaw Puzzle Approach	50	(2)
The Chronological Approach	52	(2)
The Spatial Approach	54	(1)
The Quotation Approach	55	(2)
Choosing the Right Word(s)	57	(14)
Vibrant Verbs	57	(3)
Precise Diction	60	(1)
Active Rather Than Passive Voice	61	(3)
Usage	64	(4)
Bias-Free Language	68	(3)
Description: Creating Images for Readers	71	(8)
Becoming A Trained Observer	71	(3)
Using Description In The Hard News Article	74	(2)
Using Description In The Feature Article	76	(2)
Omitting Details	78	(1)
Using Quotations Wisely	79	(8)
Why Use Quotations?	79	(1)
Choosing Effective Quotations	80	(1)
Integrating Quotations Into Text	81	(4)
Attributing Quotations	85	(2)
Ending the Article Successfully	87	(6)
Ending The Hard News Article	87	(3)
Ending The Feature Article	90	(2)
Factual Ending	92	(1)
The Final Version	93	(2)
Glossary	95