Day 10 - Feature Writing

Day – 10 Feature Writing

How to Produce a feature article

1. Use your intuition – visualize the story
2. Garner your sources
3. Questions and answers
4. Conducting the interview
5. Resource review
6. Story Outline
7. First Draft
8. Rewrite

1. Use your intuition – visualize the story

Whether you are given an assignment or you have had the luxury of choosing your own topic, it can be useful to create a model in your mind of how you want the story to look: its length, scope, style (gravity), number of quotes, number of direct references, etc. It can be useful to build a checklist.

Question: what sort of story will feature several quotes? A lot of facts and figures? When’s a good time to “keep it light?”

2. Garner your sources

Once you know your topic and you have a general idea of how you want your story to look, it’s time to start chasing your sources.
o Constantly build your Rolodex – know who your reliables are, but don’t get in the habit of relying on them.
o Search the Archives – what’s been written on the topic, what’s useful, what’s not worth repeating (the 20% rule)
o Keep things fresh – Find people and resources that can supply with information about breaking topics and who are able to give interesting answers to creative questions
o Rank your sources – order the list of people you wish to contact, have at least 2 back-ups for everyone on your A-list.

Example: Downtown Classic Apartments (describe source search, show story)

3. Questions and answers

It can be useful to build a list of questions before each interview. It can be even more useful to build a list of questions you would like the story to answer. This can help you in choosing your sources.

Question: What are some questions that an article on classic downtown flats could answer?

Show list of questions for Itsik.

4. Conducting interviews
o The pros and cons of paper and pencil (show notebook)
o The pros and cons of recording (show recorder)
o The pros and cons of a PDA/laptop

Question: what could be some appropriate times to use pencil and paper and when could it be wise to use either a recorder, PDA/laptop?

5. Resource review
o Before beginning your outline, you could find it useful to read to review all your resources: read interview transcripts, listen to recorded interviews, read press releases and websites
o Take notes, uncover the gaps

6. Story Outline

Example: Classic Dowtown flats in Budapest

7. First Draft
Start writing. If you’ve come this far, you probably have a pretty good idea of what you want to say.

8. Rewrite
Perhaps better called “re-read”. Read through the piece 3 times, correcting, deleting, adding as you go.

A Career in print Journalism:

o The 3 Ps

o Getting published

o Establishing yourself

o Exploring your skills

o Captain of your ship

- Jacob Doyle

12 Point Checklist for Writing Feature Articles

Copyright © 2003 J Black

A feature story differs from a straight news story in one respect – its intent. A news story provides
information about an event, idea or situation. The feature does a bit more – it may also interpret
news, add depth and colour to a story, instruct or entertain.
Structure:

The introduction is the most important part - entice your reader, hook them in. Use
drama, emotion, quotations, questions, descriptions

The body of the article needs to keep any promises or answer any questions raised in
the introduction - try and maintain an "atmosphere" throughout the writing

While the introduction draws the reader in, the conclusion should be written to help the
reader remember the story - use a strong punchline
Some points to keep in mind:

Focus on human interest - the feel and emotion you put into the article are critical. Don't
think about writing a "science" story - think about writing a "human interest" story.

Be clear about why you are writing the article. Is it to inform, persuade, observe,
evaluate, or evoke emotion?

Write in the active voice. In active writing, people do things. Passive sentences often
have the person doing the action at the end of the sentenceor things being done “by”
someone.

Accuracy is important - you can interpret and embroider but not fudge.

Keep your audience clearly in mind - what are their desires, what really matters to them?

Avoid clichés (cutting edge, world beating, revolutionary) and sentimental statements -
especially at the end of your article.

Interviews for features usually need to be in-depth and in person rather than over the
phone - this enables you to add in colour and detail.

Use anecdotes and direct quotes to tell the story - try not to use too many of your own
words.

Talk to more than one person to provide a more complete picture – but don’t just add in
sources to show how much work you’ve done. Be ruthless about who you put in and who
you leave out!

Decide on the ‘tense' of your story at the start and stick to it. Present tense usually works
best.

Avoid lengthy, complex paragraphs. Your article will appear in columns, so one or two
sentences equals a paragraph.

Ideas come from everywhere - watch, read, listen, keep up to date, take notes. Talk to
people outside the field of science to find out what interests and concerns them.

Tips:

1. Have you selected your intended subject topic and
carefully planned out your idea?

2. Have you sent your idea query pitch to magazines or
newspapers who may be interested? or will you write
"on spec"?

With many magazines and newspapers now accepting material
online it is now possible in many instances to email
your queries directly to the publication. Have you read
the publishers guidelines carefully to make sure if this
method is acceptable?

Before sending your query pitch:

- Is it likely to be what the publisher needs: have you
studied the publication?

- Is the timing right. Have you checked the magazines
editorial calendar? If it is a seasonal article is now
the best time to send your query?

If you have answered yes to these questions then package
your idea into an attractive proposal and send it off to
the editor of your chosen publication.

3. Have you adequately researched your topic?

Read everything you can on the topic from all available
sources - bookstores, newspapers, libraries and internet
sources. Never discard anything about your subject topic
since you don't know until you write it up what you may
actually want to use.

Tip: Saving magazines, newspapers and clippings for the
subject matter can save time when researching future
writing assignments on the same topic or when working
to deadlines. Catalogue all your collected material
for easy reference.

4. Have you interviewed the key person/people you need
for your proposed feature?

Now it is time to organize your material into a feature
article.

5. Have you discarded everything in your research except
for factual information?

True research and liberal use of factual material gives
an original perspective to your feature article and also
avoids the possibility of plagiarism.

6. Have you checked and cross-referenced your facts amongst
your various sources.

7. Have you decided on the length of the article? Have you
checked the length is suitable for the publication you are
sending it to?

Tip: Do not waste the editors time by sending a 2000 word
article to a publication that requires articles between
500-750 words.

8. Will you use quotes in your article? Quotes and
antcedotes bring a story to life. Are the quotes from a
reliable source and have you double checked that quotes
used are acurately recorded?

9. Do you have a good lead, middle and ending?

10. Have you proofread and edited your article to achieve
the best possible version through re-writing your drafts
to arrive at your final version?

Have you made all corrections and necessary changes, have
you checked spelling (this includes people and place names)
grammar, punctuation etc?

11. If the feature is to be visual - have you provided
the appropriate photographs, art work, line drawings,
or other graphic illustrations to compliment your feature?

This increases the payment amount you can expect to
receive if you are a feature photojournalist or travel
feature writer who can offer original photographic
perspectives of your subject topic.

12. Have you included everything in your envelope before
sending your article to the publisher (including photos
properly packaged) or, if the magazine or newspaper
excepts online submissions have you given everything a
final check before hitting the send button?

©Econnect Communication, 2002

Structure of a feature article.

Stage-setting introduction

“Only in his own hometown,” said Jesus, “is a prophet without honor.” Discouraged by his childhood companions’ lack of faith in his abilities, the fabled rabbi shrugged, “and could perform no miracles that day.” Away from home, however, Jesus’ wondrous achievements are well documented. Leaving the nest to find one’s self, to perform one’s miracles, has been the fate, if not the quest, of many expatriates. Such is the plot of a current film, Mix, now playing at area theatres. It is also the story of its chief creators, The Lovy Brothers, Robert and Steven.

Topical Introduction

Born the sons of a Hungarian Jew who weathered the Holocaust in Hungary as a hidden child, the brothers grew up in California, each cast in their father’s eyes as artists in the pure sense of the word. Both strayed. Robert abandoned photography to study advertising and Steven left a promising career as a classical pianist to learn filmmaking. That each attended leading schools in his field was no redemption. Never mind that Steven’s award-winning student effort drew studio funding to produce the feature-length Circuitry Man, today a cult classic along with its sequel, Plughead Rewired. Or that Robert soared as creative director at major ad firms in the US, Turkey, the Czech Republic and Hungary. A smile on their father’s aged face had to wait for the fictive reconciliation of family differences portrayed in Mix – a film directed by Steven, produced by Robert and co-written by both brothers.

First Quote and first topic: emphasis – making a film

“We wanted to create a film we could make in Hungary,” Robert recently told the Budapest Times, “a film anyone with family separation issues could relate to.” A year-and-a-half earlier, brother Steven revealed a more heartfelt motivation, “The film I’m making now is about my father.”

Mr. Lovy the Elder flew into the country of his birth for the film’s release and was present at the opening party at Budapest’s Fészek Klub. His expression was closely watched by Steven’s girlfriend, Fanny. “I was really concerned about how he would react to the film,” she told a friend, “you know this film is about Steven’s life and his relationship to his father.”

The chief character in Mix is a gifted young musician named Mitch who is torn between studying classical piano at the Julliard School of Music – his father’s hope – and following his own passion of scratching out dance mixes behind a pair of old-fashioned record turntables. Mitch is awaiting a second audition for Julliard when a call comes from Budapest announcing the death of his grandfather, thence prompting a trip to the old country with his dad, played by veteran Hungarian actor Janos Kulka. Once there, Mitch finds himself broke and stranded at his grandmother’s after a calamitous night, which many expatriate males may find familiar. Mitch’s journey of self-discovery in a foreign world and liberation from life with his father play out the rest of the film.

Second topic: depth – parallels between filmmakers and main character

One memorable scene that finds father and son at the site of an abandoned movie house bespeaks more of the issues involving the filmmakers and their real life father as well as their chosen art than the relationship between the onscreen father and son.

“Every writer writes about his own experiences,” says Steven from the editing lab of his Buda Castle flat, “some of the film relates to me, but most is fiction or fiction based on observations.”

Are there parallels between the chief character and him?

“I studied classical piano for 10 years,” Steven confesses, “my parents were hoping for a career in music, but I opted for film and music for film.”

Mitch’s journey is one that many expats could relate to, adds Robert, reflecting on his own years of life abroad. “The people who’ve taken the time to live and work in another country are more complex; their minds have had to make more connections as they’ve moved from one reality to another. Most any expat experiences the same cycle Mitch goes through: fascination, paranoia, then respect and maturity or coming of age, even.”

Mitch’s infatuation and brief involvement with Béa, an Internet porn diva, his musical pursuits and those matters of the heart surrounding the relationships explored in the film are captured in the tagline, “Music, Love, Porn.” Hollywood trade journal Variety finds the concept better suited to “European auds,” than what it likely regards as more prudish American viewers. But the Lovys are counting on an interested response from the hometown crowd as they negotiate for American distribution.

Third topic: wrap-up – filmmakers’ background and future plans

Back in Hollywood, Steven co-wrote the music for the 1992 film, A Weekend with Barbara und Ingrid, directed by Gregory Neri. In addition to the Circuitry Man films, which involved the efforts of both brothers, Robert and Steven spent much of the 90s being paid to write screenplays that never made it to the screen. The middle of the decade saw Robert embark on his four-country tour of the advertising industry and Steven channeled his energies to expanding the Internet bubble, project managing the development of online video games. The pair reunited in Budapest in 2001 with the specific aim of making Mix.

Early plans for a lower-budget version of the film were upgraded with the involvement of a co-producer, Jozsef Cirkó, owner and director of Happy Crew Company, a film production firm. “Cirkó’s contributions helped elevate the film to a much higher production value,” says Steven, adding that sponsors also helped finance the project’s improvements. In addition, music videos were culled from the film’s footage and are now being aired on local TV stations.

The film’s two male leads, Mitch (Alex Weed) and his ex-pat street hustler friend Lou (Jeffrey Schechter) are Hollywood imports. Other characters such as Bea (Dorka Gryllus) and heavy handed porn producer Zoltan (Péter Rudolf) along with other cast members were recruited from local talent.

Awards for best editing and best first film (made in Hungary) were recently bestowed upon Mix by Hungarian juries.

The Lovy Brothers speak confidently about future projects, which include more films to be shot in Budapest involving music and some non-Hungarian characters. Tony Curtis, the celebrated American actor of Hungarian descent, has expressed an interest. Meanwhile, Robert has taken the wheel of VIP Communications, a “mid-sized ad firm” with a glitzy new office in Budapest’s fifth district. May expatriate wonders never cease

- Jacob Doyle