FEATURE WRITING
REGIONAL TRAINING OF TRAINERS IN CAMPUS JOURNALISM
ANGELICA B. JANDONERO
Teacher III
Esperanza National High School, Sultan Kudarat Division
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Feature Writing
The Art of Telling Stories
Tells the reader a story.
It has a beginning (lead), middle and
end.
It uses quotes liberally and allows the
reader to see the story through
detailed description and vivid
writing.
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Typical topics
Community Economics
Entertainment Current Issues
Individuals Sports
Environment Celebrities
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Typi Trends
Human Interest
cal Profile
How-to
Behind the scenes
**There are many more, but these are most
popular…** Ty
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TRENDS HUMAN INTEREST
PROFILE
HOW-TO BEHIND THE SCENES
• report on changes that happen
• tell us more about what it
gradually over time. • tell the story of a person
• means
Inside to be
views human.
of unusual
• These articles help people occupations,
learn
persons.
by issues
telling and
them events
how give readers a
to common
• very do
• something.
Discusses issues •through
feeling of penetrating the the
inner circle
reveals an individual’s chara
experiences of another
or being a mouse in the
or corner.
lifestyle
• The writer learns about the different facets of
• exposes
topic thorough education,
subject so readers will feel
experience, researchknow or person
interviews with experts.
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• Not the inverted pyramid
• The information in a feature is organized
differently from hard news stories.
• Sometimes a writer uses several paragraphs of
copy at the outset to engage the reader before
getting into the main elements of the story.
STORY FORMAT
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Choosing the theme
Has the story been done before?
Is the story of interest to the reader?
What makes the story worthy to be
reported?
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Story Format: Features
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Let's start at the
beginning with …
LEADS
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Leads
The opening sentence must grab and hold the
reader's attention by using specific, interest-
arousing words.
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Narrative - tells a
story
Justin Greer's 2,800 friends have never seen him cry.
His father has seen him cry only once — the day last
October when doctors told the 16-year-old football player
that what he thought was a bad case of the flu was actually
leukemia.
“He cried a bit then,” Mr. Greer said. “But then he
squared off and said, ‘Well, I’m not dead yet.’ And I haven't
seen him cry since, although he told me that sometimes he
cries at night when he's all alone.”
Descriptive - describes a scene/person
It is 7:30 Thursday night and the Presbyterian
Church of Utica is deserted except for its well-lit
cafeteria.
Slowly they straggle in, single or in pairs. They are
a friendly, yet haggard group, bearing the signs of a
long emotional struggle.
They are the parents of problem teenagers. There are
no straight-A-honor roll students here. No football
captains or cheerleaders. Only drug addicts, alcoholics
and runaways.
Direct Quote - use sparingly. Must be very
powerful quote
“Don't be mad. I took some pills,” Karen Keaton
cried as she stooped over the toilet.
A few hours later, the 14-year-old freshman died
after a series of coronary arrests.
Startling Statement - creates
drama
She never knew she had it.
______________________________________
Junior Josh Duckworth has a fetish.
Startling Statement - creates
drama
Melissa hates school.
It's not that she's dumb. It isn’t that she doesn’t
fit in socially. In fact, it isn’t that anything is
particularly wrong.
It's more of a matter of nothing being particularly
right.
Twist - sets reader up for one mood and
then
twists it, surprises the reader
A group of candystrippers stand around the nursery, holding
incubator babies. It's “loving time.” Another young girl steps in with
her mother and picks up a baby, too. She is not in a uniform, but in a
hospital gown, for the baby she holds is her own — and it's her
“loving time.”
It's also time to say good-bye.
“I sat in that rocker and held him and rocked him and I cried and
cried and cried,” Amber, a senior, said. “I wanted that moment to last
forever so I could always hold him and always be there for him.”
“But I knew I couldn't. That's what hurt.”
REGIONAL TRAINING OF TRAINERS IN CAMPUS JOURNALISM
Lead writing pitfalls:
• News or editorials leads. Avoid first
and second person.
• Stating the obvious.
• Using cliches.
• “Imagine this…” leads
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So how do you end a
feature story?
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End your story with …
- A powerful quote
Or
- Tie the ending back to the lead
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Pitfalls to avoid in feature writing …
▪ Using a news lead
▪ Writing in the passive voice
▪ Using too many adverbs and adjectives
instead of specific nouns and powerful
verbs
▪ Messy handwriting
▪Lack of strong quotes
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REGIONAL TRAINING OF TRAINERS IN CAMPUS JOURNALISM
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REGIONAL TRAINING OF TRAINERS IN CAMPUS JOURNALISM
Workshop…
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Interview a teacher. Describe their
experiences in their work- the challenges
and battles, you may also include the
.
achievements.
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References
• RobRoberto S. Sanvictores
• erto
Kriger, L. ( 2011 ) Smart tips for writing a great feature article. Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcoIsulacxw
Sanvictores, Roberto S. ( 2015 ) National Training of Trainers.
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