Writer's Roundtable-Monday

Tom Hallman Jr.: Narrative Writing Toolbox
We read Hallman's series "Boy Behind the Mask" and will return to his work if we get time. Here, we get to learn more about how he approaches writing.

She's his teacher, mentor, friend
This is a piece I wrote as an education reporter in Topeka.

"Snapshots: Short Dog."
This is a piece written by Crocker Stephenson of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. I can no longer find an active link to the story.

"Diving headlong into a sunny paradise"
In this piece, a young couple experiences Florida for the first time.

Writers Roundtable, Day 2

We'll review these stories on Monday.

She's his teacher, mentor, friend

The Boy Behind the Mask

Writing tips from Tom Hallman

Final Salute

Snapshots

Roundtable examples

Interviewing (Day 1)

Agent 'will sell houses for food'

Lair of the Cobra King

Day1, Roundtable Examples

Writing tips-From Start to Finish

Here's a PowerPoint I've revised a few times -- most recently before speaking at the KSPA fall conference at Kansas State. It's a whirlwind look at what goes into putting together a story.

Enjoy.

Barbara

Start To Finish

View more presentations from FHWriter.

Day 4- The nut graph and other handy tools

Start with a plan

Make an outline that includes:

A brief description of the story.

Essential information.

Important details.

Great quotes.

Ideas for a beginning and end.

Note of a special story-telling plan.

Photos and design connections.

Putting it on paper

Use a conversational tone, as if you are talking to a friend.

Keep writing, even if you get stuck.

Loosen up.

Use the dictionary, thesaurus and AP Stylebook for guides.

Don’t fear the lede.

Set the scene for a reason

Use quotes wisely

Have a sense of humor (don’t forget to laugh when you sit down at a keyboard, but also don’t try to be funny when it’s not.)

Have a beginning, a middle and end.

Simple techniques work.

Choose details wisely. Realize that images can be painted in many different types of stories.

Learn the rules. Know the rules. Break the rules.

Find your voice.

Sense the story. Use your heart. Use your skepticism. Use your sense of humor.

Be creative in story-telling.

Don’t shy away from gritty details.

Use vivid words. Own a thesaurus and a dictionary (the one on your computer doesn’t count.)

Ledes: Good ledes shine a light on the story.

There are a million different ways to start a story. When I was a student journalist people gave me lists of ways I could start stories -- anecdotes, questions, scene-setters... I'm not going to do that because I think it becomes a confusing crutch. So let's keep it simple. Just tell the story.

Editing

Double check for accuracy, including names, numbers, quotes and details.

Check for specificity, getting rid of words like many.

Read the story aloud.

Don’t fear red ink, and be ready to justify why you wrote the way you did if you want your ideas to stick.

Look for places where the pacing struggles.

Check for active language and strong verbs.

Look for places where you give too little and too much information.

Simplify.

Day 3-Opinion and Voice

A few tips

1. In opinion pieces, voice is essential.

2. You have to find your own voice. It may be sweet, snarky, funny, snide, edgy or something else. Don't fight it. Learn to use it.

3. Follow your instincts.

4. Column and editorial writers can (and should) do original research and interviews.

5. If you're going to write an editorial, take a stance. Nothing is worse than a wishy-washy editorial.

Examples

http://www.thestar.com/Article/666403
http://www.thestar.com/article/667073

Day 3-Profiles that rock

The following stories will help us develop ideas for approaching profiles.

Snapshots
Crocker Stephenson, Miswaukee Journal-Sentinel
http://www.aasfe.org/contests/2005winners/div3-shortfeature.pdf

Part 1: The Bob Owen Story
James Carlson
July 2, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/070208/lif_298670331.shtml

Obsessed, Owen’s mind falters
James Carlson
July 3, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/070208/lif_298670331.shtml

Owen looks for help at Menninger
James Carlson
July 4, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/070408/lif_299862817.shtml

Vets, hockey offer Owen an outlet
James Carlson
July 5, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/070508/lif_300258576.shtml

Owen’s life, death, a puzzle, an enigma
James Carlson
July 6, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/070608/lif_300499391.shtml

Coroner working to identify body found in car
Barbara Hollingsworth
Oct. 8, 2007
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/100807/loc_206291403.shtml

Lair of the Cobra King
By Virginia Smith, The Daytona Beach News-Journal, Fla.
http://www.aasfe.org/contests/2005winners/div2-generalfeature.pdf

Two brothers make a family
Abigail Tucker, The Baltimore Sun

Linked in life and in death
Abigail Tucker, The Baltimore Sun

Day 2-The lede (and the middle and the end)

Day3, The Lede

Writer’s roundtable

Funeral a revival, a cry out to youths
Barbara Hollingsworth
May 9, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/050908/loc_277252765.shtml

Chapman residents rally around football team after tornado
Barbara Hollingsworth
Sept. 21, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/092108/kan_334824396.shtml

Wright admits mistakes, but says he has right stuff
Barbara Hollingsworth
Nov. 9, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/110908/loc_353921540.shtml

My brother, my mentor
Barbara Hollingsworth
June 22, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/062208/lif_293659123.shtml

Elementary students learn how to mummify chickens
Barbara Hollingsworth
March 16, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/031608/lif_258305839.shtml

Former, current teachers save piano from collapsed auditorium
Barbara Hollingsworth
December 15, 2008
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/121508/kan_367673434.shtml

The Big Dance
Barbara Hollingsworth
May 7, 2006
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/050706/mid_prom.shtml

Winning word for Tolands is ‘family’
Barbara Hollingsworth
June 3, 2006
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/060306/loc_tolands.shtml

Bright spot in one family’s battle
Barbara Hollingsworth
May 27, 2006
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/052706/kan_toland.shtml

Student newspaper controversy hasn’t dulled
Barbara Hollingsworth
Dec. 22, 2006
http://www.cjonline.com/stories/122206/loc_westpaper.shtml

The girl in the window
Lane DeGregory, St. Petersburg Times
http://www.pulitzer.org/works/2009-Feature-Writing

Final Salute
Jim Sheeler, Rocky Mountain News
http://www.pulitzer.org/works/2006-Feature-Writing

13
Thomas French, Monique Fields and Dong-Phuong Nguyen, St. Petersburg Times
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/webspecials03/13/day1/page1.shtml

General-Writer's Checklist

First things first:

Who will I interview and when and where will that happen?




How will I report the story? What do I need to observe to help tell the story?




What other sources of information I should seek?




How can I tell this story?




How is this story different, unique?


Editing checklist:

_Spelling of names have been checked.

_Multiple sources are used.

_Transitions don’t restate quotes.

_Passive verbs are eliminated.

_Edited for wordiness.