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. Artofliving articles can be an easy market for beginning feature writers, says Reader's Digest senior staff editor Philip Barry Osborne (1987). These articles include features that are inspirational narratives and essays, inspirational essays on faith and religion, and selfhelp articles. Inspirational and motivational features are also a type of humaninterest feature and were discussed at some length in chapter 6.As you may recall, inspirational narratives and essays tell stories with a message to readers. The main difference is in approach. Narratives are chronological, whereas essays are in essence dealing with philosophy and ''feel." These are "good" stories about people that make readers feel better after finishing them. Inspirational essays on faith and religion are not always sermons~ these are, instead, articles on worship, personal revelation, prayer and meditation, and love. As Osborne points out, these can vary greatly in length as much as in topic.Osborne offers five tips for artofliving articles:1. Guard against overwriting. Do not get too ornamental or exquisite in your writing. "[T]hink more in terms of creating a small, delicate watercolor, rather than a giant oil painting," he advised (p. 22).2. Steep yourself in what you're writing about. Simple themes, he says, require much more than simple or superficial research.3. Pinpoint your lesson or message. This is a fundamental requirement, so give the article what Reader's Digest editors call a "takeaway" some theme that readers can take with them upon finishing the article. Page 3514. Sharpen your eye for the telling anecdote. These articles are about people, so use anecdotes. In fact, anecdotes can become the entire basis for an article.5. Don't be afraid of ghosting. Writing under someone else's name is acceptable at Reader's Digest because artofliving stories are best told in first person. Thus, write for experts who cannot do it themselves, he says.Chronological Case HistoriesYou can often learn easiest from example. This is where chronological case histories some writers also call them "case summaries" enter the category of service feature writing. Just as howto articles, listings, and artofliving articles teach readers, so do chronological case histories. A good case history can hit home for your readers. A patient who has had heart trouble and has made it through major surgery to repair the problem has a story to tell. Other patients and their friends and families benefit from the story.A chronological case history outlines the case of the patient for readers in a momentbymoment, daybyday approach. Many times, in fact, these articles are organized by date and time. In telling the story of the heart patient, no detail should be spared. And in concluding it, resolution must be achieved. Tell readers whether the efforts of doctors and nurses paid off did the problem get solved? Did the patient live? Are there breakthroughs in health care to result from this?Caution is needed in Writing Service FeaturesIt is quite possible to get so enthusiastic about service articles, especially howto articles, that you can forget potential dangers related to these articles. As a writer, you must emphasize safety at all times. Especially dangerous, or potentially dangerous, subjects, such as those involving poisons (in gardening) or electricity (installations), might need an extra dimension of safety written into them. As a writer, you do not want to deemphasize the possibility of risk in the stories you writeif it exists. On the other hand, stories that involve other kinds of risk, such as investments, should be written just as carefully and thoughtfully for readers. You cannot write enough cautions and safety reminders into these types of articles. Page 352One particular area of concern is the subject matter itself. Although it might have been interesting and entertaining reading, quite a controversy arose when the Progressive magazine published a nowfamous article more than 10 years ago about how to make a hydrogen bomb. On a more practical level, there is still concern about how much you tell readers, even if you personally know or if an expert is willing to discuss it, on certain subjects.The ethical considerations on stories about crime such as auto theft, for example, are many. Do you write an article about how parking lot car thefts occur? How much do you tell? Is it right to have a former thief as your source and is it proper for him or her to describe, in detail, how to produce tools to break in and steal a car? Or, if your community has a problem with arson in a particular neighborhood, should you write a howto article about how an arsonist does the job?One recent newspaper feature highlighted a onewoman crime wave. This woman, the article relates, broke into countless homes of wealthy individuals by dressing the part of a welltodo visitor including wearing fancy clothing and driving a luxury rental car. Too much information about how this woman managed her 300 to 500 burglaries might suggest the idea to someone else. However, it can also alert persons to a potential thief in their neighborhood. A fine line of judgment must govern content of such articles. In another case, three Florida teenagers were once arrested for making an incendiary device napalm after reading how to do it in a book. The Anarchist Cookbook, written nearly 20 years earlier. They were mixing the substance in their kitchen when local authorities discovered them. Even the newspaper reports of the arrest described in detail the ingredients the boys were using. Would you write that article for publication?Writing Service and howto FeaturesOne magazine editor who has nailed down the concepts of howto and services features content is Joe Oldham. He is the longtime editor of Hearst's Popular Mechanics in New York. He gives this advice about service features:If I had the opportunity to say only one thing to a young writer who was interested in making a living as a feature writer for magazines, newspapers, or any other medium for that matter, it would be this: Write the way you speak. Be natural. Write the words as if you were having a conversation with someone. Imagine that you're telling the reader a story or giving the reader some Page 353BEST SOURCES FOR SERVICE ARTICLESThere are a number of individuals who will be your best sources for service articles [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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. Artofliving articles can be an easy market for beginning feature writers, says Reader's Digest senior staff editor Philip Barry Osborne (1987). These articles include features that are inspirational narratives and essays, inspirational essays on faith and religion, and selfhelp articles. Inspirational and motivational features are also a type of humaninterest feature and were discussed at some length in chapter 6.As you may recall, inspirational narratives and essays tell stories with a message to readers. The main difference is in approach. Narratives are chronological, whereas essays are in essence dealing with philosophy and ''feel." These are "good" stories about people that make readers feel better after finishing them. Inspirational essays on faith and religion are not always sermons~ these are, instead, articles on worship, personal revelation, prayer and meditation, and love. As Osborne points out, these can vary greatly in length as much as in topic.Osborne offers five tips for artofliving articles:1. Guard against overwriting. Do not get too ornamental or exquisite in your writing. "[T]hink more in terms of creating a small, delicate watercolor, rather than a giant oil painting," he advised (p. 22).2. Steep yourself in what you're writing about. Simple themes, he says, require much more than simple or superficial research.3. Pinpoint your lesson or message. This is a fundamental requirement, so give the article what Reader's Digest editors call a "takeaway" some theme that readers can take with them upon finishing the article. Page 3514. Sharpen your eye for the telling anecdote. These articles are about people, so use anecdotes. In fact, anecdotes can become the entire basis for an article.5. Don't be afraid of ghosting. Writing under someone else's name is acceptable at Reader's Digest because artofliving stories are best told in first person. Thus, write for experts who cannot do it themselves, he says.Chronological Case HistoriesYou can often learn easiest from example. This is where chronological case histories some writers also call them "case summaries" enter the category of service feature writing. Just as howto articles, listings, and artofliving articles teach readers, so do chronological case histories. A good case history can hit home for your readers. A patient who has had heart trouble and has made it through major surgery to repair the problem has a story to tell. Other patients and their friends and families benefit from the story.A chronological case history outlines the case of the patient for readers in a momentbymoment, daybyday approach. Many times, in fact, these articles are organized by date and time. In telling the story of the heart patient, no detail should be spared. And in concluding it, resolution must be achieved. Tell readers whether the efforts of doctors and nurses paid off did the problem get solved? Did the patient live? Are there breakthroughs in health care to result from this?Caution is needed in Writing Service FeaturesIt is quite possible to get so enthusiastic about service articles, especially howto articles, that you can forget potential dangers related to these articles. As a writer, you must emphasize safety at all times. Especially dangerous, or potentially dangerous, subjects, such as those involving poisons (in gardening) or electricity (installations), might need an extra dimension of safety written into them. As a writer, you do not want to deemphasize the possibility of risk in the stories you writeif it exists. On the other hand, stories that involve other kinds of risk, such as investments, should be written just as carefully and thoughtfully for readers. You cannot write enough cautions and safety reminders into these types of articles. Page 352One particular area of concern is the subject matter itself. Although it might have been interesting and entertaining reading, quite a controversy arose when the Progressive magazine published a nowfamous article more than 10 years ago about how to make a hydrogen bomb. On a more practical level, there is still concern about how much you tell readers, even if you personally know or if an expert is willing to discuss it, on certain subjects.The ethical considerations on stories about crime such as auto theft, for example, are many. Do you write an article about how parking lot car thefts occur? How much do you tell? Is it right to have a former thief as your source and is it proper for him or her to describe, in detail, how to produce tools to break in and steal a car? Or, if your community has a problem with arson in a particular neighborhood, should you write a howto article about how an arsonist does the job?One recent newspaper feature highlighted a onewoman crime wave. This woman, the article relates, broke into countless homes of wealthy individuals by dressing the part of a welltodo visitor including wearing fancy clothing and driving a luxury rental car. Too much information about how this woman managed her 300 to 500 burglaries might suggest the idea to someone else. However, it can also alert persons to a potential thief in their neighborhood. A fine line of judgment must govern content of such articles. In another case, three Florida teenagers were once arrested for making an incendiary device napalm after reading how to do it in a book. The Anarchist Cookbook, written nearly 20 years earlier. They were mixing the substance in their kitchen when local authorities discovered them. Even the newspaper reports of the arrest described in detail the ingredients the boys were using. Would you write that article for publication?Writing Service and howto FeaturesOne magazine editor who has nailed down the concepts of howto and services features content is Joe Oldham. He is the longtime editor of Hearst's Popular Mechanics in New York. He gives this advice about service features:If I had the opportunity to say only one thing to a young writer who was interested in making a living as a feature writer for magazines, newspapers, or any other medium for that matter, it would be this: Write the way you speak. Be natural. Write the words as if you were having a conversation with someone. Imagine that you're telling the reader a story or giving the reader some Page 353BEST SOURCES FOR SERVICE ARTICLESThere are a number of individuals who will be your best sources for service articles [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]