Communicative Writing
Week 6
MMC120
Instructed by Hillarie Zimmermann
Today’s Class
• Review radio spots with Ron
• Lead writing practice
• Newsletter and magazine writing
• Complete an in-class assignment
• Review homework
The Lead – Engaging or not?
Why?
The Lead:
For a magazine/newsletter
story, there are two types of
leads
Straight News Story
Lead Writing Practice
• See p. 81 for an example
• The lead includes the most important
details of the 5Ws & 1H
The Straight Lead – Writing
Practice
Find That Feature Lead
• Read p. 85 in the text describing the different kinds
of leads, then search through a magazine to find
two good examples of leads that are not straight
news leads.
Newsletter and magazine
stories
• Inform or inform/entertain
• Rarely announce breaking news
• Often target a well-defined audience whose
members share a common interest
Newsletters
• Often not that expensive to produce
• Public relations tool that can draw attention to a
business/topic
• Target audience is often customers, potential
customers, the media, people with like interests
Newsletters - The Format
• Print or email
• Length varies
• Where will it be printed
• Often 2 column
• Often sent monthly, quarterly
• Often includes a boilerplate paragraph at the bottom of
every issue
• Golden rule: a headline for every article, a caption for
every picture
Newsletters - Hold the
Interest of Your Reader
• Kick it off with catchy headlines
• Your writing style should fit well with your readers
• Know your readers (research) - what are they interested in,
what information can you provide to benefit them
• Keep reader’s attention with pictures, short written pieces,
personality profiles, editorials, new product announcements,
Q&A, events, coming attractions, contact information
Magazine stories
• Many magazines have regular writers
• Can do a traditional pitch to a magazine or can
research whether the magazine has submission
requirements
Magazine stories - The format
• Consider the audience - magazines generally have a niche
audience - write for their needs
• Magazine articles should be written so that they are relevant
for a longer period of time
• Still answers the 5W’s and H questions
• Elaborates on these questions, often in some detail
• Goes into depth on a subject and provides detail
and perspective
• Often incorporate story telling skills
Newsletter and magazine
stories
Three categories
• Straight news stories (to inform) – 5Ws &1H,
inverted pyramid.
• Features (to inform and entertain) – Incorporates
all of the important details in a creative way. Not
in inverted pyramid form. Often incorporate a
“nut paragraph”. Conclusions are strong.
• Hybrids (to hook with entertaining lead;
then inform)
Newsletter and magazine
stories
Feature stories - organization
Gold coin theory
Wall Street Journal styles #1 and #2
People magazine personality profile
Epic poetry strategy
Bookend strategy
Theme strategy
Analyze a Magazine Article
• What organizational strategy does the article
use?
• Is the article a hybrid/feature/straight news
story?
• Describe the lead. Does it incorporate the 5Ws
& 1H or is it more a hook?
• Does the story follow an inverted pyramid
format?
• Can you find the “nut paragraph”?
Complete in-class assignment
Complete assignment number 5 –
Newsletter/Magazine story. This assignment
is due at the beginning of the next class.
What to expect next class…
• Overview of Writing Speeches
• Introduction of Second Portfolio Assignment
Homework
• Read “Speeches” p. 92-97
• Due February 21 – Digital Media Kit
• Due February 21 – Magazine/Newsletter Story