Professional Feature Writing Bruce Garrison (2)

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.I'm not being whimsical.It is certainly possible to search actively for an idea, but unless you know one when you see one, there is no point in looking.(p.88)Freelance writer Lorene Hanley Duquin (1987) has a fourstep plan of attack for shaping story ideas before actually writing the article.She says these four steps require "simple brainstorming" by asking yourself the questions and writing down the answers."It's that information that I mold and shape into a proposal that captures an editor's interest and imagination" (p.38).Her four steps:1.Capture the idea.Build an idea file because writers cannot always use ideas when they come along.You can do this with notebooks, file cards, file folders, shoeboxes, and even your word processor.At times, ideas have to wait until a market prospect presents itself, too.2.Develop the idea.Do some preliminary research to develop that idea into a proposal.Not all ideas are easy to develop, of course, so be prepared to do some work.Think about the idea.Is it too broad or too narrow? Does it have wide enough appeal to your potential readers?3.Tailor the idea.Shaping the idea to the readers you wish to reach is very important to a successful feature story.AskPage 41yourself questions: What readers will be interested in your article? What has already been done on the subject? What publication will want to publish the article?4.Test the idea.Duquin says you should be able to answer these questions: Do you really want to write the article? Are you capable of doing the article? How much will the article cost you (in money and time)? What else can you do with the material if an editor does not want it? Are there markets for reprints? Can you do spinoff articles?For another approach to turning an idea into a workable story, Wisconsin writer Marshall Cook (1986) suggested seven steps: 1.Feed the mind.Try new experiences.Relive old ones through journals and diaries.Read extensively.Talk to people.Do stimulating things.2.Nurture the idea.Ideas come with a flash of lightning or with the graduate speed of a sunrise.Be ready for an idea to come to you and give it your attention by examining it from all angles.3.Ignore the idea.After pampering the idea, forget about it for a while.This incubation period helps divert you from pressure of creation on demand.Decide to come back to the idea at an appointed date and time a few days later.4.Welcome the idea back.When you return to the idea at the appointed hour, be fresh and alert.Be at your most productive period of the day.Write in your regular, yet special, writing place.Be comfortable.5.Create! Concentrate on your idea, organize, and get going.Let the ideas flow and worry about style and clarity later.Get something on paper now.6.Sustain the flow.Regular writing momentum makes a big difference.Successfully developing your idea into an article will depend on continuation of the work.7.Revise.This involves polishing the original draft into a final product.Page 42Looking at the WorldYou can do stories on an endless list of topics.Start by thinking about your own personal experiences and lifestyle.Stop reading for a moment.Take a piece of paper from your notebook and make a list of possible story ideas.It can be very general.You can refine it later.Compile your list before you read the next paragraph.Done? Compare your list to the idea categories that follow.If you are a typical college student, it might include such things as cars, music, movies, dancing, clothing styles, housing, food, relationships, dating, classes, grades, fitness and exercise, travel, credit cards and bank accounts, friends, roommates, church, clubs and social groups, parttime jobs, parents–grandparents, and hometowns.Your list probably includes something like those and perhaps more.Your list might be more specific.Not bad for a just few minutes of ''brainstorming."Every one of those categories can be divided into story prospects.You just need to get more specific, that is, give each one a little more focus.You might not realize it, but you are an expert on subjects already and can write about them.If you are interested in fitness and exercise, for instance, do you like to jog? Take an aerobics class? If you do, you know more about jogging or aerobics than those persons who do not jog nor do aerobics.You've experienced shopping for running and exercise clothes, conditioning, selection of the right foods, and the choice of best places to run, best clubs, and trainers.Personal expertise can be personal experience also.These can develop into wonderful feature articles for the right publications.How about those categories we called parents/grandparents and hometown? Some writers can turn an ordinary aspect of their lives, such as their family or the home in which they grew up into a marvelous experience for readers.Suddenly an ordinary part of your life, if reinvestigated, becomes a feature idea, a story prospect, and ultimately an article for a magazine.Your story ideas can come from a lot of different places.Now, think of your experiences beyond the most immediate personal levels of your life.Professional and personal contacts can be useful, too.Do you belong to a club or business group? Or does someone in your family? Sometimes these organizations provide numerous professional and personal contacts that can be used as sources for story ideas or for stories themselves.For example, that neighborhood fitness and exercise club you belong to can become a source spot for stories.You can write howtodo it stories, for example, from what you learn about thePage 43aerobics classes and other features of about fitness, good eating habits, exercise clothing, membership plans and costs, and so forth about the clubs in your community.Freelance writer Patricia L.Fry recommends being prepared for ideas to come at any time.To do this, she is never unprepared to take notes or her observations."Carry a note pad or tape recorder wherever you go.Start an idea file to keep your notes in, as well as newspaper and magazine clippings.Do this faithfully and you'll always find some fresh ideas to pitch to editors," Fry (1997, p.40) explained.Certainly groups will often host programs with instructional and educational value [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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