Meden F.

Fadriquela
SPA- NEUHS Department
Quezon City
If you ask the question "how
and why" things happen, then
you probably like reading
feature stories in newspapers
and magazines.
♦What is a feature story?
 A feature takes an in-depth look at what’s
going on behind the news.
 It gets into the lives of people.
 It tries to explain why and how a trend
developed.
 Unlike news, a feature does not have to be tied
to a current event or a breaking story. But it can
grow out of something that’s reported in the
news.
 Itmay be a profile of a person or a group -- an
athlete, a performer, a politician, or a
community worker or a team, a choir or a
political organization. Or perhaps it’s an in-
depth look at a social issue -- like fraternities
in schools or eating disorders among young
women. It could also be a story that gives the
reader background on a topic that’s in the
news -- like a story that explains how land
mines work and the history of their use in war.
A feature story
is usually longer
than a news
story -- but
length is not a
requirement!
What’s more
important is the
form the story
takes.
Think of the feature as the journalistic
equivalent of an essay. Follow these guidelines

 startwith a premise or theme

 present information and opinions that back
your point,
 bring the reader to a conclusion.

The feature often explores different points of

views, even when the story is about one
particular person.
The story behind the news
Here’s an example of how a feature can explain and
explore a story that makes news:
 Your local newspaper reports on the front page
that school enrollments are dropping in your
small community. The reason? Many people are
being forced to leave the town to look for jobs in
bigger cities and obviously, their children go
with them. As a reporter you can go beyond the
facts and figures in the news story by talking to
one of the families who are leaving. How do they
feel? What made them decide to go?
 What will they miss about home? What are they
expecting in their new community? How do the
children feel about leaving their school and
their friends? Or you can look at the story from
the point of view of the people who remain in
the town. What’s it like to lose friends and
family to far-away cities? How does it affect the
school? What about the local economy?
 The news story tells the audience what
happened. The feature will tell them
why and how it happened, how the
people involved are reacting, and
what
impact the decision
is having on other
people.
Personality profile
 Indulge your curiosity -- and that of your
readers -- with a profile of an interesting
person.

•You can look at someone who’s making news

in your community, province or country. Or it
could be someone who's relatively unknown
to the public but who has done something
unusual or remarkable
 Here’s one example:
Your town elects a full slate of councilors to represent
and serve the community. One is a 19-year-old student
who was active in youth parliament and student politics.
That makes him the youngest elected official in your
province. But that’s not the whole story! He gets the
most votes of any of the councilors, and according to the
election rules, that makes him deputy mayor. What’s it
like to be a politician when you’re still in your teens?
What does your life experience add to the council? Are
you seen as a spokesman for your generation -- but not
the community as a whole? What do the other
councilors think of their young colleague? Do people
take you seriously?
 That young politician may not be famous. But
he’s certainly done something new. And his
experiences will be something that others will
want to learn more about.
 Take a look at people from the world of sports,
entertainment, politics, science, technology,
business, health, international development,
community activism, education, the military, the
fine arts or any other field that interests you.
 You can choose a subject and find out the basic
facts of the person’s life and work. What have
they learned so far? Are there any surprises? Is
there an area of this person's life or work that the
student would now like to focus on?
 Write your profile by telling your readers the
facts of this person's life — while adding the
color and details that make them unique.
 Talk to the person themselves whenever possible
and use their own words to help tell their story.
 Tracking a trend
Many of the best stories come from reporters’
observations of the world around them. Here’s just one
example of how you can come across a great feature
story in your daily life:

 YOU are hanging around with friends at lunch time and

talking about plans for the weekend. Someone says
they’ve heard that the town council is considering a
curfew for teens. Everyone under 16 has to be off the
streets by 11pm on weekends. You have your own
curfew - set by your parents - but you are surprised to
learn that the mayor wants to put one in place for
everyone.
 You talk to some of your friends to find out what
they think. You and other concerned teens go
over to the town hall and ask the mayor or one
of the councilors why they see the need for a
curfew. You surf the Net and find out what other
towns and cities have been doing.

 You find that this is a bit of trend in the US.

 What you now have is the basis for a really
interesting feature. You have taken a little piece
of information and investigated further to find
out what’s going on. The story will focus on the
issue and the thoughts and feeling of the people
involved — namely local teenagers and the
people who made the decision about the curfew.
 Feature writing tips
The basic guidelines for good writing
apply to all types of writing. However,
if you expect to hold your readers
attention for 1,000 words or more, your
writing must be must be lively, specific
and clear.
As a student writer you have to start with a
lead that captures your reader’s attention.
It could be an anecdote you have heard during
the course of your research.
It could be a description of a person, place or
thing that draws the reader in and encourages
them to learn more.
It could a newsy lead that
highlights the point of the
story.
 Move your story along with descriptions of
what happened, quotes from people
involved in the issue, and details that place
the reader in the midst of the action. Make
sure your ending is meaningful. Your
closing words should
make an impact on your
readers and tie the
various strands of your
story together.
A powerful quote can
often make for a good
ending. Or you may
want to come full
circle and refer back to
a word or an image
used in your opening
sentences.
A good feature writer has SHORTS
Stores a journal
Has a nose for good stories
Observes accuracy
Reads a lot
Takes charge
Simple in writing
STEPS IN WRITING
AND ORGANIZING
THE FEATURE ARTICLE
Steps in Writing and Organizing the
Feature Article
 Narrow down the topic
 Start with a lead that hooks the readers
– Quote
―I want to die with my boots on,‖ says an
85-year old English teacher.
– Chronology of events

Being part of a big family,

Lani Patricio has always
aspired of becoming a successful
businesswoman here in the
Philippines and abroad.
– Shocking moment
It was in this moment when all


hope had faded, that Kat Baron

crossed the finish line, giving the
Sophomores the
championship medal for the
4x100 relay run.
– A rhetorical question
 College education is a privilege, not a
right, isn’t it?
– A surprising fact
 80% of Filipinos spend at least 50 pesos a

day for cellphone load, despite inflation of

basic food prices.
– An irony
 The arrival of the Japanese soldiers
signaled no resentment from the Filipino
war veterans.
 Steps in Writing and Organizing the Feature
Article
♦ Body
– Background and other vital
information
– A thread should be present
– Transition words
– Dialogue
– Voice
Steps in Writing and Organizing the Feature
Article
 Testyour limits, push your use of
language and your ability to set a
scene.
– You are the Storyteller now.
– There’s no one right way to write, and
there’s no single best way for you to tell
your story.
Steps in Writing and Organizing the Feature
Article
 Try to make your reader feel like they
are there.
– Your writing can trigger all five senses!
– You can think of a feature story as a series of
mental images, presented one after the other.
– Well-described scenes results to a beautiful
montage
 Tips for Writing Feature Articles
 What differentiates a feature article from
any regular informative or news article is
the novelty of style, delivery and
wordplay that the author uses to create a
light, informative reading. Feature articles
give writers more breathing space to
express one's writing style and to tackle
the topic in question in a more creative and
less straightforward manner.
 Originality is vital to a successful feature
article, which is something a writer
builds through time and experience,
but for starters, there are only a few
fundamental steps to keep in
mind, and you're on your
way to becoming
a good feature
writer.
1. Keep a brainstorming notebook handy
 It's
always handy to keep a pad of paper or
a small notebook within convenient reach.
Ideas don't just come whenever we want
them to, and they often hit us at the
most unexpected places
and during the most
unexpected times.
 If you've ever been hit with a brilliant idea
while you're on the road or out on the hiking
trail, you know what I mean.
 Besides, many potential ideas take time to
nurse and develop so you can come up with a
good article. It's a huge advantage to always
have something to scribble those fleeting
thoughts on whenever they come
along, so you can go back and
review them when it's time
to wind down.
2. Do your research
 The most important step to any successful
article is, more often than not, the one
that's most overlooked. Do your research!
What decides an article's worth is its
credibility, and only good, solid research
can give you that. Whatever discussion
you tackle must be backed by accurate
facts and data that you can reliably source
should your article come under fire.
3. Start with something light, like an
anecdote or a descriptive passage
 What good will writing a thousand-some
word article be if you can't entice an audience
to pick it up and read? Any article should
start with something that would pique the
interest of readers and endorse your article as
an interesting piece. Your first paragraph, or
your first sentence for the matter, can either
make or break you.
 It's
your most potent and effective marketing
tool in getting your article across to more
readers.
 One of the most popular techniques would be
to start by relating an interesting or comical
anecdote that would introduce your topic. A
catchy scenario or passage will also do the job
perfectly. Also, after reading your first few
paragraphs, your reader should
already be able to grasp what
your article's about.
4. KISS (Keep it short and simple)
 Don't subject your reader to the equivalent
of linguistic torture. A feature article, after
all, is supposed to be light, entertaining
and informative. A winding article that
goes through all the nitty-gritties
of your topic is testing
the patience of the reader.
 Choose only a good amount of detail to
include in your discussion; you don't have
to tackle the less important aspects of your
topic.
 Give the most vital pieces of information
that you want to get across,
and choose the details
that go along with it.
 However, be
careful that you
don't omit too
much detail that
you end up with a
vague outline for
an article.
A good technique is to always keep in mind
your target audience. If you're writing an
article on diving for general sports
enthusiasts, you don't have to go through the
trouble of explaining technical aspects
because it will only bore your readers.
On the other hand, the detail is something
you'd consider writing about
more profusely if you're
writing for a diving magazine.
5. Hold it with the highfalutin language
 It's good to drop profound vocabulary into
your article now and then, because aside
from enriching your readers, they do add to
the aestheric effect of an article. It's good,
too, to know your limits. Dropping in too
many "big", highfalutin words
is the equivalent of suicide;
you'll drive your readers
away without even trying.
 Think of the experience of reading through
a medical textbook without any medical
background; the technical jargon will be
enough to give you a headache and work as
a natural soporific. Knowing when and how
to impress is the key when it comes
to word selection, so save off
the temptation of loading
up on the big guns.
6. Reread your article
 As any writer knows, mental fatigue can set
in pretty quickly doing this sort of work.
Rereading your article will give you time and
space to objectively reevaluate your article,
add new ideas and tweak it to come up with
something better. This also gives you time to
proofread your article for grammatical
or typographical errors.
 There'sno surefire way to ensuring a
successful article, and a writer's only tools
are vocabulary and creativity. These steps
are but a simple guide to the writing
process, which is a complex and sometimes
grueling undertaking.
 Remember this:
It takes a lot of patience and
experience to overcome hurdles and
produce good quality output, but at
the end of the day, you'd find
that writing can be an
extremely noble
and rewarding
task.