 Q and A - Feature Writing.

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 Campus Journalism Training
Department of Education
SY 2017-2018

Feature
Writing
The ‘Heart’ of the Newspaper

Allan S. Bautista
Education Program Specialist II - Human Resource Development (HRD)
School Governance & Operations Division (SGOD)
DepEd – Division of San Carlos City
National Educators Academy of the Philippines (NEAP) Trainer-Facilitator
 Features defined
 According to the dictionary, the word “feature” means
“a special attraction, a distinctive characteristic or an
appearance.”
For example, “A feature of Ana Maria’s is the mole on her
cheek.”
- When used in journalism, feature means a style of

writing that takes an in-depth look at a specific aspect

of reality, whether it is about a current event, a trend, or
a person.
- Often termed as “soft news”
Features defined
 The so-called ‘heart’ of the publication
 Written not only to inform but also to entertain
 Lighter reading
 Action-packed
 Comments, dialogs, personalities carry the story
 Exploits the human side of the story
 Like news, it is factual in approach but differs in
structure
 Independent from element of timeliness for it to attract
reader’s attention
The Feature LEAD
 Never uses an inverted pyramid format
 Focuses on what’s most interesting
 Starts with a description—either a mood or a
setting
 Hardly starts with a direct quotation
 Runs beyond one sentence, usually five or six
paragraphs
Types of Features
 News Features-developing more detailed piece
 Spot Features
 Trend Features
 Personality Sketch-Facts centered on a person
 Q&A
 Issue-oriented-Examines trends & controversies
 Seasonal-Special occasions e.g. Christmas, Holy Week, etc.
 Bright Feature-It’s a “little” funny, unusual story
Types of Features
 Something-Out-Of-Nothing-about something ordinary
 Historical-Focuses on history of an event
 Travel-Destinations, points of interest, what they offer, etc.
 First-Person-Written only when a person experienced an extra-ordinary event
 Consumer-Oriented-Business, products and services
 Practical Guidance-The how to articles, tips on
almost about anything
Types of Feature LEADS
 News Feature
A summary lead that tells the beginning, middle and end of the story.
e.g. Hundreds of elite soldiers are scouring the rugged terrains of Mindanao in
search for Abu Sayyaf terrorists responsible for beheading government operatives
more than two weeks
 Quotation Lead
Prefer short and dramatic but summarizes the theme, otherwise this is
seldom used
e.g. “When my husband died, I lost my life, too. I can’t remember anything now. I
died with him”. (American Magazine)
- “Nang mamatay ang asawa ko, nawalan na ako ng buhay. Ako’y wala nang maalala
sa ngayon. Namatay akong kasama siya.”
Types of Feature LEADS
 Direct Address
Use the word “you” in consumer-oriented pieces and related stories
e.g. You’re in a jeepney and someone pokes his knife on your side, demanding:
“Give your cellphone”. What do you do when you know he has three companions
around you? (POLICE FILES)
 Play on Words
Use of puns or jokes
e.g. ‘Tubig’. It’s a problem too big to solve in the metropolis. (Unang Hirit)
 Question
Sometimes this works, but sometimes it could be silly
e.g. What does an anti-war organization do when the war is over?
 Types of Feature LEADS
 Stacatto
Creates suspense
e.g. A ‘hero’ fell on the tarmac. Twenty-nine years ago. And until today--his murder
remains a mystery.

 Contrast
Focuses on the then and now, or differences in appearance
e.g. Francisco fell from the porch and slammed his head against the ground. It was the
nicest thing that ever happened to him. For 16 years, he was almost blind, but that
accident last week helped him partially regain his eyesight.

 Shock Lead
Startles the reader
e.g. Policeman Jose Pala says he would like to shoot people all day long if it would make
the streets finally safer
 Types of Feature LEADS
 Suspense
Short leads that lead to suspenseful development
e.g. Three weeks ago, Susan Malong bought a stack of travel books and maps for the
planned cross-country adventure with her husband. They left home Friday last week.
Three days later, she bought him a casket.

 Atmosphere
Sets the mood of a story; description is active, not passive
e.g. It’s a rainy afternoon in the canefields of Santol, a mountain village in Central
Negros. Not much is happening except for a handful of farmers done with their day’s
work, enjoying a pitcher of tuba at Mang Nilo’s sari-sari store. While sharing their
stories, they heard a loud explosion. In less than two minutes, all but one of the seven
men were fallen. (AVDC)

 Setting
Describes the place of action but does not necessarily set the mood
e.g. The public plaza was a sea of litter and garbage after a storm of Labor Day chants
and protests. (AVDC)
 Types of Feature LEADS
 Physical Description
Describes a person especially her physical attributes, etc
e.g. Sixty-two year old Maria Lopez, unlike other women her age, has remained almost a fountain of
youth. Her face hardly has wrinkles, and her sister swears Maria’s looks were almost the same when
she was 25.
 Anecdotes
Begins with a person, his details and actions. There are 3 types of anecdote leads: the
“once-upon-a-time”; the narrative that focuses on the characters; and the “what-if” that
centers on the future or an expected trend.

e.g. Every morning, Bonifacio wakes up before 5 when the roosters sing their symphony at dawn. He
would stretch first, and jump out of bed and do his usual 50-count push-ups. “I don’t drink. I don’t
smoke and at 50, I can still run almost as fast as my 16-year-old boy,” says Bonifacio, who attributes
his fitness to good diet, enough sleep and exercise.
 Microcosm
A combination of narration, atmosphere and setting
 Feature Story DEVELOPMENT
 Start with the appropriate and most interesting lead to reflect a theme.
 Show persons/characters doing things
 Let the characters talk
 Keep the piece moving
 Connect the lead to the body with a bridge, or transition to ensure smooth
flow of ideas.
 Further humanize the theme by highlighting characters in your paragraphs.
 Describe further.
 Avoid as much as possible the “I” perspective.
 Present secondary and other facts based on your OUTLINE.
 Add more anecdotes and examples
 End with a good quote, one that holds together your theme
 In brief…
 Set a scene, paint a picture
 Use an anecdote
 Take time to tell the story
 Know when to use the right feature approach
 How To Develop Features
 Find a Topic That’s Doable, Interesting
 Find Real People
 Get Plenty of Facts and Stats (statistics)
 Get the Expert’s View
 Get the Big Picture
 Transform an Ordinary Meeting, Situation
Test Your Feature Writing Skills
Exercise No. 1

WRITE A DESCRIPTIVE LEAD CENTERED

ON WHAT’S GOING ON IN YOUR TOWN
OR CITY PUBLIC MARKET DURING
MARKET DAY.
Exercise No. 1: Features Lead
It stinks. But the hundreds of
city folk at the busy fish
section seem unmindful of
the sickening smell. All they
care about is to get the day’s
best catch and the other good
buys. And it’s only 3:20 in
the morning.
Nakakahawa. Nakakasuka’t malansang amoy.
Okupado ng halos sandaang tao na labas-pasok
ng palengke. Nagtatawanang mamimili. Sa
kabilang dako, batang nagtitinda ng
mahalimuyak na sampagita.
Habang ang iba’y nag-aabang ng preskang isda
sa kalagitnaan ng alas tres ng madaling araw.
Campus Feature Ideas

 Population of pupils/students using CPs,

laptops, tablets, iPads, other IT-based gadgets
 A survey on pupils’/students’ most popular
sites; the sites that they often or prefer to visit
 Twittering: The campus invasion
 Blogging on campus, anyone?
 Facebook:Number of pupils/students with FB
accounts
 Favorite YOU TUBE sensation
Campus Feature Ideas: The Usual
 The Mutt ‘n Jeff Story: Tallest & shortest
 The reigning Miss and Mr. Campus
 Varsity heart-throbs, other personalities
 The skilled and talented
 Outstanding campus personalities: teachers,
students, office staff
 The oldest teacher, oldest janitor, etc.
 Community involvement; brgy. features, etc.
SOURCES:

1. ERIC T. LORETIZO
(eric_loretizo@yahoo.com;
thecommspecialist@gmail.com)
Editor/Communications Consultant

2. Khan, Rachel E. Campus Journalism:

Writing Feature Stories. 2010.
Thank you for listening.

Have a Good Day!

 It’s WORKSHOP TIME.

 Write any feature story you like most

that talks about a
challenging/interesting life in a
barrio/mountain area.
 Write your own title. Make it catchy.