FEATURE WRITING

PRESENTED BY HANZEL L. CALANGAN

FORMER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
 WHAT IS A FEATURE STORY?
Think of a Feature Story as a News Story but written
like a piece of SHORT FICTION.
It combines the rigors of FACTUAL REPORTING with
the CREATIVE FREEDOM of short story writing.
Readers must read the whole story before
understanding it.
HOW DOES A FEATURE STORY DIFFER FROM
A NEWS STORY?
• It DOES NOT follow the INVERTED PYRAMID.
• It may be of any length.
• It may or may not be timely.
• It can be opinionated.
• It can be flashy and informal.
• It uses the GLASS HOUR structure.
HOW DOES A FEATURE STORY DIFFER FROM
A NEWS STORY?

• It uses specific nouns, adjectives and

verbs to create vivid images, sound and
feeling for the readers.
WHY DO WE WRITE FEATURE STORIES?

TO ENTERTAIN

• TO INSTRUCT

TO ADVISE
WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF FEATURE STORIES?
1. NEWS BEHIND THE NEWS STORIES
• An in-depth look at the stories behind a current news.

SANTIAGO CITY A LOOK INTO THE LIFE

WELCOMES BACK ITS OF MAYOR JOSEPH S.
RE-ELECTED MAYOR TAN
WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF FEATURE STORIES?
2. PERSONALITY PROFILE/SKETCH
• Also called a “character sketch”.

MIRACLE IN THE FACE OF

POLIO AND EDUCATION
WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF FEATURE STORIES?
3. HUMAN APPEAL STORIES
• Appeals to the emotion, arouses sympathetic interest.

BROKEN BY THE
BROKEN
WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF FEATURE STORIES?
4. HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL FEATURES
• Provide readers a sense of identity.

THROUGH THE
LOOKING GLASS:
BALAMBAN
 HOW DO WE CHOOSE THE THEME?

• Has the story been done before?

• Is the story of interest to the reader?
• Does the story have a holding power?
• What makes the story worthy to be reported?
• The theme answers the question, “so what?”
 FEATURE STORY STRUCTURE
BEGINNING – lead
• start with a premise or a theme
MIDDLE – body/story development
• present information and opinions that back your point
END – conclusion
• bring the reader to a close
 THE LEAD
• The most important part
• The first paragraph, but may include the second or even the third
paragraph
• Entices your readers, hooks them in
• Uses drama, emotion, quotations, questions, and/or descriptions
• Sets the tone
 THE LEAD
ATTENTION-GETTING DEVICES
• Ask a question/s
• Make an unusual statement
• Describe a scene
• Present a conversation
• Tell a brief story
• Present surprising or alarming statistic
• Refer to an event, either historical or current
 THE LEAD
ATTENTION-GETTING DEVICES
• Show a controversy or contradiction
• Use a quotation, adage, or proverb
• State an unusual opinion
• Riddle
• Dialogue
• Onomatopeia
 TYPES OF LEADS TO AVOID
• DICTIONARY LEAD – “According to Webster’s Dictionary …”
• DUMB DECLARATIVE LEAD – “It’s official…”
• MYSTERY “IT” LEAD – “It’s round, it’s red, its juicy . . .yes, it’s a
tomato!

NEVER MAKE YOUR READER ASK, “WHO CARES?”

 THE BODY
The “guts” of the story.

The longest part, so you need to vary the pace and keep it fresh by
using:
• quotes and anecdotes
• description and details
• specific examples
 THE BODY
IMPORTANT COMPONENTS INCLUDE:
• Background information – brings the reader up-to-date
• The “Thread” of the story – connects the introduction, body and
conclusion
• Dialogue – gives strong mental images; keeps them attached
• Voice – the signature or personal style of the writer
 THE CONCLUSION

• While the lead draws the reader in, the conclusion should
be written to help the reader remember the story.
• Will wrap up the story and come back to the lead, often
with a quotation or a surprising climax.
• Unlike hard news stories, features need endings.
 THE CONCLUSION
THE END CAN BE A:
• comment
• concluding quote
• question
• summary of the article
 HOW CAN YOU BE A GOOD FEATURE WRITER?

• INVESTIGATE.
• EXPERIENCE.
 TIPS IN WRITING A GOOD FEATURE STORY

• The tone of your piece is vital. Sprinkling some rhymes will

make the feature more readable. But be aware not to
overdo it, or your write-up will end up as a poem.
• Using figures of speech is an effective tool in enhancing
your feature writing. Make use of them frequently.
LITERARY WRITING
PRESENTED BY HANZEL L. CALANGAN
FORMER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
 PROSE AND POETRY WRITING

• For some, it is a joy; something that is done for

the sheer pleasure of putting beautiful words
to paper.
 ELEMENTS OF PROSE AND POETRY WRITING
LANGUAGE
• Considers diction, and vocabulary.

EVERYTHING BLUE
She once played with ashes, lived an achromatic life. But from ashes rose
another fire, a mesmerizing color of the sky. Its pure azure flames trapped her in
cold warmth, the kind that kindles and crackles with cerulean light. And if there
comes another, a dazzling orange fire, she'll always choose the blue flame that
burns and freezes everything at the same time.
 ELEMENTS OF PROSE AND POETRY WRITING

TONE
• The poet’s way of looking at his subject.

END
There was a girl who often sought sleep to escape reality. On the night she
found out everything in her life went wrong and her dreams broken, she went to
sleep to forget the pain. But unlike every morning where her dreams always
ended, this morning was different. She never woke again.
 ELEMENTS OF PROSE AND POETRY WRITING
IMAGERY
• Total sensory suggestion of poetry.

TEMPEST
The rain that was once a drizzle became a merciless torrent. The fire in her eyes
became insatiable flames. Gone is the spark that rivaled the stars, for she has
become overwrought with war. The storm inside her broke into tumult and
treachery. Chaos clung to her bones. Her ink has dried, her pages torn. Broken
crayons still color but broken pens don’t write anymore.
 ELEMENTS OF PROSE AND POETRY WRITING

SOUND AND RHYTHM

• Kind of foot patterns in each line.
 BEAUTIFUL CRIME
I have something terrible to confess:
I have fallen in love with madness.
His insanity has driven me over the edge,
He's broken through my walls in ruthless sacrilege.

I have something else to admit:

I have become his willing accomplice.
We wage wars, spill blood, make everything fall,
We are partners, psychopaths, nothing but trouble.
•
I may be sentenced guilty as charged,
I may be hanged or kept behind bars.
But if loving him is a crime,
Please keep me locked up for all time.
 ELEMENTS OF PROSE AND POETRY WRITING
THOUGHT
• “How does a poem mean?”

LIE TO LOVE
Do you know the difference between us?
I told you I loved you but you thought I was lying and you told me how you loved
me but I knew you were faking.
Funny how we both loved each, without thinking which lie tells the truth and
which truth tells a lie.
 FIGURES OF SPEECH
METAPHOR

FINGERPRINTS
Some people leave notes before they leave—a string of words that will seal the memories.
Some people leave gifts—a collection of things to help remind and reminisce. But I will leave
fingerprints—a trace, an echo, a part of me—for these linger like rust to steel or a negative to a
film. I will mark you with my ink, my indelible ink, and you will read the lines I have carved on
your skin. I will haunt you like a shadow where you go, for I am the ghost of a person you will
remember the most. I will be the gray on the clouds you see, my whisper will be the patter of
the rain you hear. My touch will be the sigh of the gentlest wind and I will be the jolt that wakes
you from your dreams
 FIGURES OF SPEECH

IRONY - Expressing a meaning directly contrary

to that suggested by the words.
 A MESSAGE
This has been in my mind for quite some time. I've already said too much yet there's still more
to say. Words don't come easy to me now—it's like waiting for stars to appear during daylight
or waiting for snow in the middle of spring.
We have come at an equilibrium, a neutral state where our hearts have chosen what happens
to us—now and in the distant future. And should a star appear at daylight or a snowflake fall
from the summer sky, we might have a chance at being together.
But then again, we are both ends of equinox, points at both ends of a line, and the distance
where the sun rises and the sun sets. We are what defines the word, Almost, and what proves
the word, Impossible. We are the white feather of a raven, the corner of a circle.
We are what could never be. But I'm reminded—people never thought a man could step on
the moon or water could be found in Mars—which leads me into thinking: could an
impossible be probable?
I'll leave the answer to you, to the guy who reads this unwritten message, to the guy who
almost loved me, but I was just never enough for him.
“ As a writer, you try to listen to what others
aren’t saying… and write about that
silence.
- N.R. Hart
”