Writing a newspaper story/article may seem daunting at times, it also may seem like you don't know where to start or how you can progress along in your writing to make a fully finished story. Several things must be done because you can create your first story which is ready for publication and these include things from finding something to write about, all the way to how to be objective and fair in your writing.
Step 1: Finding something to write about
Journalism is a lot different to other styles of writing and is very real, unlike fiction. You are unable to create stories just from the top of your head and publish them as if they are real and actually happened. This means you should go out and source information, find topics which are deemed newsworthy and worth spending time to write about. An easy way to get a topic on what to write is to go out and check places out which usually has a lot of news happening around them. For instance, a court house or city hall would be a lot better than looking for a story to write about as you sit on the beach, though is entirely possible. Just not recommended. An example provided stated "Highschool Football and Basketball games can be very exciting and provide great experience for the aspiring sportswriter", this is important because depending on what type of journalist you want to be and become, you should be looking to find information and topics to speak about in places which is relevant to your topic of interest.
Step 2: Interviewing people
With a topic in mind and subject you want to write about, it's time for you to start interviewing sources, this can be done even via a phone, email or if you prefer, going out and interview them in person as well as getting the public's reaction if its a big issues which affects a lot of people. But before you jump straight into conversation with someone, you need to know what you will be asking and plan to discuss with your interviewee. Prepare questions and make sure you're fully equipped with your notepad and pen/pencil to start jotting down notes and quotes of what the person is saying. Lastly, its important to make your interviewee feel at ease when asking your questions, better interviews are those that are more like conversations, by doing this it doesn't feel awkward between you and whoever you are interviewing. You're also more likely to get better information from them than if you were just straight up asking them questions and that was all.
Step 3: Choosing quotes
Whilst taking down your notes as you interview people, you may notice you'll have a lot of quotes and things people have said. Whilst its good to have all this information, not all and only some will be used in your story. This goes to say that also, not all quotes are equal, some may be compelling and great to use in your story but others may fall flat and just not grab the attention of the reader. After all, a quote that grabs your attention will also likely grab your readers attention too.
Step 4: Reporting
Newswriting is fine and all but there is nothing better than reporting your story. To report to a professional standard one must cover all questions the reader could potentially have as well as cover topics the reader may have not thought about. This also ties in double-checking all the information you get, make sure its accurate and not false, no one wants to hear lies and you forming "facts" from your own speculation/others and carelessness to actually go out and do actual interviews and research. An important law to followed would be Murphy's Law - Just when you assume your source's name is spelled John Smith, it'll be Jon Smythe. This means to be careful and check over the work you're producing, make sure every last detail is fact and peoples name and places are also spelled correctly.
Step 5: Being objective and fair
This goes with being biased and unfair to your readers, especially on huge topics or happenings which you're covering. A news story isn't about what you personally think but what your sources have to say and you displaying that information into a story so people can read it. You may or may not have strong feelings towards a subject or feel passionate about it but these should be set aside, you need to become an observer, the person who is taking notes to form their own story. Not creating opinionated pieces of writing about how you feel.
Step 6: Crafting a great lede
Once all of your reporting and interviews are done, quotes have been chosen and you're ready to start writing up your story, its important to have a good lede. This means to have a good introductory sentence or even paragraph. You could have the most interesting story ever but it isn't worth much if your lede is terrible, people would turn a blind eye to it and not feel inclined to read on. In order to create a great lede you must think about what makes your story unique and sets it out from the rest, what do you find interesting about it? After you know, convey this in a way which would interrest your readers.
Step 7: Adding structure to the rest of your story
Having a great lede is good but you still have the rest of the entire story to write up and produce. Newswriting as a whole is loosely based on the idea of conveying and providing as much information as possible as well as quickly and efficiently. A useful tool is the inverted pyramid, and what you means and is, is that your most important information should be at the top of your story whilst the least important should be at the bottom.
Step 8: Attributing information you get from sources
Being clear about where your information comes from is an absolute must, its one of the things which defines a good journalist and is definitely important. When you explain and attribute where your information used in your story comes from it makes it more credible and builds up a trust amongst your readers. Again, no one likes hearing lies be told as if they're actual fact, and make sure you read through what you written and follow Murphy's Law.
Step 9: Checking your AP Style
Your story has been reported and your story written perfectly, but what use is this if you send a story filled with Associated Press style errors to your editor? AP Style is what is known as the gold standard for print journalism in the U.S and this is why you'll need to learn it in your journey on becoming a journalist. You should get used to checking your AP Stylebook whenever you go to write a story, and sure enough in time, you'll start to memorize and know some of the most common style points off of the top of your head like second nature.
Step 10: Follow-up story
Quick scenario, you've finished your article, sent it to your editor who praises you and its content. He/she then says to you "Great, but we'll need you to create a follow-up story". Forming a follow-up story may seem hard hard at first but it becomes easier the more you know about what you're writing about. For example, think about causes and potential consequences of the story you're currently covering, doing this is bound to create a few good follow-up idea's in your mind.
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