Q Look @ Feature Writing Choose a genre (including News, Analysis, Op-ed, or Review…) and write a feature story. Synopsis: The course is trying to get you to see yourself as a journalist, because you are. At this point, you’ve published several stories (or will shortly), and you’re ready to shine. Here you pitch an article idea to us in the discussions and then commence on writing a feature article, being sure to write about something you’re very interested in, but also being clear about the style or genre of writing you’re writing in. You can review a restaurant, a movie, book, or a show; you can write a feature piece on a local or national issue; you can write a news story, going in depth about one story; you can write a more extended op-ed. You can write any other genre out there, as long as it’s a feature (which really just means it’s more extensive than a quick story--think magazine length, not newspaper length). Focus Question: What interests you enough to write a feature story on? Note on Focus Question: You’ll have to create your own question after you figure out the genre and the topic. I.e., if you’re doing a book review, your focus is evaluative, whereas if you’re writing a personal interest story, it’s mostly analytical and objective. Be clear on the purpose, genre, and focus question as you design your research process and begin writing. ONE OPTION: DO A META-NEWS STORY: Use the full length book, The ELements of Journalism, to write an article about the news you’re seeing today: print, broadcast, social media… What’s the current state of the news today, using the principles as your guide? Framing Question(s): (this is not an organizational structure to your essay) ? Come up with several framing questions, these are questions that I would need to answer in order to answer my focus question. Readings: ? REad a Model story: Read one model story in the genre you want to write and analyze it: Section into Intro/body/conclusion, and do a summary, response, spending time analyzing what you like about it and what in it you think could be improved https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-category/211 (These are much longer than yours will be, and are mostly “investigative” journalism; if you know the genre you’re writing in, i.e. review, personal interest, …., then find a feature in that genre) Another good resource for feature examples is the New Yorker. Here’s another sample from Washington Post: most are longer. ? REsearch: After picking a topic, do some research, completing 4 journals on 4 current and well researched articles; what are other credible news sources saying about the topic? ? Watch/listen: take notes (posted in the portfolio) while looking at a documentary or other visual information on the subject or pod cast. optional ? People: Get quotes from real people: ask some people around you to get some quotes about the subject or people close to the topic/issue. ? Finish REading Chapter 7-10 in Elements of Journalism and post in your Book Club How to do it: 1. Keep Dialectical Journal or Reading Journal for the articles through research 2. Take notes during an activity if you’re writing about a specific event you experience. 3. When you know what you’re doing, Create a writing prompt specific to your specific feature article 4. Do Library research:http://libguides.fhda.edu/az.php Create a Works Cited page with 4 sources using Purdue owl to help you with MLA style Goals/specifics: ? write paper of at approx 2000 words in length (not including works cited page) that you can hand in for me and for your sociology course ? Go through a meaningful reading process with each reading. (you will fill out a number of reading journals) ? Brainstorm for ideas and come up with a purpose for writing. ? Do Investigative research: ? Interview students, faculty, staff, or admin on the subject, conduct research using information that’s public data. ? Create an outline or other brainstorm before writing ? Find relevant images or take photographs ? Create other meaningful steps, recorded in your eportfolio, that leads to your first draft. ? Use Quotations in your essay, using MLA style: Introduce, Incorporate, and Explain them ? The body paragraphs have clear topics/points developed with specific examples and explanation ? Provide a works cited page, using MLA Style (See Easy Access) ? Sentences: Be sure to use sentence variety to improve flow, varying the structure of your sentences. After doing exercises on VERBAL PHRASES, include 4 verbals (underlined), using at least one of each type. Copy paste the exercises above into your e-portfolio. Due dates: a. Peer response online: submit your draft by ________ and read 2 other student essay by ___________________ b. Submit your final draft to the “assignments” area and your “e-portfolio” on _______ c. After SUBMITTING the essay, write a 3 ¶ reflection in your e-portfolio (a week after submission). Self evaluate the essay from reader’s perspective. STUDENT MEMO: 1. What was the most important step taken by you (either assigned or done on your own) in the reading or writing process and why? describe it and explain. 2. What step would you add to this process if you were the teacher and why? 3. Explain What aspect of this essay is particularly strong and what you would do to the essay if you had more time to improve it. GRADING CHART Excellent Good Adequate Needs Work Assignment Fulfillment Thesis / Controlling Idea (Introduction) Organization & Development (body of essay) Organization & Development (Paragraph level) PIE Information (Textual or other) Explanation (Analysis,criticism) Quotes I3:Introduced, inTEGRATED, Interpreted Sentence Structure / Flow Essay Focus / Cohesion Proofreading: (grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc.) 1 or fewer error/page 2 or fewer errors/page 3 or fewer errors/page 4 or more errors/page Effort (See Above) Summary comments 1. Essay level: 2. ¶ level PIE: 3. Sentence combination: 4. Proofreading: Title: subtitle SYNOPSIS: Focus Question: Framing Question(s): (this is not an organizational structure to your essay) ? x ? x ? x ? x ? x Visualization: Readings: ? x ? x ? x ? How to do it (suggestions/homework): 1. x 2. x 3. x 4. x 5. x Goals/specifics: ? x ? x ? x ? x ? x Due dates: a. x b. x c. x d. x