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Writing
Jami De Vries
Heritage High School
Writing Does Matter
Two purposes for journalistic writing:
• 1. Writing should inspire (read Rick
Reilley (SI) for examples)
• 2. In the next examples, you’ll see that
writing should provide key
information that can’t be given in a
photo
In Mr. Rudolph’s AP Physics class, students
fill Ziploc bags as full as possible with water
and then poke different colored pencils
through the bag. The result is no water spilling
out, along with the fact that the pencils look
bent because the speed of light is slower
through water. Mr. Rudolph, Hannah Gazzett
‘12, and Mikaela Lieb ‘13 froze the bag as a
joke, and it turned out looking pretty sweet!
“The labs help because we actually get to
apply what we learning, as well as physically
see how each thing works,” says Lauren
Huggins ‘12.
3,000 runners representing 90 teams from across
the state showed up in droves for the annual Liberty
Bell, the largest Cross Country Meet in the state.
Even with such an immense amount of participants,
Jenna Pinto ‘13 didn’t have any problems standing
out, as she received eighth overall for the Varsity
girls. Though others like Matthew Charles ‘13 didn’t
place in the top ten, this race meant a lot after
running for four consecutive years on the team.
“My favorite memory and most proud moment is
lettering all four years at the Liberty Bell.” All other
teams did exceedingly well: JV boys took 1st, Varsity
Boys took 9th, and Varsity Girls placed 11th.
Before you write…
• In order to write a caption or story, what MUST
take place first?
• That’s right? The interview!
o The interview is the most crucial part of the writing
process/ Why?
• The more you ask, the more you know, and the
more you know, the more you can include in your
book-more information also gives you more to work
with
• So….what is good interviewing?
The 5 skills you need to be a stellar
journalist:
1. Do your homework
2. Prepare good questions
3. Take quick, accurate notes
4. Be comfortable talking to new people
5. Become the expert& report back to
your staff
#1: Do your homework
• Research!
• The more you know about the people, event, setting, the
better journalist you become
• The MOMENT you find out that you’re covering something,
take a moment and think about these topics:
 Time?
 Location?
 Lighting?
 Accessibility?
 People (ALL the people: from the players/students, coaches,
teachers, managers, audience, spectators, officials, sponsors,
etc.)?
 Other factors (money, extra equipment needed,
transportation, etc.)
#2: Prepare good questions
• After you a familiar with the event,
select an angle…take a unique
perspective (dig deep-what would be
COOL to know about what is going on,
WHO can you talk to in order to
obtain some groovy info, think outside
the box!)
• Focus on your audience
• Think before, during, and after
• Prepare the right questions
The Prep
• Prep questions ahead of time, AND write questions down as
you are covering the event
• The goal: find unique information. Unique information will
capture your readers’ attention!
• Good interviewers ask good questions:
 Always avoid yes/no questions.
 Base your questions on the five W’s and H, making sure to
cover all aspects of the subject area.
 Be sure to personalize the questions for each source.
 Avoid general questions like “How did the team play Friday
night?” Instead, ask “Which play was the turning point Friday
night?” Follow Up: ?
 Avoid THINK/FEEL questions! Ask questions that will get
specific, detailed answers.
In a Jam?
• The following basic questions can be applied for
almost any situation. Use them when needed:
What did you do when…?
What was the most… (craziest, best, worst,
stupidest, etc.)? Follow up with why.
What were you thinking when…?
Tell me about…
Why do you care about…?
Can you give me an example of a time when…?
#3: Take quick, accurate notes
• Turn your paper over
• Practice: "I love little yellow ducks"
I love little baby ducks,
Old pick-up trucks,
Slow movin’ trains, and rain.
I love little country streams,
Sleep without dreams,
Sunday school in May, and hay.
I love coffee in a cup,
Little fuzzy pups,
Bourbon in a glass, and grass.
And I love you too.
And I love you too.
I love honest open smiles,
Kisses from a child,
Tomatoes on a vine, and onions.
I love leaves in the wind,
Pictures of my friends,
Birds of the world, and squirrels.
I love winners when they cry,
Losers when they try,
Music when it's good, and life.
And I love you too.
#4: Be comfortable talking
to new people
• This isn’t rocket science, and I have
no formula or notes for you on this
topic. It’s simple: the more practice
you have with this, the better you
will be.
Tips for Success
Make sure you introduce yourself
(name and position) and have them do
the same
As you ask them your questions,
listen to their responses, make eye
contact, smile, nod approvingly (so
they feel comfortable), and take
accurate notes on their answers
At the end, have the interviewee sign
and date your notes
#5: Be the expert &
report back to your staff
• This one is also easy: Make sure your notes are
professional
This includes:
 Notes that are dated& headlined
 Notes that have your name and all subjects
names…spelled correctly
 Notes that are legible
• If you are not the one writing the caption/story,
offer your assistance. Be available!
Once the reporting is done…
Writing 101
• Again, the writing does matter
• Captions tell the stories of your unique year, and
students actually DO read them!
• The problem with captions? The problem with
captions?! No one is jumping up and down to
write them or read them…just yet! Your goal as
a staff should be write captions that your
student body will WANT to read. You have to
MAKE them read.
Types of Captions
• ident: name and very brief description
• summary: who, what, when, where,
why
• quote: first-person, word-for-word
commentary
• expanded: in-depth, summary+quote
• collection: describe a photo package
• group: idents by row
Identification
1. Kyle Smith, state long jump
champion.
2. Kyle Smith sets school, state long
jump record.
3. At Central H.S.: Kyle Smith attempts
long jump.
Which one would NOT be a good ident
caption?
Summary
• Jammin’ Jump. Setting a school and
state long jump record at 25 feet, 8
inches, senior Kyle Smith stretches
the distance in his first attempt of the
meet.
Expanded
• Jammin’ Jump! Posting his personal best
performance and setting new school and state long
jump records, senior Kyle Smith makes his first
attempt for the long jump title at the state
competition at Rocky Peak High School on Oct. 30.
Smith was one of 10 qualifiers for the state
competition. “Since he was our first team member
to go to state in school history, we were really
excited for Kyle to do well. He’s personally an
inspiration for me-he’s reliable, hard working, and
always, always has a positive attitude,” recalls
senior captain John Herman.
Caption No No’s
• Never start with the subject’s name-be
creative!
• Refrain from saying “pictured above,”
“attempts to,” “appears to”
• Never misspell a name! Always triple
check your spelling, especially the
names. Print off a list of your student
body, so your staff can have a
resource readily available.
Most Important No No’s
• Never use a weak quote: “If someone else can say it, it’s
not a good quote.”
‘High school is amazing. It’s so different from anything
I’ve ever done.’
VERSUS
‘Since he was our first team member to go to state in
school history, we were really excited for Kyle to do well.
He’s personally an inspiration for me-he’s reliable, hard
working, and always, always has a positive attitude.’
• Keep opinions out of the copy.
1. “The show was a spectacular performance.”
2. “The team didn’t disappoint.”
3. “The crowd showed great support.”
Caption: Every picture must have a caption.
Answer: Captions should always answer the
5W’s. Who? What? Where? When? Why?
Posed: NO Posed (except group/team shots)
Two or three sentences 1st Sentence: The first
line should answer all of the 5W’s. 2nd Sentence:
This can be a fun fact, quote or background
information that provides insight about the
event, the photo or the subject that would not be
obvious.
Interview: To obtain real facts, interview the
people in your photos.
Obvious: Don’t state the obvious. Tell the reader
more than what he can see in the picture.
Never: Never make up the information or quote!
Shuffle: Begin some captions with who, others
with when and others with –ing verbs.
Caption Writing Activities
• Practice, practice, practice!
• Give picture and 5 W’s and extra info & have staff
write the different caption formats
• Re-write yucky captions from last year’s book
(“from sucky to superb”)
• Lead-ins: find groups of really interesting photos
and have class or small groups brainstorm lead-in
ideas, share, and discuss
• Practice writing captions for cartoons. Find some
good ones and erase/black out the original
captions. *Participate in caption writing contests
(drewlitton.com)
Questions?
• Ask now or e-mail:
[email protected]
•Best wishes for a ROCKIN’ yearbook.
Have fun! Take chances!