Keep Improving Your Stories

Some Writing Tips from the Bottom of My HeartThis Powerpoint has Pretty Flowers on it

Use Your Senses When you are approaching a story, don’t

only use one sense. Use them all.

Take notes on your subject and ensure you include sensory imagery in your work. It makes your work come alive.

Let’s work on these!

Use Your Senses He stood as tall as __________________. You could smell it when you walked in. It

was the scent of __________________. Its sound is unmistakable. It is marked by

its ___________________. The wind blew in our faces, feeling like

___________________. The fried pig feet were not necessarily

unappetizing, and they had the flavor of ____________________.

What would You Rather Read?

Darius Jones loves to eat cookies.OR He doesn’t simply eat a cookie like the

rest of us. He becomes a machine, built to consume cookies, shoveling them into his mouth like coal into a furnace.

What’s in a Story? Theme—make your story about something

Research—make your data come alive Angle—how are you approaching the

story? Focus—what information are you going to

use? Order—make sure your story makes sense Unity—make sure all elements work in

concert

Questions to Ask Yourself

What is my theme? Write this in a single sentence

Why did I choose my angle? Who are my primary sources? Why should

readers care about them? Secondary sources?

Are all the reader’s questions answered? Does the tone match the content? If I hadn’t written this story, would I still

want to read it?

What Makes a Good Lead?

Anecdote Description of a scene Description of a person An excellent quote A startling statement A clever play on words

Look Beyond the Facts