What is Feature Writing?

-Shows the reader a story. It has a beginning (lead), middle and end.

-It uses quotes liberally and allows the reader to see the story through detailed description and vivid writing.

LEAD

The opening sentence must grab and hold the reader's attention by using specific, interest-arousing words.
The lead must catch the spirit of the story and create the proper tone: serious, sarcastic, ironic, flippant,
melancholy.
Can be and often are longer than one sentence
Your chance to grab the reader's attention
Should be specific to your story
Should not be filled with clichés

Few Types of Lead

Narrative - tells a story

EXAMPLE:
Out of Marlin’s hundreds of children, only one survived – Nemo. The day his wife gave birth to hundreds of eggs
was also the day when he lost hundreds of future offspring from a barracuda attack outside their reef.

Descriptive - describes a scene, person or subject

EXAMPLE:
Elsa’s heart was sinking as she slowly, heavily, take each step inside her new own room – away from her beloved
sister, because of her dark, cold secret.

Direct Quote – must be used with narrative

“Ohana Means Family, Family means nobody gets left behind,” Lilo exclaimed as her friend, Stitch was being
taken away from her.

Startling statement- creates drama

Moana never knew who she really was.
______________________________________

Sherman hates school.

It's not that he's dumb. It’s not that he’s ugly or deformed. In fact, it isn’t about his intelligence nor appearance that
he doesn’t fit in.
I mean, if you were raised by father who’s a dog, how will you fit in?

Contrast and Compare (then and now)

Twist
Where are your parents?
A simple question. Unassuming. Perfect for small talk.
But Dory stumbles.
Haltingly, Dory responds. Just back at home.
But the questions don’t end there. For the past years, she doesn’t know where they are and where is home.

What is a nut paragraph?

Basically, it is a summary of what the story is going to be about. It's the 5 Ws and H that you didn’t answer in
the lead.

Senior Daniel Palacios planned to spend spring break on a relaxing fishing trip in Port Aransas with his father,
grandfather and two uncles. Instead, he spent most of the week praying to stay alive.
On the second night of Daniel's family fishing trip, his grandfather's boat filled with water and capsized. For three
days, Daniel sat on top of the capsized boat, hoping he and his family would be rescued.
“I don’t know if I have ever prayed so much in my life,” Daniel said. “I made a few bargains with God during those
three days.”

***After a strong lead and an informative nut graph…

Use the Transition/Quote formula

The body

Longest part . . . so you need to vary the pace and keep it fresh by using:
> quotes and anecdotes
> description and details
> specific examples
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

* Play with figures of speech.

a. simile
b. metaphor
c. personification

*Vary sentence length. This is to emphasize thought.

So how do you end a feature story?

Summarize the key points of the story

Use straight forward question
Offer Solutions and Recommendations to the reader
Forecast or Predict
Quotations

TIPS IN WRITING:

Make a striking title

Keep the tense of the verb used constant
Keep the point of view used constant
Choose words that are appropriate to your readers