Constructing the story

One of the biggest issues faced by reporters trying to write a news story completely from scratch, is..."How do I structure it so that it makes sense?" In a four-minute news story, it may seem like a lot of time - but you'll quickly run out - if you don't follow a very simple rule: Make the story about ONE THING! Now, obviously, every story is going to have multiple facets - different voices, different points of view...but essentially, you want to keep to the main point of the story.

The next thing is: What order do I put my elements in to make them work? Now, story structure is a very personal thing - and some reporters seem to have a knack for it. One rule that I think makes sense is...don't do it the same way every time. So here are some options for you (realizing that an earlier rule also still applies...Lead with the news. Give us a reason why we're telling this story now. Preferably in the host intro):

1. Chronological. The story unfolds as a narrative, told from the beginning...and ends at either the end, or with the newest possible information.

2. Lead with the personal. This could be the story of the guy who's fighting the system...the emotional tale of the wronged individual...the citizen who's voice isn't being heard. Following this, you fave to find a way to bring in the voices of others who can bolster this story...and balance it from the other side.

3. Lead with the facts. If you give a factual basis for a story up front, it can help to explain its importance. But this can also be a boring lead. If our goal is to invite people in to listen, you'll want to lead with something compelling - so if you go with the facts first, it'd better be pretty interesting.

Throughout the course of the storytelling, you have to balance some concerns....don't lose the listener, don't present too much information at once, don't "ping-pong" back and forth between sources or ideas, don't open up a "can of worms" that you can't pay off later in the story.

The best structure is one that you can read aloud to someone (a friend or editor) and not feel like you're doing any of these things.

The Final Project - May 2008

For our final project, we're really looking to tell a "newsy" news story. What defines a real piece of news? Well, one thing we're always looking for is...tension. Are there two (or more) sides to this story...and are they at odds? What are the main issues causing the tension?

Another way to tell a news story is to find a trend. Is something happening in your life, town, community or world, that's part of a larger trend? How is this trend really affecting people?

Within these types of stories, we want to hear some of the following things:

1. The voice of a "real person" - meant to illustrate a trend or idea
2. The voice of a "stakeholder" - an official person whose work affects us all
3. The voice of an "expert" - meant to uncover truths, point to trends, debunk myths

Not all stories will have all of these characters - but a rich mix of the three gives us different insights into the story. Here's a recent story by WNPR's Diane Orson that has a lot of tension...it's about Yale's battle for ancient artifacts with the government of Peru.

Before you start writing a story like this, take a look at a few of these ideas about how to get started, and construct a good story. One is from reporter Melanie Peeples. She talks about "story visioning."

Another is taken from a manifesto by reporter Nancy Updike. She has some unusual methods, but they might help you break through to get a good idea.