Basic Writing Skills

Word = Life
• How to become a good a writer?

• Start writing now…

A short advice from Javed Aktar to
writers:
Some points to keep in mind:
1. Avoid Repetitions

2. Avoid dialectic words

3. Write simple sentences

4. Do not think in local language and then translate into English

5. Learn to select right word in the Dictionary if you need to refer to it.
6. Clarity is most important in any language

7. Clarity is dependent on clear understanding and expression.

8. Take utmost care in constructing the sentences

9. You need to have good command over language

10. Before you begin to write, read a good book (a chapter or two)
• 11. Distinguish different levels of language:

• A. Bookish
• B. Polished
• C. Dialect
• D. Colloquial
• E. Literary Value
 Principles for Writing:
• 1. SIMPLICITY

• - Clear thinking becomes clear writings; one can’t exist without the
other.
• What am I trying to say?
• Writing is hard work. A clear sentence is no accident.

- Avoid unnecessary words, Circular constructions, meaningless jargons.

REMEMBER: If you find that writing is hard, it’s because it is hard.

2. Clutter
• Putting too many words togethers
• Look for the clutter in your writing and prune it ruthlessly.
• Be grateful everything you can throw away.

• Simplify…simplify
How to write a News Report?
• What is a news story?
• A news story is a story of real people, events and things.
• It contains information of a recent event or development, and so on,
especially as reported in a newspaper, radio, TV, internet etc.,
• It often delivers perishable information that may change moments
later.
• It deals with a happening that is new, unfamiliar, or unusual.
Who is a News Reporter?

• A news reporter is someone who looks for, finds and gathers the
news.

• He/she gets news by covering events that either have just happened
or are still happening.

• To write, you need ideas. Ideas for news stories can come from
various sources.
• 1. From LISTENING – many stories come from hearing what people say.

• 2. From OBSERVING – some of the best stories come from noticing

something new or unsual.

• 3. from ASKING QUESTIONS – be curious; keep asking people all kinds of

questions.

• 4. From A TIP – A suggestion or story idea from a person who knows

about something

• 5. From READING – In depth reading makes you a critical writer.

Types of News stories
• Hard News: Immediate or “breaking story” that can’t wait for
publication.

• Soft News: A story that can wait for publication and is usually about a
trend, an on-going event or about an interesting person.

• Feature: an in-depth, magazine-length story, a journalist’s equivalent

of an essay.
Structure of a news story
• First Paragraph is called the LEAD

• The rest of the story is called the BODY

 1. Inverted Pyramid Style

1. Summarizes the story

Lead……..
Paragraph Two………..
[Link] the injured
Paragraph Three……………
Paragraph Four………….. 3. Explains how the accident occurred
Paragraphs Five, Six, Seven…
Paragraph Eight………….
Paragraph Nine…………
4. Reports charges filed against driver(s)
Paragraph 10………….
5,6,[Link] driver(s), police officer(s) and
witness(es)
8. Describes unusual damage to the cars
9 Describes traffic problems caused by the accident
[Link] minor details
What is the LEAD?
• The lead is the opening paragraph; it is the most important part of the
news story

• A lead must summarize the basic facts of a story and convey to a

reader what you found out in your reporting.

• The lead also must capture the reader’s attention.

How to write the lead?
• The lead is the hardest part of the story to write

• Simple Rule is : 5 W’s and 1 H

• A lead need not have answers to all the 5 w’s. But the ‘What’ should
always be there; the ‘When’ and the ‘Where’ are usually needed to
complete the story.
Some useful News-related Words
• 1. A news Agnecy is an organization that gathers news stories from a
particular country or from all over the world and supplies them to
journalists.

2. A Newsagent: is a shopkeeper or a shop that sells newspapers and

magazines

3. A newsstand: is a stall in the street or a public place, which sells

newspapers and magazines.
• 4. A newscast: is a news programme that is broadcast

• 5. A newsreader is a person who reads the news on the radio or television

• 6. A newsflash is an important item of news that television or radio companies

broadcast as soon as they receive it..

• 7. A breaking news: is the most important news of the day

• 8. A newsletter is one or more printed sheets of paper containing information about

an organization

• 9. A news release: is a written statement about a matter of public interest which is

given to the press by an organization concerned with the matter

• 10. A newsroom is an office in a newspaper, radio, or television organization where

news reports are prepared before they are printed or broadcast.
FOCUS II
HEADLINING RULES
• 1. Use Verbs

• Egs: a) Mufti escapes poll-eve terrorist attack

• b) CM promises better infrastructure

• c) Farmers demand procurement of paddy

• d) Community radio to get big boost

• e) India prevails over Sri Lanka

• According to Harold Evans (Editing and Designing) “News is activity and a verb represents action….
Headlines must live. Most headlines without a verb are only half alive.”

• Harold adds: “A headline without a verb will produce dullness and monotony. The deadest kind of news
headline is the label.”
• 2. Use Active Verbs

•Earthquake hits Ahmedabad.

•Earthquake rocks Ahmedabad.

•The word rocks is more powerful than [Link] the verb is weak, the headline is weak. According to
Harold Evans, “ The normal headline has no room for adjectives. The colour and spice must come from a rich
verb.”

•Eg: Electioneering picks up momentum in Thiruvananthapuram

•Amritnandamayi math to embark on suicide prevention campaign

•Campaigning ends today

•India stuns Australia

• 3. Use Present Tense

•We use the present tense in a headline, though it describes an event that has already happened, for three
reasons.

•a) The present tense is active. It puts the reader into the middle of action. It gives him/her a feeling of
participation.

•Eg: Sri Lanka defeats Zimbabwe (not defeated).

•b) The event may be past. But the reader is becoming aware of it for the first time.
• Eg: ICC shifts headquarters to Dubai.

•c) It is shorter and therefore, it can save space.

•Eg: Lorry rams shop

•Not: Lorry rammed shop.

• 4. Use Active Voice

• In the words of Harold Evans, “Passive voice breeds extra words, excess weight which exhausts the
headline.”

• Eg: Two killed in accident (passive)

• Accident kills two (active)

• Passive voice headlines are to be used only when active voice version is not feasible

• BCCI meet adjourned

• Bihar poll process set in motion

• Poll duty: one held, another on the run

• CBI probe sought into Lavalin

• Sandalwood worth Rs.5 crores seized

• 5. Avoid Padding

•Avoid using a, and, the, their, his.

• Example: No danger in BJP opening account in (the) state

•Congress manipulating (the) opinion polls

• 6) Headlining Punctuation

•* Never use full stop at the end of a headline

• * Use single quotes instead of double quotes

•Example: ‘LDF rule a fiasco’: Chandy

•* Use comma in the place of ‘and’

•Example: Padmaja, Muralidharan lose

•* Semicolon indicates end of an idea.

•Example: Rane romps home; Priya Dutt wins

• 7. Use ‘to’ in the place of ‘will’.

•Example: Film festival to (will) begin tomorrow

• 8) Avoid illogical breaks

•Example: Campaign to

•begin tomorrow

•Sonia hints

• at coalition Govt.

•
• 9. Don’t repeat words in headlines
•Example: India’s victory great victory
• 10. Use numerals in headlines
•Example: 8 killed in road mishap
• 11. Avoid fullcaps in headlines
•Example: Nitish Kumar leads NDA to victory in Bihar
•Resounding victory for LDF in bypoll
•Results contradict exit polls
Bus strike throws life out of gear
•Lalu concedes defeat
•Landslide for Pannyan
•Rain washes out third one-dayer
• 12. Don’t use unfamiliar abbreviations
•Example: SDB’s book released