Qualities of Good Writing (Journalism)

Qualities of Good Writing

Short Paragraphs
In English class, you may have been encouraged to write long paragraphs for your essay.
In news writing, though, your paragraphs are kept short.
Short paragraphs look better when typeset into a long, skinny column in a newspaper.

Traits of Good Writing
Take charge and develop your own ideas
Develop strong leads
Examine the story from all angles
Revise and rewrite
Do an “AP style” check

Principles of Clear Writing
K.I.S.S.
Avoid tangled sentences
Don’t show off with “big words”
Use active voice not passive voice

Active Voice
Active voice uses a subject-verb-object structure
ACTIVE: Joe Smith wrote the book.
PASSIVE: The book was written by Joe Smith.

Spelchek Yer Werk
Everyone makes spelling mistakes…so use computer spellcheck technologies to your advantage

Proper Nouns
In reporting, it is critical that you get the name correct of the individual or business
Many well-known businesses are commonly misspelled

Common Mistakes
J.C. Penney – not Penny
Marriott: hotel chain
Men’s Wearhouse: not warehouse
Procter & Gamble
Berkeley, Calif.
Columbia – University or Washington, D.C.
Colombia – South American country

Commas
Use commas to separate items in a series, except just before “and” (example: Red, white and blue)
Use comma with semicolons when dividing complicated materials, such as names and titles
Example:
“ Alexis Lew, president; Stephen Ro, vice president; Cathy Smith, treasurer, and Natalie Hack, secretary.”
Note that you switched from the semicolon to a comma before the “and”

Beware! Exclamation Point!
Use exclamation points sparingly
Usually a period or question mark will be sufficient

Hyphen
Use hyphen as follows:
13-year-old girl
30-second commercial
One-minute break
15-page paper
Three-day cruise
24-hour hotline
Queen-size bed

Quotes
When quoting a source, make sure that the quotation marks are placed outside the other punctuation.
Example:
“I enjoy teaching,” she said. “I created this guide to help you.”

Writing Tight Sentences
Do not repeat key words in the same sentence
Example:
“The University of Hawaii students have been attending University events…”

Numbers & Things
Spell out single-digit numbers (nine and below)
Use figures for numbers 10 and above unless:
the sentence begins with a number
You are expressing money, age, dates, etc.

Writing Tips
When writing about the current date, do not use the year. It’s obvious.
When dealing with money, omit the decimal point when the amount is even
$25 not $25.00
In writing amounts with many zeros, use the word “million,” “billion,” etc.

Said vs. Says
Use “ said ,” NOT “says” in interviews and quotes
Use “ says ” when referring to a printed document or sign

Other common mistakes
“In regard to…” NOT “In regards to…”
“Toward” NOT “Towards”
“Often…” NOT “Often times…”
“Try to…” NOT “Try and…”

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Qualities of Good Writing (Journalism)

by Brett Atwood on Sep 04, 2007

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