Lessons from magazines

Throughout my time at the J-School I've been told to read, read, read. And I've been told to read like a writer. I think its also important to think about why you read what you read. I dropped into my brown Katie-sized recliner last night with this month's issue of the The Atlantic magazine. My mind drifted mid-article: I love this magazine. And I sat down again this morning to think about why, for the past two years, I have read every issue nearly cover to cover. The content is divided into two strong sections: current political, national, international news and cultural review and commentary (books, plays, travel, food). The standard of its reporting is depth and context. The writing is analytical, smart and clean. The photography is stunning. But what's fascinating about it is the variety of topics it covers and it's ability to make me read and care about issues incredibly distant from me. Writing about topics that don't directly affect your readers lives requires talent, but to do it well requires also space. When I read quick and brief accounts in newspapers of protests in Tibet, or about elections in Zimbabwe, it's hard to retain. When I read these things in the Atlantic, it gives me the background, history, context. It tells it like a story. I can almost see it. I feel like I am in the know when I read this magazine.

Do I want to write for a magazine? No. But there are lessons that can be adapted. Never, ever assume your reader is up-to-date, following every news item related to your topic even if it's something like the elections, which were throughly covered. With each story, a strong nut graf explaining why this matters and what it will change is crucial. Magazine articles have the luxury of space and can break their nuts down into all the fine parts. In the online news world where readers choose what they read, I feel the rush to get the information online pushes emphasis on this context down. To be clear, I don't think this is a problem at the Missourian. In fact, I'd look at the school board coverage on the levy as a great example of explaining context. I see this as a problem with my hometown newspaper, the Rockford Register Star, and other mid-sized papers removed from the Journalism Epicenter of the World.

Another lesson adapted from the Atlantic or other magazines is sentence structure. Roy Peter Clark wrote about front-heavy sentences (making sure the subject and verb are towards the front of the sentance). Magazines typically follow this structure, it's how they handle the remaining clauses that makes the writing more pleasing and often carries more context and information in a clear way. Here's an early passage from one of my favorite profiles that ran in last July's issue of the Atlantic.

"My introduction to Coben occurred in October 2005, when he and I were among some 150 authors featured at a book fair in New York’s Bryant Park. I was a last-minute addition to the schedule—my publisher was able to get me a slot because another writer canceled—and was thrilled that despite my book’s small print run, about 30 people attended my reading. After I finished, however, I realized that most of them were not there for me but had come early to secure themselves seats to hear Coben, the next writer on the bill." Click here to read the article.

The writing in this piece is fantastic because his use of asides, offsetting them with dashes, which give the reader context when they need it. The amount of information conveyed in these few sentences is powerful. Newspaper writers need to learn how to use a complex structure to increase clarity. Yes, simple sentences work. But variety is the spice of life.

Progress report: I had a really good week last week. I set two small goals: a day turn around story on Monday and a story on the biodiesel bill done by Friday. I did both, and both turned out well. I got a lot of good feedback, including an email from Glen Cameron, a strat. com. professor. This story wasn't a legislation story, it was a history and context story and that was what I liked about it. I'm working on shell stuff and I'm in the final stages of reporting on my Food/Fuel and Energy policy story.