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Why write for the Whyville Times? It's fun, interesting and exciting. It will
allow you to meet cool people and make new friends. And of course, there's the
irresistible factor of having thousands of people see your name "in lights." ;-)
But there's a big difference between deciding to write for the paper and
actually getting an article published. Where to begin? Where to end? Where to
submit it to? Here I've tried my best to create a step-by-step guide that will
make the process a little easier for you.
1) Choose a Topic: The first step, of course, is to chose a topic. My best
advice would be to write about something you truly care about, something you're
interested in and hopefully know about. If you care about something, you will enjoy writing about it, and
the reader in turn will enjoy reading about it.
So every time something piques your interest, consider writing an article! If
you see something cool on the news, learn a weird statistic in school, or hear
about an intriguing experiment, make a note of it. Then you can come back later
and decide if you'd like to explore it more. In general, the topics most likely
to get accepted in the Times are science articles, news articles and help
articles. However, my personal favorites are pieces that debate an issue. :-)
2) Investigate: An important part of journalism: learn more about your topic! If
you're writing a science or news article, this means researching in books,
websites or newspapers. If you're writing a help article, you should consider
every aspect of your topic and try to work out all the problems people might
have with it. For a social piece or commentary, try conducting some interviews.
Find out as much as possible about the subject of your article, and make sure to
note where you get your information so you can cite your sources at the
end.
3) Write! You've picked your topic, you've learned everything you can about it,
now it's time to get down and write! For the first draft, don't worry too much
about grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc. Just try to get down on paper
everything you want to say to the reader. State your facts, state your opinion
about the facts, and ask the reader questions that will get them thinking about
what you've said. Be clear, be specific, and be sensitive.
4) Revise: Okay, you've written what you want to say. Now you need to put it in
a format that is easy to read and understand. Organize your paper so it makes
sense. Do the paragraphs follow a logical drift of information? Did you stay on
topic? Is there anything you've left out?
Check through for grammar and spelling
errors. Add an introduction that will grab the readers attention and set the
mood. Finish with a sign-off and a list of your sources. Then when you've got it
all down, read through your paper at least three times. (I forgot to write down this step on
my original draft of this story, so it's good I'm reading it over!) Read your paper to
yourself, read it aloud, and read it from the viewpoint of someone who has never
heard of your subject before. Is there any way you could make your article more
clear?
Then, when you think you've made your paper as good as you can, take it to
friend, parent or sibling. Read them your paper and ask them for their
impression. Is there any way you could make it more understandable? More
accurate? More interesting? Use their suggestions to improve your article.
5) Submit: All right, it's finally done! The rest is up to the editor. Email
your article to the Times Editor at times@whyville.net.
The subject line of your email should be:
Type of Article: Author, Title of Article.
So, for example, the subject line for this article is: Help Article: JasmineK, How
to Write an Article More Interesting Than This One.
Once you've sent in your piece, all you can do is cross your fingers and wait
(or, get started on more articles ;-). Your article might be published in a
week, six months or never. But whatever happens, keep writing! The more you
write, the better you'll get at it. And the more likely you'll be to get
accepted! Once you have had 4 to 10 quality pieces accepted, you will earn
the rank of Times Writer and a spot on the Times staff list. So get going!
*Modeling an example of a really lame way to sign-off an article but a handy way
if, for example, it's way past your bedtime*
JasmineK :-)
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