Reporters tell stories about actual people, places, events and things. Yet, a news story is different than traditional stories, such as legends, fairy tales and other works of fiction. Those stories are usually much longer and are organized very differently. The job of a fictional story is to entertain and those stories can afford to deliver their main point at the end of the story, which is often why they begin with the phrase, "Once upon a time. . ."

A news story is almost the opposite. It is immediate and often delivers time-sensitive information that may change moments later. It must compete with many other stories for a reader's or listener's attention, so the punch line must be in the very first sentence.

A news story is also different than other types of non-fiction writing because of "news." If you read something and say to your self, "I know that," then what you're reading probably is not news and can be considered a historical fact.

Nature Of News

Impact and immediacy are central to any definition of news.

The Funk & Wagnalls Dictionary defines news as: "1. Information of a recent event, development,
etc., especially as reported in a newspaper, on the radio, etc. 2. Any new or unfamiliar information."

Yet news is often an elusive thing to define -- almost as hard as trying to pin Jell-O to a wall. That is because something that is considered newsworthy to one person or audience may not be considered news by another. For example, a story that may be the top story on the front page of The New York Times may not appear in The Globe and Mail at all. Or a story in The St. John's Evening Telegram may not appear in any other paper in Canada.

Relevance is a key factor to determining what is news. But news reporters and editors have to
decide what is relevant on behalf of their readers and listeners. That is why it is also part of the job
of reporters and editors to think about the needs of their audience. Thinking about who your
audience or readers are will help determine what you consider newsworthy -- and what you will
write stories about.

The Angle

The main idea of a news story and lead is called the "angle."

It is also referred to in newsrooms as the "hook" because the angle is used to grab, or hook, the reader's attention to make them want to read the rest of your story.

Simply, it is the main point you learned from your reporting and that the rest of your story will try to support.

Finding the angle of a news story forces a newswriter to be critical of a story idea and the reporting. A news writer will discover if there's no angle in an idea or the facts that have been gathered before an editor, teacher or reader will.

Writing the lead and angle involves making some difficult decisions. A news writer must sort through the facts that were gathered from the reporting and decide what the theme is. There may be several different themes, but the writer must decide what the central theme of the story will be in the lead.

Then you must consider what form your story will take.

In sorting through a mass of material, Carman Cumming and Catherine McKercher of Carleton
University tell reporters to think about "S-I-N" -- which stands for Significant, Interesting and New.

Look for either of those three things from your research and interviews and you will be able to find a compelling angle for your lead.

Qualities Of Good Stories

Whatever the form, a good news story has at least seven elements, says Donald Murray, writing coach of The Boston Globe, in his guide to writing:

1. Information -- Substance is the raw ingredient of a story. A writer must have specific, accurate
and revealing details to work with to be able to write well.

2. Significance -- Good stories affect people, impart information they need to know and tell what is
happening and may happen.

3. Focus -- Memorable stories are limited and precisely focused. They say one thing. Says Murray:
"They tell not of a battle, but of a soldier; they talk not about governance, but about a deal; they
discuss not a socioeconomic group, but a person and a life."

4. Context -- An effective story offers perspective to a reader so they know the context of where a
story came from, where it is going and how widespread or typical it is. And a skillful writer weaves
context throughout the story, rather than delivering it in one huge paragraph.

5. Form -- A writer must give a story a natural and logical shape. A narrative will work if it contains
all the information a reader needs and if the story can be arranged in a chronological order. The form of a story must also give a reader a satisfying sense of completion and that the information presented is heading toward an inevitable conclusion.

6. Faces -- People like to read about people. Journalism presents ideas by introducing readers to the people who create ideas or are affected by them. And news stories work best when the writer gets out of the way and lets the people in a story tell the story to the reader.

7. Voice -- Even in the electronic age of instantaneous, mass communication, a writer speaks to one reader. How you choose your words, particularly in your narrative, to speak to your audience determines your voice.

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