Do you ever read an article in the paper and think to yourself that you could have done a much better job with the subject? Like maybe an article about a friend and some public interest event. Sometimes I feel journalists are just far too formulaic with their writing. It's like they are given a task or assignment and they just pull up a formula and drop in the information obtained.... somehow the person in the story gets lost completely.
Ever wish you could write an article about a friend and all the great things they do for you or other people? Even if you don't consider yourself a good writer, do you ever feel like just sitting down and writing all about a person who matters to you. Have you ever done it?
[question posted by makingpots]
responses and comments:
This sounds like a great idea for an article. Even if you don't believe you have the skills now you can learn and build them up. Take an online writing course, go the library and find a book on writing. [flyinghi]
happy Hi, flyinghi. Welcome to myLot. Good recommendations. [makingpots]
I think that I could write more articles if I got paid decently for them. i dont like writing without payment because I find that it is too much work. I guess that I will never be that prolfic. Sometimes newspaper articles are not particularly well written, but the news on TV is actually worse than that. You have some pretty bad copy written at times. I dont know what it is all about. [snowy22315]
..... maybe it is about people not being paid enough to do the job? I know what you mean. [makingpots]
I have done it....not an article to speak of....but a short story! My second book is all about my friends and family and the experiences we have had. I really don't get a chance to read all the articles in the paper...just touch on the highlights I guess. [jillhill]
I tend to just touch on the highlight articles too. I'll look forward to reading your second book. [makingpots]
Yes, I had a weekly column in a sunday Newspapper for about 10 years. so enjoyed doing it too. Maybe one day again ....... [cynthiann]
I hope you can do it again too, cynthiann, if you would like to. [makingpots]
LOL I think that the majority of journalists are vermin that should be banned from being a part o normal civilisation. They lie, twist, trivialise and exploit people from all walks of life and in every type of situation! Sorry sis but I have personally seen how much of what goes into the media is twisted and made up!As for writing articles about friends and how special they are, there are a few people I would love to do that for but I would be nervous as I would worry that I wouldn't do them justice! Hugs xxxx [mummymo]
Its so much more than that pots 0 it is cots, high chairs, prams , puschairs etc - practically every type of nursery equipment! xxxx [mummymo]
I think the best articles are ones written from the heart. They aren't necessarily grammatically perfect, but you can tell from reading them, that they aren't contrived or the thesaurus has been checked for a more 'suitable' longer word. It reminds me of those quizes where you have a paragraph or two written with selected words missing, but they are at the bottom of the page for you to pick and paste appropriately. e.g. The weather was (chose from below)......etc sunny, hot, rainy, cold, changeable. I am sure you could write an excellent article about your friend, without the aide memoire of the Journalism for Dummies. [Scoop_Dogg]
As a former journalist and still a contributor to many print venues, the reason so many stories sound formula based is because they have to be in order to meet the five major criteria of journalism. Who, What, Where, When and Why. Also, journalists must stay completely 'neutral' in their reporting because of privacy and libel laws. They are not allowed to report anything that hasn't been independently corroborated by at least two outside sources. It takes a very talented journalist indeed to 'humanize' the facts, and just the facts ma'am, that they are allowed to have go to print. That's why 'yellow' or sensational papers proliferate. These publishers do not subscribe to the rules of proper journalism and are constantly being sued. [sparkofinsanity]
Next you are going to say 'fetch' aren't you?? I'm not going to fall for that. [makingpots]
makingpots, It's not just the journalists that write the krappy article, but there are whole newspapers that set the formula that you were talking about. Way back, Baltimore uesd to be a 2 newspaper town. We had the News American and the Baltimore Sun. I remember that my grandfather used to say that the News was written for truck drivers on the run; short, sweet and simple. He was right. Years a go and up until about a month ago, we were a two newspaper town again and that newspaper was a replica of the old News except, it was short, sweet, and misinformed. I wasn't sorry to see it go. DCMerkle [DCMerkle]
News was written for truck drivers on the run...... I like it. thanks for the response, DCMerkle. [makingpots]
Hi Pots! haha..There were a few times that i thought I could write it better than the author who have written the article or the book I am reading.w00t haha..Although I am not a good writer, I just feel that sometimes they miss something more important and sometimes they dwell on unnecessary things that should never be written about in the first place. There were times too that I just wanted to write another side of this person's life because I think that some articles have been unfair with her and many people have misjudged her for what she truly is. However, I really do not know how and where to start. LOL..lolcry Take care and have a great day! loveslot..faith [faith210]
Hi Pots dear! I, too am left with the same question sometimes. haha.. Thank you for the kind words. You're so sweet to say that! Thank you.wink lovelots...faith [faith210]
our local paper is pretty bad about getting things wrong. don't think they have a proof reader. i know i could do better than they do sometimes & i don't consider myself a writer. i have had people i would like to write about but i never do. i'd also like to respond to some of the letters to the editor sometimes to. people are wierd. [ANTIQUELADY]
the local paperis sort of a joke around here. [ANTIQUELADY]
I think I am not so much gifted that I can write much better than the journalists. it is pity. So I am quite contended with what they write. I enjoy reading good things. [subha12]
Hi, subha12. I enjoy reading good things too. [makingpots]
I do not think so. I believe that every one has his/her own style of unimitable style of writing and they do it accordingly. Your feeling are right upto an extent because sometimes I also feel that the writer could have explained better, specially when I find an article loop sided. It is, therefore, I read 3-4 articles of different writers on the same topic, specially in the newspaper. [dpk262006]
Hi! Dear ! Thanks for agreeing with me.happywink [dpk262006]
They are working under a lot of stress. Journalists working for our national paper, The Straits Times and The Sunday Times, worked more than 70 hours a week. They also write under very tight regulations and deadlines. They have to write a few articles in a day and submit to editor before the deadlines. Unless us who do freelance writing, it's impossible for them to write a story and let the story sits overnight. They are not allowed to get too emotional about their subjects matter. Newspaper supposes to present only factual reports and not to prejudice or adds in unnecesary emotions into the reports. [scheng1]
What I mean is they do not have the luxury of time to re-write their articles and make it better. Most of them just push through the writings and click submit button. With a 70 hours work week, writing becomes a chore, to do away with asap. If given a bit more time, they should be able to do a better job. Sometimes those articles written by freelancer are better, simply because they have the luxury of time. [scheng1]
i see that a lot.. not that i could do better as far as spelling and grammar but so many news sites give like 1 paragraph with no details and it annoys me since im a detail obsessed person and i know if i had 5 minutes with the story i could write 3 pages worth of an article and not 4 sentences! [moonlitmagikchild]
i know for real!! i am editing my book i wrote and its a huge headache since i dont have my ADD meds and like i said i suck at all the proper english bs.. but im not gonna let that stop me.. im sure im not the first person to write something with issues in that department lol. just will take me longer and im learning as im correcting so eventually it will be worth it.. i think lol [moonlitmagikchild]
hey makingpots...well to be honest no...i haven't think about that..i mean that i write better and everything...although i like reading but i enjoy what i read and never noticed the way it was written..maybe im not so meticulous on it...what im after is to gain information and enjoy what i constantly reading.. [vanities]
That is respectable, vanities. Thanks for the response. I wish I could read without noticing the quality of the writing... but then again, maybe I wouldn't enjoy reading as much as I do if I did. I like to find talented writers. Maybe I'm wrong to ever look for them in a newpaper. blink [makingpots]
I write so so...but i love to write.I keep scraping some thing or the other.usually they are crap.but yes sometimes when i read newspaper articles specially on the sports page i think i can do a much better job than the journalists. [sagnik42]
Haha, you sound like me husband, sagnik42. He devours the sports page everyday. I've heard him say under his breath before, "I wonder if this person has actually ever been to a football game?" Lol [makingpots]
Sometimes, although I regard pretty much everything that the newspapers write about as at least partially pure fabrication and speculation. I have almost no regard for journalists at all. I have seen lovelier slithering things than most newspaper journalists. I had a friend whose reputation was ruined by two newspapers. He lost his career and many so called friends because his role in something was misrepresented. I won't go into the detail here, but E mail me and I will tell you. However, to answer your question. I have written about my friends in the past and probably will do so again. But not in newspapers of course. Sometimes I think that writing down what someone means to you is an excellent way of understanding how you feel. [p1kef1sh]
I actually know some journalists that I hold in high regard.... excellent writers who turned to journalism to pay the bills. Is that 'selling out'? That is always a good conversation to have with someone, no mater what the career choice. I agree with you that writing down what someone means to you is an excellent ways to understand ones feelings. I've done it many times. [makingpots]
I have thought that this article could have been written better and thta it lacked the depth it warranted.But it would mostly be my subject related.As far as other current affairs, I would not always feel that way, because I may not ahev sufficient indepth knowledge in it[say, politics or sports].But , what you ahev written in the end has never struck me so far.[about a friend].Whatever I feel about a close person I have never thought of writing it all down. [kalav56]
Hi, kalav56. Thanks for the response. [makingpots]
Of course you could have written a better article about someone your know and value personally. You could have written more in depth from your own knowledge. A journalist does not have that insight and does not have time to get to know everything about a person. A journalist writes a piece based on a few interviews and a little research. They form a quick idea about how to present a person within an article, and then write it. Most newspapers and magazines have a house style and journalists are expected to write in the required style. Why not write to the newspaper telling them what you know about your friend. They may publish it. You could address it to the letters page. [paid2write]
Hi, paid2write. Thanks for your input here. [makingpots]
Many a times I did feel the urge to rewrite the whole thing that I read in the journal and some other times I would badly wish to remake a movie. I think I would come up with better script and presentation that the film maker! And you have a wonderful idea there. I must start to work o it. Even though, I had written articles on my best friend on many occasions, this would be unique with a different kinda perception as a grown up. [mimpi1911]
thank for you message, glad i was to get it ,frome your message i think you are love your life .write your own life .what would you write:of love? hate? fun? misery? life? woulid you write to please just yourself? or others? or yourself by writing for others? would you strokes be tremblingly timid or brilliantly bold? fancy with a flourish or plain/ there's a lot to think a bout here, isn't there? i can't consider the problem. [zhenghong]
hi, zhenghong. Looks as if you enjoy writing yourself. [makingpots]
Yes I do feel that way when reading. I have wanted to write about people who have refused or didn't see the point. I have recently signed up at helium and plan to write what I want when I want for the reasons I want regardless. [Canellita]
Well, I just started one for movie reviews and I posted a few before I left for work so I will have to wait and see how lucrative it is. I am trying to pick a blog site and that will be what I focus on the most for a while. [Canellita]
I do feel like this frequently. Its the reason I'm attracted to blogging. If I wasn't trying to make it as a writer I would be an avid blogger for reasons similar to this. I think its natural if you do write to feel this way about a lot of stuff in the newspaper. Newspaper writers are always rushed and don't always think much about what they write anyway. [Bluepatch]
You are so right. Good luck making it as a writer. And happy blogging. happy [makingpots]
I have writen some feelings of mine in my language recently, I gave it to my hubby to read it first, he was touched. I never think I can write an article better than anyone, I don't think I can write as good as the delicate touch of their writing, there are always so many talented people. [HelloMickey]
Hi, HelloMickey. It is probably most important that your writing touches the people you care about. You are doing well. [makingpots]
Hey pots! Love the new avatar! A creation in progress! I have not exactly written an article about a person who has done something for me that I cared about, but I have written to them telling them how I felt about them and the things that they have done for me in private! I find it easier sometimes to express my feelings in writing the words down then in speaking them so I will sometimes write (or type) a letter or send a card with whatever I feel I want to say! That makes it a whole lot more special! [Opal26]
that is exactly how it is they are not free to write the way they want to they have to write the way the paper wants them to write or they don't have a job. Journalism is a style of writing and everyone uses it. If you want create writing you have to find creative writing magazines, etc, and that is almost always true for just about any kind of writing that you like. It is even worst in book publishing, your style has to fit the publisher or they just don't take your book it is a simple as that. I am on my third book now, [winterose]
Hi Pots well, some times it do happens, but u know i am not good at writing at all, so i cant do any thing, and never ecer tried to write article/story or some thing for any paper or magazine. But then i thought that what i have mind is based on my observation while the writer at paper have to keep in mind all types of writers, thats why they write in such a way Anyway Take care [cupid74]
Oh yes! several times I have felt as of I have much resources about the things presented in an article form.On reading trhe entire stuff I would feel that there is much matter left away. [sukumar794]
I know am not a good writer.In my school days we had to write some articles on one subject every week.At the end of the year we were having competitions and awarding winners with good books.I also won sometimes.After writing the essays or articles and submitting it to the teacher,I was also thinking like you.How did i write the article?Is that enough to win the competition or i could have written that article better? ..After that i never tried to write anything on my own.Just enterd it mechanical life where we lost everything including creativity and create writing... [mymytri]
All the time. Everytime I read a newspaper I have a thought like that. Some newpapers are exceptionally bad about this. [Gatplant]
I read some newpaper article that I think could have been written better. But I never think I could have written it better myself. Even if it was an article about a friend. [XcolleenX]