Starting this class I was not expecting this much writing was going to be done let alone the specific type of writing. I have had to change my way of thinking and writing from my norm to a different way for this class.

In our most recent article, we had to construct, I was most concerned about the layout and the information that was being given. News is all about grabbing the reader’s attention and giving all they need to know in a few sentences hence the lead. It’s what comes after I struggle. Mantling a reader’s focus in the story is seen as an art form. I find myself stuck in the body of the report more than anything deciding what is nonsense and what will work.

While working on the draft I was noticing I was putting repeating sentences and claims throughout the article. Instead of repeating statements, I went back out to interview the team to gather more information to further my point in more than one way as I was explaining. Doing this made the story have more depth and more information than the bare minimum. Getting the second interview was not easy, so in the future, I will be looking to get all the information, so I don’t have to go back and have a chance not to get the interview aging.

I tend to focus strongly on the writing portion of the Article thinking it was going to be the most difficult for me to perform. When it turns out the Interviewing process was the most difficult for me because I did not retain as much information as I needed to write the article to the best of my abilities. When diving into the assignment I would think about how to write it and write an upside-down pyramid to plan out the information as we learned in class. Being unfamiliar with the specific structure of writing and having more experience with interviews I used most of the time and recourses to make sure the paper flowed correctly and maintain the readers’ focus. If I switched my focus from it not being completely on the writing and more on the interview, I believed my article would have had a stronger outcome that was produced. The interviews went great overall I just did not retain enough information, so I had to go back for a second interview with the team to be able to finish the article to the standers that were needed.

The Upside-down Pyramid in my opinion is one of the best diagrams you can use when you’re writing a news article. The reason why I say that is because it breaks down what to write in order. Before I start any news article I try and use the upside-down pyramid diagram to lay out my article before I even put it on a word document. Knowing what Is important what is not so important and then just some filler. It’s very important to know when you are getting ready to start writing so your paper doesn’t get jumbled up with random facts or bursts of information. The pyramid gives a nice easy flow to gather the reader’s attention and give them the importance of what you’re talking about and leads them into the information that may be needed to clarify the topic.

This article has helped open up how to write newsy. Going out and being the man in the field gathering first-hand information was a great experience for me and I hope for the rest of the class. The communication and writing skills I have learned during this assignment have helped me open the doors to a lot more capabilities for my personal life and the future of my career. The class has thought me ways of thinking and writing that I would never do unless I took this class. I am getting a stronger and more consistent writer as I feel.