Picture by Tima Miroshnichenko by way of pexels.
Narrative journalism can present readers with a strong and rewarding expertise. As an alternative of cut-and-dry info and figures, this type of writing focuses on growing wealthy characters and telling a narrative whereas explaining or analyzing a fancy difficulty.
However writing a story piece — particularly your first one — may be intimidating. These articles are terribly time-consuming, require an mental and emotional dedication, and should contain prices editors aren’t keen to cowl. The expertise and completed product, nevertheless, may be properly price it.
In July, I hosted a webinar on breaking into narrative journalism with panelists Jane C. Hu, a contract author primarily based in Seattle; Brady Huggett, the enterprise editor at Spectrum; and Pamela Weintraub, the senior editor for science and psychology at Aeon and the co-editor in chief of OpenMind journal.
Hu shared her expertise researching, pitching and getting funding for these character-rich, difficult tales. Huggett and Weintraub talked in regards to the exhausting work that goes into enhancing them. All three provided useful recommendation to freelancers. Listed here are some key takeaways from the webinar.
What’s narrative journalism?
- It tells a narrative.
- It goes deep on a selected individual or place.
- It has a dramatic arc, identical to a piece of fiction.
“Typically I feel that an thought generally is a protagonist and be achieved narratively and artistically,” Weintraub mentioned.
Is there a minimal size for efficient narrative fiction?
- These articles usually are a minimal of two,500 phrases. “Lots of people affiliate narrative journalism with long-form [journalism] particularly,” Hu mentioned, “however I feel you should use components of narrative storytelling in any size of piece.”
How lengthy does it take from acceptance of the pitch to publication?
- It will possibly take a number of months to so long as a yr, and even longer.
- Writers ought to anticipate to submit a number of drafts and undergo an intensive enhancing course of.
- Freelancers might want to produce other, shorter simutaneous initiatives to herald revenue.
“My work life is structured round having common gigs, taking over shorter items and having common purchasers … after which pitching these massive swing narrative tales or investigations that I do know may take at the least a yr, perhaps a number of years,” Hu mentioned.
Does it pay properly, and are bills coated?
- Many publications both have small budgets or none in any respect for journey.
- Publications usually received’t pay greater than their commonplace freelance fee.
- Freelancers will in all probability want to hunt grants or fellowships to complement the charge and to cowl journey prices. (Look ahead to an upcoming AHCJ webinar about making use of for grants and fellowships.)
“These tales are troublesome to execute, they usually’re plenty of work for the author. There are plenty of drafts,” Weintraub mentioned. “I feel there needs to be motivation past the cash.”
What’s the marketplace for narrative journalism?
- Many publications and editors need to run narrative articles.
- Many might publish just a few per yr as a result of these tales require heavy enhancing and, if they’re lengthy, might pressure the freelance price range.
“After they’re achieved, we love them,” Huggett mentioned. “We promote them, we get the very best artwork that we will, we’re very happy with them, we put them up for awards, however we will’t do quite a lot of of these a yr.”
How ought to freelancers pitch a story article?
- Freelancers can ship an editor a brief pre-pitch of 1 or two paragraphs to gauge curiosity.
- Pitches for long-form narrative articles have to be extra detailed than a pitch for a simple characteristic story and might be two or three pages lengthy.
- Freelancers ought to severely contemplate conducting a number of interviews and substantial analysis only for the pitch, particularly if the author has no earlier relationship with the editor or is new to narrative journalism.
- Guarantee the primary character has agreed to take part within the story earlier than pitching. Many topics are keen to be interviewed even earlier than the author has a agency project, particularly somebody whose story has not been advised.
- The writing of the pitch ought to “sing” and display to the editor that this freelancer is able to writing compelling characters, sketching vivid scenes and setting a story arc. Think about together with a lead within the pitch that units the story up and a nutgraf.
- Be persistent.
Talking of her narrative story for Wired a few feminine crew of North Pole explorers, Hu mentioned: “I had truly shopped it round a number of different locations, and it had even fallen by means of at one different place for simply inner, logistical causes … It was an actual rollercoaster, I’ll be trustworthy.
“For listeners who’re interested by doing one thing comparable, simply know that it’s not at all times clean crusing.”
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