Welcome to the template article. This is where your lede should go. A lede should feel like the opening sequence to a great movie — give your readers something interesting that invites them into your story, but don’t take too much time. Budget one-two paragraphs for your lede.
Let your readers know what the fuck they’re reading about directly after your lede. Who, what, why, when, where. Answer those questions, because in this section of your article you should add the nut graf. Think of a nut graf as a thesis statement, your official declaration of relevance. The nut tells us why this story is important and why we should read on.
“You sure did a good job answering those questions, and what a nut graf!” your source said. “Now you’re doing even better because you’re using my voice in the story!”
Here at A&E, we like to get the quotes rolling around the third paragraph or at least in the first few inches of the story. Remember, the folks you interview are the beating heart of your work.
Another thing we like ‘round here? Concise grafs. Two sentences can feel elegant.
You could even write one.
Do what makes you feel most comfortable as a writer, of course. Your instinct is often correct.
Also, check this guy out — — see? Those two dashes are called “em dashes.” The em dash is a great transitional tool and you can throw one in your article by pressing CTRL+ALT+- (the – will be on your numerical pad).
Your story must follow the guidelines of AP style. It’s your duty as a reporter to get familiar and catch the mistakes before I do.
At the end of this article you’ll see what we call a breakout box. If you’re writing about a time-specific event, include this in your article.
Other questions are sure to come up, but this is the basic structure of a story. Be sure to include pertinent information that you’d want to read, get a bunch of sources and give this stuff your personal flavor. I’m stoked to see what you come up with. Remember, stories must be at least 15 inches in length. They can and probably will end up longer.
Now I’m just gonna copy/paste until I hit 15 so you know how long your stories have to be.
Now I’m just gonna copy/paste until I hit 15 so you know how long your stories have to be.
Now I’m just gonna copy/paste until I hit 15 so you know how long your stories have to be.
Now I’m just gonna copy/paste until I hit 15 so you know how long your stories have to be.
Now I’m just gonna copy/paste until I hit 15 so you know how long your stories have to be.
Now I’m just gonna copy/paste until I hit 15 so you know how long your stories have to be.
Now I’m just gonna copy/paste until I hit 15 so you know how long your stories have to be.
