For my first feature story, I did a profile on Pat Deal, a student leader for Campus Crusade for Christ at UNC. Deal is a senior Sport and Exercise Science major that spends a lot of time giving back to his college community. The following is a reflection of the profile piece.
The most difficult part about this profile piece was being able to organize a time together in order to get to know my subject. Both Deal and I have full schedules, therefore something as simple as meeting for a 30-minute lunch break was a daunting task.
The easiest part about it was the writing. Once I had my quotes, sources and information tagged, the writing went smooth. Most of my sources were cooperative and timely which helped with the initial reporting.
I learned a lot about the Campus Crusade for Christ organization through the research I did. I picked up simple things such as statistics, operational structure and local contacts in a matter of a few days.
From the writing and rewriting, I learned how my grammar is constantly a work in progress. Ever since JMC 210, I've made steady improvements, but every so often Dr. Klyde-Silverstein (blog) reminds me that I'm not yet copy editor quality just yet.
I believe I did well on capturing quotes that really added to the story. I don't know how many times I read a story and ask myself why they used that quote. My lead was strong, but I need some work on the ending.
As for working on something, I would like to be more concise. I've always struggled with drifting when I write, something that is imperative when news writing.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
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