Newspaper journalists are experts at digging for facts (or fiction), keeping it short and getting straight to the point. They have to be, don’t they. Otherwise, readers will just skip what they write because it doesn’t grab them. We can learn from this.

Surfers skim websites in the same way that people read newspapers, stopping to read only when something grabs their attention. So, how do journalists research and write newspaper stories with impact and brevity?

They use the 6 questions technique, which literally gives them the whole story,

• Who - who did it or was responsible?
• What - what happened that fateful morning?
• When - when did all this action take place?
• Where - where was he at the time?
• Why - why did she do it?
• How - how on earth did it ever come to this?

You may not need to ask all of the questions, but this is where you will start. It’s the essence of the story and it’s what your readers want to know. Once you have your story, you can improve it with a great headline.

Headlines need to have drama, action, be controversial or be bold. Don’t be shy or retiring here. Use verbs and action words. Ask a question. ‘How-to’ headlines work really well. But try and keep the headline short and punchy, brief and concise.

Always use ‘active’ sentences, not ‘passive. For example, ‘the software package was opened’ is passive and ‘I opened up the software package’ is active. The difference is subtle, but an active voice engages the reader. He feels a part of the story.

When you have your work of art, it’s time to edit out the unnecessary words. The trick is to remove words without changing the meaning of what you are trying to say. Just in case you missed it, that was an example. By removing ‘are trying to’ I didn’t change the meaning.

And to end your masterpiece, refer to the point, question, issue or statement you made at the start. This is a neat way of making your writing complete. It’s clear to the reader you are ‘wrapping up’ and have resolved the issue or answered the question.

Now go and practice writing stories…