I finished it yesterday. I listened to the entire 3-part module pretty much in one sitting. Perhaps this course is designed more for people who work full time as it spaces the modules such that you complete one a week to make the 5-week course. I will need to go over the teaching and notes again though so make sure I have not missed anything and that the tools are more or less ingrained into my brain for me to readily apply them when necessary.
Valerie Khoo, who directs the Sydney Writers' Centre and delivers the course I am taking - Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers, is really easy to listen to and follow. For one thing, she's got a great voice. I know that can seem irrelevant or shallow but considering all my lessons are in audio form, being an online program, it would get under my skin if she mumbled her way through or was shrilly or had an accent that made it hard to decipher her words. I could certainly attribute that to her professional experience. An obvious expert in her field, I am assured there will be much to gain from the knowledge and skills she has already begun to impart. Valerie has structured the course well. The material is informative yet digestible, and having handouts to accompany the teaching helps me gain a clearer perspective on what she is saying. I took a lot of notes.
To recap yesterday's lesson, and this is purely for my sake (as I cannot imagine you would be too fascinated), we covered the following:
What is a feature article? How does this differ from an article covering the news? How does one develop a feature article from a reported newsworthy event? What are some of the topics covered in feature articles?
Where can you source ideas for a feature article? What makes a good idea?
What are some of the avenues for feature articles? (As in where are they published, a question that gets us thinking of whom we can pitch our ideas to)
What is the difference between a story and a subject?
What are some of the styles of writing a feature article?
Valerie also taught us how to analyse a publication. This is basically working out how frequently the publication is distributed (indicating the lead time), who the target audience is (looking at the age group and stage of life - say, a single or a parent, gender, interests, income level and tastes or preferences), what the main topics or themes of the publication are, how many feature articles there are and how long each one is generally, whether the publication allows for contributions from freelance writers or if the articles are by staff writers, and the tone and style of writing. This will be my exercise for this week, apart from coming up with a story idea.
As a result of what I took away from Module One, I was (and I stress this was beyond my control) immediately drawn towards the magazine section in the supermarket later that afternoon. Although my wallet was not so proud of me, I convinced my husband to not get me a birthday gift or organise anything for me so that I could justify the purchase of a Real Living magazine (which did come with a Good Food magazine absolutely free!) and a Notebook magazine (with a complimentary notepad I just fell in love with! Ok, I confess, it was actually a grocery list pad but who uses something so beautiful for a list you toss out after passing through the checkout counter?). See how bonus giveaways make all the difference. Anyhow, I felt better after he promised this would be my turning-30 (happening on the 18th of April) present. I analysed both of them last night but have a couple of question marks resting above my head.
Valerie Khoo, who directs the Sydney Writers' Centre and delivers the course I am taking - Feature Writing for Magazines and Newspapers, is really easy to listen to and follow. For one thing, she's got a great voice. I know that can seem irrelevant or shallow but considering all my lessons are in audio form, being an online program, it would get under my skin if she mumbled her way through or was shrilly or had an accent that made it hard to decipher her words. I could certainly attribute that to her professional experience. An obvious expert in her field, I am assured there will be much to gain from the knowledge and skills she has already begun to impart. Valerie has structured the course well. The material is informative yet digestible, and having handouts to accompany the teaching helps me gain a clearer perspective on what she is saying. I took a lot of notes.
To recap yesterday's lesson, and this is purely for my sake (as I cannot imagine you would be too fascinated), we covered the following:
Valerie also taught us how to analyse a publication. This is basically working out how frequently the publication is distributed (indicating the lead time), who the target audience is (looking at the age group and stage of life - say, a single or a parent, gender, interests, income level and tastes or preferences), what the main topics or themes of the publication are, how many feature articles there are and how long each one is generally, whether the publication allows for contributions from freelance writers or if the articles are by staff writers, and the tone and style of writing. This will be my exercise for this week, apart from coming up with a story idea.
As a result of what I took away from Module One, I was (and I stress this was beyond my control) immediately drawn towards the magazine section in the supermarket later that afternoon. Although my wallet was not so proud of me, I convinced my husband to not get me a birthday gift or organise anything for me so that I could justify the purchase of a Real Living magazine (which did come with a Good Food magazine absolutely free!) and a Notebook magazine (with a complimentary notepad I just fell in love with! Ok, I confess, it was actually a grocery list pad but who uses something so beautiful for a list you toss out after passing through the checkout counter?). See how bonus giveaways make all the difference. Anyhow, I felt better after he promised this would be my turning-30 (happening on the 18th of April) present. I analysed both of them last night but have a couple of question marks resting above my head.
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