| A Human Interest Story That’s Really in our Best Interests |
| Tuesday, 20 April 2010 19:17 | |||
|
April 20, 2010 – As a writer, sometimes the most difficult type of written document for me to create is one that involves human interest — the type of news piece that focuses on an individual or group and which more often than not has an emotional spin, with the goal being making a connection between the reader and what I’ve written.
The reason it’s tricky is because there are some who might see this approach as being manipulative, and so in general I’ve found that the journalistic world stays away from this approach as much as possible. If my observations are correct, I think mindset is wrong. Most of us human beings who more or less have our collective heads on straight are attracted by the occasional human interest story — provided it is given a sound approach, weaves a good tale and makes a point. The difficulty factor with me comes with making a human interest story believable, and writing it in such a way so the reader does not feel he/she is being put upon, or lured down a rabbit hole. To avoid these notions, I’ve found being honest and aboveboard to be the best policy. Tell the story just like it is, make your narrative flow, use plenty of quotes, and (with permission) use the full identity of the person or persons who is at the center of your story. If there’s a disclaimer to be made, put it in the body of the piece, not at the end in small type. And if a product is involved, try to include it in your story without naming it. End the piece by inviting the reader to go to a site so they can make up their own minds. In this way, even though you may be looking for an action from your readers, you’re doing it honestly, you’re sparking interest, and there is no snake oil to be seen. If your words wind up helping someone or something, you’ve done the job, and the human interest in your human interest story worked.
|