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Sample SyllabiMedia Writing Links
Discussion QuestionsExercises and AssignmentsOnline Media Writing ExamplesInstructor ResourcesWriting With Clarity and Coherence
 Writing Across the MediaCh1. Writing with Clarity and CoherenceCh2. Writing with ResponsibilityCh3. Writing for AudiencesCh4. Writing and Gathering InformationCh5. Writing the OpeningCh6. Writing Basic StoriesCh7. Writing with Visual and Audio ImagesCh8. Writing Complex Stories

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Discussion Questions

1. Chapter 1 declares (pages 3-4) that clarity is the primary goal of the media writer and gives three characteristics of strong, clear writing: choosing right words, making writing flow smoothly, selecting appropriate details. Find an example of media writing that contains all three of these elements. Where and how are these characteristics evident? How does the writing use right words? What makes it flow? What do the details accomplish?

2. Choosing right words means using words that are precise in meaning. In the example on page 5, for instance, Annie Dillard uses the active verbs "crumpled," "sag" and "drooped." Define those three words. Why does each have its own, specific weight or meaning? How do these three words work together to create a moment of motion?

3. Strong, active verbs and specific, concrete nouns lead to clarity. Take any issue of The New Yorker magazine and go to the publication's "Goings On About Town" section. That's where the example on page 7 about the play "Burn This" came from. Carefully read through a couple different listings in the section - say, "The Theater" or "The Movies" - and find three examples of writers using concrete nouns and strong verbs. Be sure that you can explain why your selections are concrete and strong. How do they help the reader see and understand? Then compare your choices to writing on the same listing in New York magazine. How do they compare? Is one stronger than the other? Why?

4. Carefully read a cover story in Time or Newsweek. What makes the article flow? Try to identify the elements discussed on pages 13-19, which include verbs in the active voice, varying the pace or rhythm of sentences, use of the present tense, repetition of words, images or sounds.

5. On page 19, the authors present an example that illustrates what's involved in collecting "telling details." What are "telling details?" Read a newspaper article and watch a television news or feature report and carefully note the details that flesh out the article or report. Are these "telling?" Why or why not? Where does the detail seem to come from? The writer/reporter's observation? An interview? Documents? Studies or surveys?

 
Sample SyllabiMedia Writing Links