Last night I worked on a good portion of my feature story so I'm feeling good about things. I took my time to think about everything from my past that had to do with Bruce Springsteen. All the albums, all the concerts, and all the things I learned.
Writing leads in class the past few days has definitely helped me practice. I feel come up with a strong lead. I want to begin the feature describing how it feels to be at a Bruce concert-- what I see, what I hear, and what I feel.
Now I'm just trying to figure out how to organize the rest of the story. I have a lot to say but I want to be sure I don't jump around and confuse the reader. I'm leaning towards putting it in chronological order so the audience can experience it in the same way I did. So the body of the article will discuss a few things I recall from my childhood and transition to the present.
Obviously it is important that I talk with my dad and incorporate some of his quotes. Those quotes will be the last piece of the puzzle. We plan to chat about Bruce this evening (as if that's different from any other day).
I was wondering exactly how much detail I should include when explaining the band. I assume everyone has heard of Bruce but I think I should mention a little about their history... how/when they started and what they're up to these days. Since this is a feature story I think a brief description of each band member is also necessary.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Alternative Leads
1. It will no longer be necessary to travel to Africa to go on a safari. That is, if scientists get what they are asking for.
2. A man escaped with more than he bargained for when his get-away car had an unexpected visitor in the backseat—a 6-month-old baby girl.
3. Representative Constance Wei now has a better idea why her opponents are pushing for a ban on cell phone use while driving.
4. A four-day school week seems to be the only answer to cutting costs and students do not object.
5. Willie Hattaway treated the neighborhood children to more than just sweet candies; he left them a check for over $2 million.
6. Aren’t parents supposed to encourage their kids to go to school? That was not the case for Sarah Zerwinn, who was sentenced to sixty days in jail for failing to take her daughter to kindergarten.
2. A man escaped with more than he bargained for when his get-away car had an unexpected visitor in the backseat—a 6-month-old baby girl.
3. Representative Constance Wei now has a better idea why her opponents are pushing for a ban on cell phone use while driving.
4. A four-day school week seems to be the only answer to cutting costs and students do not object.
5. Willie Hattaway treated the neighborhood children to more than just sweet candies; he left them a check for over $2 million.
6. Aren’t parents supposed to encourage their kids to go to school? That was not the case for Sarah Zerwinn, who was sentenced to sixty days in jail for failing to take her daughter to kindergarten.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Leads
By Lyndsay Rowley
Story One -
A peaceful drive through the countryside interrupted by the sight of pack of lions attacking a herd of cattle.
This could be a reality for americans if some ecologists and biologists get their way in relocating African Wildlife to the Great Plains of North America.
Story Two –
Trembling with fear in her car seat, a baby girl stares at the unrecognizable man recklessly driving the car that her mother did just minutes ago.
“My baby’s in the baby’s in the back seat,” a mother’s voice screams out as she watches a criminal drive off with her child strapped down inside.
Story Three –
The screeching tires, the metal smashing, and the glass is shattering. Five hearts beat no more due to the impatience of a driver that simply had to make a call.
For years State Representative Wei has been fighting against the use of cell phones in cars, and now he finds himself with blood on his hands due to the fact that that he was breaking the law he hoped to pass.
Story Four –
Every child looks forward to the holiday three day weekends, but for one school district every weekend could be a holiday.
High Point’s school district is possibly changing to a four day school week due to problems with their budget.
Story Five –
An old man smiling and laughing as he gives the children of the neighborhood candy and fruit, while he sits on the porch of the house he has lived in for more than 60 years. Rust gathers on the garage that holds an ancient green impala. No one would have guessed that this man was sitting on a fortune.
“It just goes to show that you never really know your neighbors,” says a former neighor.
Story Six –
Most mothers drive their children to school to drop them off for a day of knowledge, however; for one mother she will be driving to school to gain that same knowledge as her daughter.
“Perhaps you will learn something about the importance of your daughters education,” the judge stated as he slammed the gavel to send the mother to her kindergarten doom.
Blog Post this week: Leads
1.) “How many steers or dairy cows can a pride of lions eat in a week?”
This is the evolution of Darwin’s Survival of the Fittest theory.
Many ecologists and biologists are suggesting ranchers find out, what would happen if different continental animals merged?
2.) Imagine: your six-month-old daughter lay innocently sleeping as you pulled up to get gas.
You left the keys in the ignition.
As you get out someone, strong, angry and in a hurry pushes you aside.
And gets into your car. Where your baby sleeps.
Living your worst nightmare you scream, “My baby’s in the back seat,” as your car screeches out of the gas station parking lot out of sight in ten seconds flat.
3.) What happens when the issue that you are fighting passionately against, comes back and hits you with $8,000 in damage?
After protesting the thought that talking on the cell phone while driving causes wrecks, Representative Wei was talking on her own cell phone when she did not see cars stopped at an intersection and rammed into the car in front of her.
4.) Cutting back on Student’s education and Teacher positions never saved so much money.
With the state announcing that it does not have enough of a budget to fund schools, school boards are hoping to preserve your child’s education by, cutting back on after-school programs, eliminating teacher aides’ positions, and cutting back to a four day school week. This will save the school board an average of $1 million dollars, but impact your kids’ lives forever.
5.) Willie Hattaway Carter was a millionaire in a poor man’s clothing.
For 60 years, Willie was just the friendly neighbor who lived in the modest two-story, white clapboard house. When he died he left his true self behind: a check for $2 million dollars to the city in order to build the long awaited community center.
6.) “Mommy! Mommy! I’m going to be late for school!”
The mom of the kindergartner keeps snoring, loud enough, to almost wake herself up. Almost.
The little girl just wants to go to school- to play on the monkey bars, to eat PB&J sandwiches, but mostly to learn. However, she finds herself watching her mommy and her learning sleep. The child’s sponge-like brain, that’s eager to learn, has missed 111 out of the 180 days of school. Watching Mommy sleep, counting her snores.
This is the evolution of Darwin’s Survival of the Fittest theory.
Many ecologists and biologists are suggesting ranchers find out, what would happen if different continental animals merged?
2.) Imagine: your six-month-old daughter lay innocently sleeping as you pulled up to get gas.
You left the keys in the ignition.
As you get out someone, strong, angry and in a hurry pushes you aside.
And gets into your car. Where your baby sleeps.
Living your worst nightmare you scream, “My baby’s in the back seat,” as your car screeches out of the gas station parking lot out of sight in ten seconds flat.
3.) What happens when the issue that you are fighting passionately against, comes back and hits you with $8,000 in damage?
After protesting the thought that talking on the cell phone while driving causes wrecks, Representative Wei was talking on her own cell phone when she did not see cars stopped at an intersection and rammed into the car in front of her.
4.) Cutting back on Student’s education and Teacher positions never saved so much money.
With the state announcing that it does not have enough of a budget to fund schools, school boards are hoping to preserve your child’s education by, cutting back on after-school programs, eliminating teacher aides’ positions, and cutting back to a four day school week. This will save the school board an average of $1 million dollars, but impact your kids’ lives forever.
5.) Willie Hattaway Carter was a millionaire in a poor man’s clothing.
For 60 years, Willie was just the friendly neighbor who lived in the modest two-story, white clapboard house. When he died he left his true self behind: a check for $2 million dollars to the city in order to build the long awaited community center.
6.) “Mommy! Mommy! I’m going to be late for school!”
The mom of the kindergartner keeps snoring, loud enough, to almost wake herself up. Almost.
The little girl just wants to go to school- to play on the monkey bars, to eat PB&J sandwiches, but mostly to learn. However, she finds herself watching her mommy and her learning sleep. The child’s sponge-like brain, that’s eager to learn, has missed 111 out of the 180 days of school. Watching Mommy sleep, counting her snores.
Leads :)
by: steph duhaime
1. Devastation to the cattle industry, the introduction of new diseases, and a move that could hurt tourist trade on an entire continent; you would think all these problems couldn’t be outweighed, but some ecologists and biologists have an idea they think is worth it.
2. A man got more than he intended to after robbing a gas station. Not only did he make out with an undetermined amount of money, he also found a six-month-old girl in the back seat.
Or
Screams could be heard for miles on Wednesday afternoon after a mother’s car was stolen at a gas station with her six-month-old daughter still in the back seat.
Or
Ethel Perakiss got out of her car like she always did.
Leaving the keys in the car, she started pumping the gas.
Just as she turned her back, a man in a white t-shirt ran out of the convenient store and jumped in her car.
“My baby’s in the back seat!” Perakiss shouted, but the car was already screeching away.
3. Constance Wei, a Representative for the 86th District, who is a strongly opposed to the banning of cell phones while driving, was on her way home on Wednesday night when she hit the car in front of her.
The cause?
She was on her cell phone.
Wei did not see the red light or the cars that were stopped.
4. Students’ dreams are finally coming true in one school district.
The high point school district just voted 7-0 to have a four day school week.
5. An empty building in the center of a town will finally be transformed due to the generosity of one neighbor.
Willie Hattaway, who died last year at age 98, left $2 million in his will to transform the empty building into a community center.
6. As the saying goes, everything you need to learn you learn in kindergarten. Courts proved this true after sentencing Sarah Zerwinn, who had failed to bring her daughter to kindergarten, to attend kindergarten with her daughter to make sure she attended and got there in time.
“Perhaps you will learn something about the importance of your daughter education”, said the judge.
1. Devastation to the cattle industry, the introduction of new diseases, and a move that could hurt tourist trade on an entire continent; you would think all these problems couldn’t be outweighed, but some ecologists and biologists have an idea they think is worth it.
2. A man got more than he intended to after robbing a gas station. Not only did he make out with an undetermined amount of money, he also found a six-month-old girl in the back seat.
Or
Screams could be heard for miles on Wednesday afternoon after a mother’s car was stolen at a gas station with her six-month-old daughter still in the back seat.
Or
Ethel Perakiss got out of her car like she always did.
Leaving the keys in the car, she started pumping the gas.
Just as she turned her back, a man in a white t-shirt ran out of the convenient store and jumped in her car.
“My baby’s in the back seat!” Perakiss shouted, but the car was already screeching away.
3. Constance Wei, a Representative for the 86th District, who is a strongly opposed to the banning of cell phones while driving, was on her way home on Wednesday night when she hit the car in front of her.
The cause?
She was on her cell phone.
Wei did not see the red light or the cars that were stopped.
4. Students’ dreams are finally coming true in one school district.
The high point school district just voted 7-0 to have a four day school week.
5. An empty building in the center of a town will finally be transformed due to the generosity of one neighbor.
Willie Hattaway, who died last year at age 98, left $2 million in his will to transform the empty building into a community center.
6. As the saying goes, everything you need to learn you learn in kindergarten. Courts proved this true after sentencing Sarah Zerwinn, who had failed to bring her daughter to kindergarten, to attend kindergarten with her daughter to make sure she attended and got there in time.
“Perhaps you will learn something about the importance of your daughter education”, said the judge.
leads!
1. Lions and tigers and bears, oh my! That would be the scene on the Great Plains of North America if scientists could successfully relocate African Wildlife to this continent
2. A man bolts from the Quik Shoppe convienence store and over to the nearest car.
He jumps into the front seat of Ethel Perkassis 2006 Ford Explorer and proceeds to drive away.
What he does not know however is Perkassis six-month-old daughter is sitting in the back seat.
3. BAM! The sound of crunching metal rings through the air as Representitve Constance P. Wei slams in to the car infront of her. Wei puts down the cell phone she was talking on to asses the damage. Wei was talking to fellow Representitve Peter Mackey about her opposition to a newly proposed ban of talking on a cell phone while driving.
4. If you want the fantasy of three days weekends all the time to become reality then Avon schools are the place for you.
5. Willie Hattaway enjoyed driving his 40 year old Chevy impala around town, sitting on his pourch and talking to the neighborhood kids and tending to his garden.
He seemed to live the simple life, but what people did not know was that he was a millionare.
6. Finger painting, nap time and recesss are now a prominent piece of Sarah Zerwin’s life.
She attends kindergarden five days a week.
There is something different however about Sarah, she is 27 years old.
2. A man bolts from the Quik Shoppe convienence store and over to the nearest car.
He jumps into the front seat of Ethel Perkassis 2006 Ford Explorer and proceeds to drive away.
What he does not know however is Perkassis six-month-old daughter is sitting in the back seat.
3. BAM! The sound of crunching metal rings through the air as Representitve Constance P. Wei slams in to the car infront of her. Wei puts down the cell phone she was talking on to asses the damage. Wei was talking to fellow Representitve Peter Mackey about her opposition to a newly proposed ban of talking on a cell phone while driving.
4. If you want the fantasy of three days weekends all the time to become reality then Avon schools are the place for you.
5. Willie Hattaway enjoyed driving his 40 year old Chevy impala around town, sitting on his pourch and talking to the neighborhood kids and tending to his garden.
He seemed to live the simple life, but what people did not know was that he was a millionare.
6. Finger painting, nap time and recesss are now a prominent piece of Sarah Zerwin’s life.
She attends kindergarden five days a week.
There is something different however about Sarah, she is 27 years old.
leads!
1. You no longer have to go to Africa to go on safari.
2.When Ethel Perakiss needs to get gas she has a routine. She leaves her car unlocked, with the keys in ignition. As she pumps gas she watches her 6-month old daughter sitting in the back seat.
Yesterday, she filled up her gas tank and did her normal routine. She did not know that the gas station was being robbed until the armed robber carjacked her car with her daughter inside.
3. Representative Constance P. Wei was running late. She got into her Cadillac Sedan de Ville and called State representative Peter Mackey. As they were discussing her opposition of ban on using a cell phone while driving, Wei failed to stop and rearended another car.
4. Do you want after-school programs and extra help for your children? Then you better move out of Mt. Lebanon.
5. Willie Hattaway lived a simple life.
He was a retired construction worker living in a modest two-story house. Neighbors would often stop by and he would tell stories. He always had treats for children.
No one knew that he left a 2-million dollar check to the senior citizen center.
“It just goes to show that you neverreally know your neighbors,” said former neighbor Marilyn Boudinot.
6. Sarah Zerwinn is going back to kindergarten. She is 27.
2.When Ethel Perakiss needs to get gas she has a routine. She leaves her car unlocked, with the keys in ignition. As she pumps gas she watches her 6-month old daughter sitting in the back seat.
Yesterday, she filled up her gas tank and did her normal routine. She did not know that the gas station was being robbed until the armed robber carjacked her car with her daughter inside.
3. Representative Constance P. Wei was running late. She got into her Cadillac Sedan de Ville and called State representative Peter Mackey. As they were discussing her opposition of ban on using a cell phone while driving, Wei failed to stop and rearended another car.
4. Do you want after-school programs and extra help for your children? Then you better move out of Mt. Lebanon.
5. Willie Hattaway lived a simple life.
He was a retired construction worker living in a modest two-story house. Neighbors would often stop by and he would tell stories. He always had treats for children.
No one knew that he left a 2-million dollar check to the senior citizen center.
“It just goes to show that you neverreally know your neighbors,” said former neighbor Marilyn Boudinot.
6. Sarah Zerwinn is going back to kindergarten. She is 27.
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