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Feature Stories With Heart
Feature stories have heart. Feature stories have warmth. Most of all, feature stories force a writer/reporter to judge the human side of a community - beyond the reality, beyond the opinions - to find the spirit of the story.

I've always favored feature stories (or soft news) as a writer because it gives me the chance to become familiar with people on an increased level than straight news reporting (hard news) does. Beyond that, it also forces me to work as a reporter with feelings - yes, some reporters have actual feelings.

For recent weeks, I've evaluated a number of types of college feature stories in preparation for a workshop I'm presenting at the Associated Collegiate Press and College Media Advisers National College Media Convention. After get more info through stacks and stacks of archives of papers, I've arrived at the final outcome that college newspapers are a lot more active to search out the feature elements than mainstream, professional newspapers.

My students (and former students) from The Montage, have compiled heartwarming stories of life and death, fun and frolics, and service and sacrifice. Below are Additional info :

"A Day in the Life of Mary Davis:" As a normal series, my students write personality profiles, covering students, faculty, staff, locals, etc. This particular story highlights an 86-year old student still wanting to learn.

"Turning Lead into Gold:" This profile has an in-depth look at a faculty member's passions.

"Inauguration Road:" Carrying out a road trip to the White House for Barack Obama's inauguration, two of my students compiled a piece in regards to a 1st person account of the journey itself.

"What's Brewing in St. Louis:" Beer is a priority for many college students. Recognizing this, my students compiled an in-depth centerspread on St. Louis' beer culture, including a summary of "things" to do with beer.

"The Vertical Expression of a Horizontal Desire:" Fun and frolics can be found in all shapes and sizes as detailed in this feature about the art of tango music.

This set of stories (found at http://www.meramecmontage.com) carries a selection of subjects, topics, and angles. Primarily, though, these stories offer readers something "different," something soft - a much-needed break from the heart-wrenching news of abductions, murders, and swine flu statistics. Even Additional info , they offer writers (whether student or professional) a chance to explore a lot more than just the facts but rather the fun-loving spirit of life.

I could spend all day long listing compelling, heart-warming and entertaining features which have been compiled by both students and professionals, but I'd rather open my eyes and seek another big story that could possibly touch somebody else's life and in return, touch mine.

Shannon Philpott is a professional newspaper reporter, published freelance magazine writer, and experienced SEO copywriter for 10+ years. She also teaches both college journalism and English in St. Louis, MO, and maintains a blog about writing, reflecting, and teaching at
Here's my website: https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/u/prattmohammad62