Steve Buttry developed this handout for a workshop for the South Asian Journalists Association, New York, July 13, 2006. Buttry is API's Director of Tailored Programs, and can be contacted at: sbuttry@americanpressinstitute.org.

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Writing as You Report

The storytelling process

Thorough reporting and accurate writing are essential parts of narrative journalism. Each skill works better when you treat them not as separate processes, but as one integrated storytelling process. Traditionally journalists operate in a linear fashion, involving distinct processes and skills: You come up with a story idea, you gather the information, you organize and focus the information, you write the story, then (maybe) you rewrite. Try to view storytelling as a single process, in which you reshape the story idea, writing and rewriting as you gather information.

Write from the first. Begin writing as soon as you have your idea for the story. You may start with just a paragraph to yourself or your editor. You may start with a few paragraphs, already starting to resemble a story. You may start with a plan for pursuing the story. Writing at the idea phase helps focus you from the outset on the eventual goal of a story.

Write after each reporting step. If you are observing events over several days or even weeks or months for your narrative story, write as often as you can, preferably after each day’s events. If you are reconstructing events, write after each interview or each step in your research. Don’t simply transcribe your notes, though that would be better than not writing at all. Start writing the story. Work on a lead if you can. If you think the interview or the day’s events might produce just a couple paragraphs for the story, write them. Writing while the interview or event is still fresh ensures accuracy (especially if your handwriting is bad or if you have trouble reading old notes). You will be more likely to remember important details about the setting and the character’s mood and mannerisms.

Pretend you’re on deadline. As early as possible, start writing the actual story, as though you might have to turn it in right away. Work on a lead, on organization, on transitions and flow. Maybe this won’t end up being your lead, but your story will read better if several paragraphs reflect as much effort and polish as your lead.

Writing helps reporting. Writing as you report helps you identify holes in your reporting. It helps focus the reporting that remains. It helps identify what bases you’ve covered thoroughly and which need more information. Roy Peter Clark of the Poynter Institute notes: “Many journalists use reporting and research to fill up the available time. Thorough investigation is key to a journalist’s success, but over-reporting makes writing seem tougher. Write earlier in the process so you discover what information you need.”

Rewrite each time. Each time you return to the story, read through what you’ve already written, and rewrite as needed. This will put more polish on your story. It will help launch you each time, cutting down those long blocks of time staring at the screen waiting for momentum.

Save time on deadline. If you’re working a deadline story by phone, you’re going to have some dead time, maybe a few seconds at a time when you’re on hold or waiting for someone to answer, maybe a few minutes while you’re waiting for people to return calls. Start putting the information from your last interview into story form. Even if you don’t know yet where it will go in the story, start writing paragraphs that will fit somewhere. Write a lead based on what you know so far. In addition to starting your writing, this helps sharpen the focus of the reporting that remains. Writing as you report allows you to continue reporting closer to deadline. Writing in chunks, with frequent interruptions as you return to reporting, can lead to choppy writing. You need to fix this by using some of the time you save to read back through the story to polish and make it flow smoothly.

Write in your notebook. If you are at the scene of a crime or disaster and need to run back to the newsroom to write, you can’t physically write as you report. But start writing or outlining the story in your head or in your notebook during moments when you find yourself waiting. The story will come faster when you sit down to a keyboard. Write actual paragraphs describing the setting while you are on the scene.

Think of the story. As you gather information, keep your unfolding story at the front of your mind. Identify pieces that will bolster your lead, illustrate your main points, etc. Start writing the story in your head or aloud as you drive back from an interview. Write down important passages or phrases in your notebook as they occur to you.

Watch for the surprise. Your story idea may change a time or two as you gather information and discover the true story.

Consider your experience. You may be skeptical that this will work for you. Reporting and writing in the linear fashion is a powerful habit that feels comfortable. Some reporters flatly say they can’t break from that pattern; they need all the information before they can start writing and they have to write the lead first. Consider these three questions before you reject this technique:

  • Have you ever been writing a story on deadline and thought of a question you wished you had asked? If you can connect by phone, you can answer the question but if you get voice mail, you have to write around it. If you write as you report, you have more time to answer the questions your writing provokes and your later interviews and observational reporting are always better focused because the writing has shaped your questions and helped you know what to watch for.
  • Have you ever come out of an interview or an event really pumped up because it went so well? But then you have more reporting to do on that story, or a daily story diverts you from that enterprise piece. By the time you start writing the story a couple weeks later or even a few days later, have you had trouble capturing the excitement of the moment and remembering the details? You look at scribbled passages in the notebook and wonder what those words are and why they were important. If you write while the interview or event is fresh in your memory, you will do a better job of capturing the mood and the actual words, even if you don’t know yet where this piece will fit in the final story.
  • This third question may not resonate unless you have tackled a long-term project. Have you reached that point in a big project where you know enough to know that you could keep on reporting almost forever and never learn all there is to know on this subject? Writing as you report helps you understand what points you have covered well enough for that story and helps identify holes you still need to fill. For long narrative projects such as serials, this aspect is particularly helpful.

Other resources about the storytelling process

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