ABM “Year of the Editor” Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism Sept. 17, 2003

1. ABM“Year of the Editor”Northwestern UniversityMedill School of JournalismSept. 17, 2003 Panel Session: How To Win An Editorial Award --panelist Brian Ward

2. Jesse H. NealNational Business Journalism Awards(FER results 1997-2003) • 2002 Finalist—Suiting Up For The Energy Battle (best subject-related series) • 2000 Finalist—1999 Chain Construction Forecast (best single article) • 1999 Finalist—Tech Reports (best subject-related series) • 1998 Semi-Finalist—September 1997 issue (best issue) • 1998 Certificate—Kitchen/Unit Design (best department)

3. Who Are You Writing For, Anyway? • Readers or Judges? • Different editors will give different answers to this one. You can produce good stories for readers that judges won’t score highly. You can write award-winning stories that forsake the reader. But why would you? • In our case, we believe that if we build it for the reader, the judges will come, too (at least part of the time).

4. Why This Topic, This Way? “Actionable” vs. General Information

5. Get Attention! • Lively Language, Lively Visuals • You’re competing with other trade magazines, your reader’s favorite newsstand items, other media and all kinds of other distractions. You’re fighting for attention.So fight. • Move Quickly To Specifics • Readers are busy; so are judges.

6. Service To The Reader • Facts & Analysis • Don’t just deliver facts; do some analysis. Deliver a context; show relationships between facts. • Info The Reader Can Apply To His Job • Is this info that can change how the reader does his job? Or is it just interesting background? • Tell The Reader How To Use It • Come right out and tell the reader—early on--why he should care about what you’re about to teach him. (This works for judges, too.)

7. Journalistic Enterprise • Knowing Where To Dig • Are you delivering a specialized package of info that cannot be found elsewhere? • Digging Deeply • Did you really get at the core, and did you analyze it? • Original Research • Always good

8. Editorial Craft • Story Structure • The Importance Of Thesis • Whatever your point is, say it directly—ideally in one sentence, high up in the story. The reader’s time-pressed. • Logical Flow: Macro To Micro, Chronological Or… • Don’t jump around. Your reader’s too busy to sniff out the trail. So are the judges.

9. Editorial Craft • Writing Style • Short Sentences, Long Sentences • An unbroken rhythm puts people to sleep. Keep ‘em awake. • Verbs That DO Something • If you’re using a state-of-being verb, you’re likely wasting a whole sentence. Don’t do that. • A Tone Of Familiarity • Outside of lawyers and doctors, who actually prefers stuffiness? Your readers like their jobs well enough to do them for a living. Have fun with the subject material.

10. A Closing Note On The Entry Form • Rule One—Think like a judge when writing your entry description blurb.You don’t get points for all-around wonderfulness. You get points for the stated judging criteria.So keep those criteria in mind while fashioning your explanation of significance-to-reader. • Rule Two—Sell—but don’t oversell—the story in your entry description. If your story fails to deliver on any part of your promise, the judges will catch it.

11. As Forrest Gump might say, “Ay-und thay-ut’s awl Ah have tuh say uh-bout thay-ut.” • Thank You.