The good writers are the ones who see five or six of them. Most people don’t se
The good writers are the ones who see five or six of them. Most people don’t see any.
Orson Scott
How do you know if a story is worth pursuing? How do you find out if sources are qualified? How do you know what angle is the best to pursue among the various options that might be available?
Research.
“You are trying to get people to relate to the subject — to make an impact on others with their story,” Lucas Sullivan said. “Before you write a word, it’s important that you researched your subject to death and you have spent a considerable amount of time talking with the people or person you are writing about.”
What research looks like will vary depending on the subject of your story. There are the obvious sources, such as newspaper and magazine clippings, but consider also court files, government data sets, trending Twitter topics. At the minimum, research provides names, family members and other starting points for interviews. At best, it provides authoritative detail that can set a story apart.
For a profile article, research will involve finding out as much background information on your subject as you can — from websites, previous articles, LinkedIn, a curriculum vitae, even interviewing other people on your subject. On a complex issue related story, there may be public record requests.
The amount of research depends on who you are writing for, Michael Farber of Sports Illustrated, said.
“Extra reporting is not a luxury we had in newspapers,” he said. “You use most of what you reported. You hone in on the stuff you needed. You use 50 percent or more. But the rule of thumb at magazines is if you use more than 10 percent of your reporting, you haven’t reported enough. You throw out 90 percent and choose the best 10 percent. It took me a while to get used to that.”
Zack Meisel of The Athletic said research is critical for two main reasons:
- The more writers know going in, the less time is wasted. “I don’t need to ask all these simple background questions because I’ve read about it and I know it. You want to double-check things, but you don’t have to waste all that time.”
- Good research lets the writer know enough to encourage sources to open up. “They can tell you’ve done your homework and they appreciate that. They don’t feel like they’re talking to a stranger, they feel like they’re talking to someone who at least knows a little bit about their story.”
“I think [research] is the most important thing that I think a lot of writers don’t consider,” Meisel said. “It is maybe the most underrated aspect of feature writing.”
Mitch Hooper of (614) Columbus said his research often involves searching social media like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, along with LinkedIn and Wikipedia. He also will look to see if a subject has been interviewed before for another story.
“If I’m going to sit down and talk to someone I don’t want to ask them questions, I can Google on my own,” he said. “There’s never too much you can do. You want them to feel comfortable t