As with most things, writing improves through practice, critique and analyzing others. This exercise incorporates all three. Rewrite the ledes you come across throughout the day. Newspaper or magazine articles, blog posts – it doesn’t matter, simply read the piece and create your own lede for it. There are a few rules:

1. The lede must be in your own typical style or niche. It’s not helpful if you suddenly become Tom Brokaw for a newspaper lede when you usually write a funny automotive repair blog. This is about taking what you do to the next level, not mimicking someone else.
2. You must use the facts given in the article.
3. Don’t agonize over it. The exercise is designed to improve your writing. It won’t work if you only do one rewrite in three hours. Keep it down to 10 minutes max, then move on to the next one.
4. Complete five pieces then rest. Take a walk, check email, whatever you need to distract from the work.
5. Look at both ledes – the original and your re-write – and critique. Be sure to recognize what is good about each piece as well as what needs work.

There are some ledes so brilliant, they either inspire you to pick up the keyboard or make you want to throw your laptop out the window. Those ledes are a product of hard work and practice. Fun, no pressure exercises are a great way to hone your craft – here’s to magnificent ledes!

Share your favorite writing exercise.

Some ledes are the same way. They are good enough to hook the reader, but take so long to get to the point readers lose interest and turn the page or hit the back button. Here are a few rules of the road:

Red Light – Tickets and Fines

• Five to six paragraphs in and the writer is still introducing the subject. Be advised, more than two introductory paragraphs in a typical magazine article prompts “Are we there yet?” Keep it to one paragraph for most web articles.
• Anecdotes that need explanation. Just like having to explain a joke makes it less funny, having to explain an anecdote kills the momentum of the article.
• Over-hyped statistics. “Ninety-nine percent of women hate men.” That’s a banger of an opening, but after the writer explains 99 percent of women said they hated men who kicked puppies and not all men in general, there’s going to be a large segment of readers ticked off.

Yellow Light – Speed bumps ahead

• Ledes that introduce a difficult concept. If a publication’s readership doesn’t have a firm grasp on the concept go easy on the jargon and take care not to hit the gas on information – slow down.
• Cutesy or goofy puns. When Katie Couric first began hosting the evening news I spent a month cringing at the plentiful puns peppered throughout the newscast. Oh sure my local news hams it up, but I expected more out the national news. Leave the puns for broadcasters unless the audience expects kitschy humor.

Green light – Open road

• A web article with a quick hook and quick delivery. The web isn’t for novelists or Sunday drivers, it’s the Super Highway designed for people who have a fixed destination and need to get there quick.
• A magazine article with an engaging, teasing lede. Magazine readers are invested in the article. They like to sit back and let the scenery unfold before them. Think of Christmas light tours with cars full people who have a lot of time if not the best attention span. Make it interesting so they’ll linger in front of the display.

Ledes are often the most difficult part of writing and article. Its success depends on those first few paragraphs. Get to the point in the lede and keep the reader for the long haul.

Got a suggestion or topic idea for Article Writing? Email me (Terreece@TerreeceClarke.com) and put “Article Writing” in the subject line.

Remember a good Lede (Lead) is what captures your audience’s attention and gets them to read the article. Brush up on your skills and get featured here at FWJ – the number one site for freelance writers!

The Rules:

I post a picture, you write your lede in the comment section below, give the type of publication you wrote it for and the subject of the article. No need to write a full article, actually, please don’t write an actual article I don’t want to read it all :0) On Sunday I’ll pick the best one, contact the poster & your lede and website will be featured on Monday. Sounds good? Okay go!

The Photo:

So here’s how it’s going to work: I post a picture, you write your lede in the comment section below, give the type of publication you wrote it for and the subject of the article. No need to write a full article, actually, please don’t write an actual article I don’t want to read it all :0) On Sunday I’ll pick the best one, contact the poster & your lede and website will be featured on Monday. Sounds good? Okay go!