Different kinds of stories
come with different kinds of challenges that must be met and conquered by a
writer. In addition to these
challenge, however, is the opportunity to create a really good piece. Bullying is a good topic because it is
something that is relatable to a lot of people. Maybe you were bullied as a child. Maybe you have children that have dealt
with bullying. Some people may
have even been a bully at one point in their lives.
Let’s start from there and look at different ways to write a piece on
bullying.
One of the first kinds of
papers I had to write in college was a classic opinion piece.
Sounds simple enough right?
The first thing I would do is look at opposing sides of an argument that
deal with bullying. “Bullying in
schools should carry harsher mandatory punishment” might be one opinion, but
another might say “repeat bullying offenders should be subject to psychological
evaluation to discover the root of the
aggression.”
This would make a good
opinion piece because a lot of people have kids in school and as tax-payers are
also interested in school policies.
You may see and article about why funding is better spent on new
technology instead of security in urban high schools.
You would proceed by identifying which side you want to be on and coming
up with convincing arguments to change the minds of people who may think
differently than you. You can not
only change minds of the opposition, but also win over those who may be on the
fence about a particular issue. I
would gather expert opinion from people who study bullying.
A child psychologist, a superintendent of a school district, or parents
could all be good sources for this kind of piece.
Some
of the challenges may be getting good quotes because some people may not want to
take a hard stand on the topic.
People are also busy and need to be given enough time to meet with
you. In an opinion piece it is a
good idea to concede a point if it is applicable and be sure to not attack
people who are on the other side of the argument.
You may say something like, “It is a good idea for bullies to receive
counselling, however, this does not decrease the need for them to be
reprimanded.”
Another way to write a story
on bullying would be a first-person narrative. I personally have had experiences on
both ends of the bullying spectrum.
I would recount specific instances when I bullied others or was a
bullying victim. I would not only
tell about what happened, which is important, but also about how I felt. It is important in this type of story to
make sure that you are creating a connection with the reader.
Anecdotes would really add to this first-person narrative and make it a
stronger submission.
One of the difficulties of writing a first-person
piece is that they are often written from memory.
Unless you have photographic memory some of the details of events that
happened to you as a child may be lost to time. You may remember what a bully said to
you, but not what he threw at you.
You might remember the name of a kid you bullied in school, but not where
you first met him. Attention to
detail is important tin all forms of writing, but it’s my opinion that conveying
the underlining message to the reader comes first in this story.
You could also write a
magazine article on bullying, and that would mean you have a lot of different
angles you could use. Research is
key when you are writing for a magazine.
There are lots of resources online, and that is probably a good place to
start. What do you look for? There are dozens of anti-bullying
websites and groups to talk to.
You could interview adults who were involved in bullying as kids, or even
interview kids who are still in school and see bullying every day.
Like in the opinion piece, someone who works for a school or a child
psychologist would also be a good source. If you were going to write a magazine
article on bullying you would ideally spend most of you effort and time
gathering information, researching, interviewing, and organizing.
Even if you started with a local person who gave you some really good
stuff to work with you can nationalize a story by finding other people with
similar anecdotes or situations.
It can sometimes be a
struggle to narrow your thoughts into a concise idea.
You may have a stack of great material, but it is not worth much unless
organized in a fashion that it is easy for the reader to consume.
You do not want to just be listing statistics which can bore people, and
you also don’t want to have nothing, but quotes in your piece.
It’s a good idea to ask yourself if anything is missing in your
piece. I like to think that I am
becoming a better writer (I hope this is true!) with every piece I write. Taking
advantage of the opportunities that a piece presents, as well as avoiding some
of the common pitfalls will go a long way towards making your article
better. This is true no matter what
kind of piece you are writing.
come with different kinds of challenges that must be met and conquered by a
writer. In addition to these
challenge, however, is the opportunity to create a really good piece. Bullying is a good topic because it is
something that is relatable to a lot of people. Maybe you were bullied as a child. Maybe you have children that have dealt
with bullying. Some people may
have even been a bully at one point in their lives.
Let’s start from there and look at different ways to write a piece on
bullying.
One of the first kinds of
papers I had to write in college was a classic opinion piece.
Sounds simple enough right?
The first thing I would do is look at opposing sides of an argument that
deal with bullying. “Bullying in
schools should carry harsher mandatory punishment” might be one opinion, but
another might say “repeat bullying offenders should be subject to psychological
evaluation to discover the root of the
aggression.”
This would make a good
opinion piece because a lot of people have kids in school and as tax-payers are
also interested in school policies.
You may see and article about why funding is better spent on new
technology instead of security in urban high schools.
You would proceed by identifying which side you want to be on and coming
up with convincing arguments to change the minds of people who may think
differently than you. You can not
only change minds of the opposition, but also win over those who may be on the
fence about a particular issue. I
would gather expert opinion from people who study bullying.
A child psychologist, a superintendent of a school district, or parents
could all be good sources for this kind of piece.
Some
of the challenges may be getting good quotes because some people may not want to
take a hard stand on the topic.
People are also busy and need to be given enough time to meet with
you. In an opinion piece it is a
good idea to concede a point if it is applicable and be sure to not attack
people who are on the other side of the argument.
You may say something like, “It is a good idea for bullies to receive
counselling, however, this does not decrease the need for them to be
reprimanded.”
Another way to write a story
on bullying would be a first-person narrative. I personally have had experiences on
both ends of the bullying spectrum.
I would recount specific instances when I bullied others or was a
bullying victim. I would not only
tell about what happened, which is important, but also about how I felt. It is important in this type of story to
make sure that you are creating a connection with the reader.
Anecdotes would really add to this first-person narrative and make it a
stronger submission.
One of the difficulties of writing a first-person
piece is that they are often written from memory.
Unless you have photographic memory some of the details of events that
happened to you as a child may be lost to time. You may remember what a bully said to
you, but not what he threw at you.
You might remember the name of a kid you bullied in school, but not where
you first met him. Attention to
detail is important tin all forms of writing, but it’s my opinion that conveying
the underlining message to the reader comes first in this story.
You could also write a
magazine article on bullying, and that would mean you have a lot of different
angles you could use. Research is
key when you are writing for a magazine.
There are lots of resources online, and that is probably a good place to
start. What do you look for? There are dozens of anti-bullying
websites and groups to talk to.
You could interview adults who were involved in bullying as kids, or even
interview kids who are still in school and see bullying every day.
Like in the opinion piece, someone who works for a school or a child
psychologist would also be a good source. If you were going to write a magazine
article on bullying you would ideally spend most of you effort and time
gathering information, researching, interviewing, and organizing.
Even if you started with a local person who gave you some really good
stuff to work with you can nationalize a story by finding other people with
similar anecdotes or situations.
It can sometimes be a
struggle to narrow your thoughts into a concise idea.
You may have a stack of great material, but it is not worth much unless
organized in a fashion that it is easy for the reader to consume.
You do not want to just be listing statistics which can bore people, and
you also don’t want to have nothing, but quotes in your piece.
It’s a good idea to ask yourself if anything is missing in your
piece. I like to think that I am
becoming a better writer (I hope this is true!) with every piece I write. Taking
advantage of the opportunities that a piece presents, as well as avoiding some
of the common pitfalls will go a long way towards making your article
better. This is true no matter what
kind of piece you are writing.