A lot of Whyvillians want to write articles for the Whyville Times. But the problem is, they don't know how. This article is a guide that teaches you how to write an article, and make sure it'll be accepted for the Whyville Times!
Your article should be emailed to times@whyville.net
Subject Line
The subject line be written like this:
type of submission: author, title
For example:
Help: holiday50, Writing for the Whyville Times
Help: holiday50, The Problem with Petitions
Type of Submission
The Editor accepts all kinds of submissions. Here's some ideas:
Fashion - report on the lastest trends
Advice - give advice to troubled Whyvillians
Media - report on a real life event or issue
Format
Your article should be written in the proper format.
Introduction - Starting the article, that introduces the point of the article. The intro also talks about the ideas in the 'body'.
Body - The main article. Use paragraphs to separate ideas. Sentences that talk about the same ideas should be in one paragraph.
Conclusion - a nice ending to the article that can summarize key points, or have a question that makes the reader think about the article
What do I write about?
If you don't know what to write about, try exploring Whyville. You're bound to come up with an idea. Whyville's full of stories just waiting to be written about! Here's some ideas to help you get started:
An issue
You can write about an issue that affects Whyvillians.
An Event
Did something big happen on Whyville? Was something new added? Well, come on and write about it!
Real Life
You don't have to write about Whyville! You can write about real life, where you have a lot more inspirations.
Remember to research your topic to write a good, informative article.
Interviews
Articles are great for getting your (the author's) opinion out there. However, sometimes you may need a few more opinions. When you interview someone, here's the format you have to use:
holiday50: What's your favourite chatroom on Whyville?
City Hall: Well... City Hall of course!
holiday50: Why is that your favourite chatroom?
City Hall: It's named after me, lol!
Read the article "Cobd's Times Reforms" by cobd. This is an excellent article that teaches you how to write a good interview.
Adding A Picture (Screenshot)
Sometimes adding a picture to your article gives the reader a visual. When you add a picture, make sure the reader knows how it's related to the article. So you might want to add a caption, or introduce your picture.
Don't know how to add a picture? Read the article How to Take Pictures of Whyville for the Times by ps2man1
Editing
This is extremely important! Always edit your article while you're writing it. Use a spellcheck to catch spelling errors. Your article should be written professionally with one or none grammar errors. However, spellchecks don't catch every mistake, such as homophones. For example:
Grammar: Don't use the same words over and over again. It gets very tiring and boring to read, and your article should keep the reader HOOKED! Use a thesaurus or dictionary to find synonyms/antonyms of a word, and to identify words you don't know.
Punctuation is extremely important. You don't want to have a run-on sentence, or short sentences. Use words like 'and' and 'because', and commas and periods to write good sentences. For example:
She had a dog. The dog was red. It was cute.
She had a red dog that was very cute and she played with him everyday and she played games like tag which was fun for her and her dog who she named Fluffy.
Critcism
Be ready for criticism. Some criticism is given in a friendly, helpful way. But, other Whyvillians choose to give their advice straight forward. Don't worry, most of the criticism is good criticism. You should listen to these helpful Whyvillians, because you'll improve as a writer! Don't escalate into a fight. Just say thank you and take their advice.
I better see YOUR article in the Times next week!
holiday50
