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Word limits

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by B.P. Bonpensiero, Jan 9, 2007.

  1. Cosmo

    Cosmo Well-Known Member

    It depends on what you want from the gamer. Do you want bare bones with just stats and a couple of filler quotes? Sure, 14 inches is plenty. And honestly, that's what most regular-season prep gamers are and should be.

    But if the old-style, boring gamer is dead, you need more than 14 inches to develop a story that is a story, not just a rehashing of events with a cliched quote. I'm not talking 25 inches, but 16-20 inches is not unreasonable for a well done gamer with some meat and all the pertinent information.
     
  2. B.P. Bonpensiero

    B.P. Bonpensiero New Member

    We've gone to the smaller broadsheet page size, so it's slightly under 30 words per inch.
     
  3. Freelance Hack

    Freelance Hack Active Member

    Hard caps for stories are like hard caps for NFL teams. You can abide by the cap, but in all likelihood the average story will have as many holes as the average NFL team.
     
  4. micropolitan guy

    micropolitan guy Well-Known Member

    The Gettysburg Address was only 272 words and it's one of the greatest examples of precise writing in American literature. By that standard, 425 words should wsork for a prep gamer.

    But for a decent feature or column, maybe not.
     
  5. WSKY

    WSKY Member

    I like short, to the point — so do readers. But if you're covering a event that needs more, it should be OK to do so. Hard limit is cool, but like stated above, should be something that can be changed if needed. Sounds like the SE just wants to be in control, or he's a lazy bastard.
     
  6. B.P. Bonpensiero

    B.P. Bonpensiero New Member

    Yeah, but did Lincoln write that thing in 35 minutes after a Sunday night NFL game?
     
  7. SoSueMe

    SoSueMe Active Member

    According to the Canadian Press style guide, games are to be no longer than 400 words, before quotes.

    That's in my guide that is about five years old.
     
  8. STLIrish

    STLIrish Active Member

    Wow.
    I think many stories are too long. But 425 is too long for some. And an hard cap like that just seems like a rule made to be broken.
     
  9. micropolitan guy

    micropolitan guy Well-Known Member

    Lincoln wasn't on deadline, per se. But neither did he dink around, according to the BBC's information website:

    "While the old tale of Lincoln writing up his famous speech, the Gettysburg Address, on a back of an envelope during the train ride to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania is probably false, it is endearing and captures the rush Lincoln felt in writing it. He did not have much time to write the address, as he after all was busy running a nation and winning the American Civil War.

    "At a Tuesday cabinet meeting, Lincoln announced his intention to travel to Gettysburg, the site of the greatest battle ever on American soil. He left for the event on Wednesday. On The following day, Thursday, 19 November, 1863 was the consecration ceremony for some new cemetery grounds near the great battlefield.

    As he told the cabinet assembly of his plans, he asked those present to join him, but it was a busy time of the year. All the Federal departments had to submit reports to Congress near the end of the year, and so the cabinet was rushing to make sure the reports were on time. Lincoln was also busy, but respect for and visiting with the Union Army was always high on his list of priorities, so he made time for the visit. So did his Secretary of State, Postmaster-General and Secretary of the Interior.

    The trip was about four hours long. It's not clear if the President worked on the speech he was to give during that period. One of his personal aides, who could probably be trusted, claimed that he shared humorous anecdotes (his favorite pastime) and simply relaxed. One person remembered him laboring over a document, and using the top of his famous stovepipe hat as a desk. There are some sources to corroborate the claim that he drafted the speech on an envelope.

    He worked on the speech that night, and as the small town of Gettysburg swelled to several times its normal size with pilgrims who wished to pay respect to the dead, he was interrupted a couple of times by a crowd that gathered outside his room. Knowing that the crowd wanted to hear a speech, he told them, 'I have no speech to make. In my position it is somewhat important that I should not say any foolish things.'

    He finished the speech at around 11:00 PM and sought out his friend, Secretary of State Seward, before going to sleep."
     
  10. shotglass

    shotglass Guest

    I was talking to some pilgrims from Gettysburg earlier tonight.
     
  11. henryhenry

    henryhenry Member

    my SE insists you can tell the history of the world in 425 words
     
  12. DyePack

    DyePack New Member

    Yes, another push to break a rule. Those rules are so pesky.

    Fourteen inches is enough space. If you can't handle it, it's time to look in the mirror.
     
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