Do you need a little inspiration for your next feature story? Check out our list of ten persuasive story ideas that will hook your readers! From powerful personal narratives to stories about overcoming adversity, these ideas will help you produce engaging content that engages your audience and drives conversions.
10 Feature Story Ideas
- The triumph of the underdog: Whether you’re covering an inspiring athlete or a small business that has beat the odds, this is a classic story idea that never gets old.
- Overcoming adversity: Everyone has experienced hardship at some point in life and detailing how someone overcame major obstacles makes for a compelling read.
- Saved by the community: Sometimes it takes a village to save someone from disaster, and sharing these stories of courage and resilience will inspire your readers to look out for one another.
- Making a difference: If there’s one thing we can all learn from great feature stories, it’s that every person has the potential to make a positive impact on others’ lives.
- Living on the edge: Whether you’re writing about extreme sports athletes, passionate explorers, or adventurous entrepreneurs, capturing people who push boundaries makes for an exciting read.
- Finding happiness in difficult times: Even though life can be tough sometimes, there are always ways to find joy and meaning in your everyday experiences.
- Success through hard work and persistence: From high-achieving professionals to emerging artists and creatives, this is an uplifting story that inspires us all to keep pushing forward no matter what challenges we face along the way.
- Breaking down barriers: Whether overcoming social prejudices or shattering glass ceilings, this is a powerful topic that will resonate with audiences of all backgrounds and beliefs.
- Inspiring tales from animal rescue organizations: Visiting shelters and talking with animal rescue experts can uncover compelling stories highlighting the amazing work being done to save animals in need.
- Uncovering the stories of the unheard voices: From political dissidents to those struggling with addiction, this is a powerful way to bring attention to people and causes that need a little help from their communities.
The Basics of Feature Writing
Feature writing is a great way to get your byline and hone your storytelling skills. But where do you start? Here are the basics you need to know to get started in the world of feature writing.
What is a Feature Story?
A feature story is a type of journalistic writing that tells a story from a human interest angle. Unlike most news stories, which focus on the facts of who, what, when, where, and why, a feature story digs deeper to explore the emotions and personal experiences behind the news. Feature stories can be profiles of interesting people, first-person accounts of events, or trend pieces that explore how current events affect people’s lives.
What Makes a Good Feature Story?
A good feature story has all the elements of a good news story—it should be well-reported and accurate—but it also goes beyond the bare facts to add color, emotion, and humanity. A good feature story will make the reader feel something, whether it’s anger, sadness, happiness, or intrigue. It will give the reader a new perspective on an event or help them understand another person’s experience in a way they could never have before.
How Do You Write a Feature Story?
Writing a successful feature story takes time, effort, and practice. Here are some tips to help you get started:
- Find a topic that interests you. A good place to start is by brainstorming people or places you know well. Once you have an idea of who or what you want to write about, start doing some research to see if there’s already been a lot written about your topic (in which case you may want to find another angle) or if there are gaps in the coverage that you could fill.
- Talk to people. The best way to get information for your story is to talk to people directly involved with the subject matter. If you’re writing about a specific event, talk to witnesses or people affected by it. If you’re writing about someone’s experience with an issue like addiction or homelessness, reach out and see if they’re willing to share their story with you. The more voices you can include in your story, the richer it will be.
- Go beyond the obvious. When researching your topic, look for stories that haven’t been told before or offer a new perspective on familiar events or issues. These are the stories that will capture readers’ attention and set your piece apart from all the other articles out there on the same subject matter.
- Write, rewrite, edit…and then edit some more! A successful feature story requires multiple drafts before it’s ready for publication. After each draft, put your article away for at least 24 hours so you can come back to it with fresh eyes; this will help you catch errors and spot areas that need improvement more easily than if you tried to edit immediately after writing. Then show your article to somebody else—a friend, family member, or coworker—and ask for their feedback; they may catch things you missed. After incorporating their suggestions (as well as any others from your editing process), give your article one last read-through before sending it off into the world!
How to Write a Feature Story that Sells
To write a feature story that sells, you need to understand what a feature story is and how it’s different from other types of stories. A feature story is a long-form piece of creative nonfiction that tells a human interest story.
It should be well-written and well-researched and have a strong central character or characters. If you can write a compelling feature story, you’ll be able to sell it to any number of publications.
How to Write a Compelling Feature Story
The best way to write a compelling feature story is to focus on the following elements:
- The Characters: The people in your story should be relatable, likable, and interesting. Readers should be able to see themselves in the characters or at least feel like they know them.
- The Problem: There needs to be some problem or conflict that the characters are trying to solve. This gives the story tension and keeps readers engaged.
- The Solution: The solution should be interesting and unique. It should also be something that readers can take away from the story and apply to their own lives.
- The Writing: The writing should be clear, concise, and engaging. You want readers to feel like they’re right there with the characters, experiencing everything firsthand.
How to Write a Feature Article: the Basics
A feature article is a type of soft news story. It contains all of the basic elements of a news story – who, what, where, when, and why – but it also has something known as the “human element.” This additional component sets a feature story apart from a hard news story; it’s what makes a feature story interesting and engaging.
Writing a feature article can be daunting. Where do you start? What are the basic components? Here’s a quick overview of how to write a feature story from start to finish.
The Inverted Pyramid
The first thing you need to know about writing a feature article is that it follows the inverted pyramid format. This means that the most important information (the who, what, where, when, and why) is at the story’s beginning, while the least important information is at the end.
The lead paragraph should contain all of the essential information about the story; everything else in the article should be secondary in importance. The lead should be no more than three or four sentences long; anything longer risks losing the reader’s attention.
After the lead, you’ll want to include a nut graph. This is a brief paragraph (one or two sentences) that states your article’s main theme or argument. Think of it as a mini-thesis statement.
The remainder of your article will focus on fleshing out this theme or argument. Remember to keep your language clear and concise; features are not the place for flowery prose or dense jargon. When in doubt, err on the side of simplicity.
Your article will conclude with a kicker – a short sentence (no more than 10 words) that sums up your article interestingly or memorably.
3 Ways to End a Feature Story with a Bang
As any seasoned writer knows, one of the most challenging aspects of writing a feature story is crafting a strong ending that ties up all the loose ends without sounding contrived or cliche.
Here are three tips to help you end your next feature story with a bang:
Leave them wanting more
One effective way to end a feature story is to leave readers wanting more. This can be done by raising more questions than you answer or hinting at future developments in the story. For example, if you’re writing about a new product to hit store shelves shortly, you could end your story with a quote from the CEO about the company’s plans for world domination. Tease readers with what’s to come, and they’ll come back for more.
Go out on a high note
Another option is to go out on a high note—literally. If your story has been largely positive up until this point, end it on an even more positive note by including an inspiring quote or heartwarming anecdote. This will leave readers feeling good about what they’ve just read, and they’ll be more likely to remember your story fondly long after they’ve finished reading it.
Draw attention to the bigger picture
Finally, you could choose to end your story by drawing attention to the bigger picture. If your feature story has been focused on a particular event or issue, use your concluding paragraph to step back and discuss the larger ramifications of what’s been happening. For instance, if you were writing about an upcoming election, you might use your conclusion to discuss the importance of voting and how every vote counts. By putting things in perspective, you can help readers see your story in a new light.