For God’s sake, don’t bury the lead!

I’m one of those people. You know, the kind who has to be told something important multiple times. I hope you’re not like that.

This week, Dr. White, my journalism professor, told our class that when you are writing an editorial you should begin with a hard-hitting, active voice, eye-grabbing statement that follows the inverted pyramid model. In other words, you present the who, what, where, when, and how of the story before you get into its details.

The statement that does all of this upfront, grabbing the attention of the reader before he is presented with a bunch of details, is called the “lead”. In effect, a writer should not bury the lead! Right there it hit me. I’d heard this somewhere before. 

Last semester a graduate student asked me to review a research paper they had written. As is always the case, there were small grammar errors and word choice issues to correct. More importantly, there was a style problem that was only revealed when I asked the student to explain a point that they were attempting to make in the paper. With precision, they told me the missing piece that brought their writing into focus. What they provided me with was their lead, but in their paper it was so buried behind less exciting details, that I had missed it altogether. In effect they had buried the lead. I told them, “Don’t do that; start with your main point!” 

So, it’s been revealed. Not only am I someone who must be told something important multiple times, I need to be reminded of lessons I have taught other people. I must be losing it.