A few basic types of feature leads: 1. Anecdotal: a specific story that illustrates the main point. A short story that breaks the ice with the reader.
2. Narrative: like an anecdotal lead, this lead is also a story. However it’s often longer, with dialog, and narrated by the journalist-as-storyteller.
3. Descriptive: a lead that focuses on sensory details to describe a specific place, person or thing. Not all sensory details are included, only those that clearly support the main point of the story.
4. An Intriguing Detail: a "hook" about the person, story, or information to catch the reader's attention
5. A Scene with a Character Engaged in an Activity: like an anecdote
6. Startling Statement: catches the readers attention immediately
***Until you know enough to break the rules, a few leads you’ll want to avoid***
1. Questions: Don’t quiz the reader.
2. Quotes: These rarely help summarize the story.
3. “You” leads: These informal leads are fine for blog posts, but not for the type of feature narrative we’re working towards.
4. “Imagine” leads: If the word “imagine” is in the lead, it’s probably not built on the type of specific fact and reporting we’re aiming for here.
