Blog #3: Pulitzer Prize Inspiration

http://www.pulitzer.org/works/2008-Feature-Writing

The most valuable thing I learned from this article is to be focused. Focus very clearly on your question. Even  if it is a broad question and does not need a specific answer (such as "Will people recognize genius if it comes from somewhere they don't expect?" or "What significance should politics have to high school students?"), you have to focus in on your subject, and write your article neatly and with pinpoint accuracy, class, and style. It can be long, but it still has to be concise, if that makes any sense. It should be elegant, but there should be no fluff. Every single thing in it should go towards your one central idea.

And yes, I'm zeroing in on doing the politics side of things. You're welcome.

On an sort-of-not-completely-unrelated note, the author of the Pulitzer Prize piece used a quote from Billy Collins (OH MY GOOOOOODDDDDD!! is the sound my brain makes when somebody mentions Billy Collins) to illustrate a minor point that fits into the larger point of the article. I like it so much I'm going to copy and paste it here:

"The poet Billy Collins once laughingly observed that all babies are born with a knowledge of poetry, because the lub-dub of the mother's heart is in iambic meter. Then, Collins said, life slowly starts to choke the poetry out of us. It may be true with music, too."

I promise this is the last thing: This Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter got much of the interviews and statistics that he did with the help of some of his fellow reporters. He told them what to do, and orchestrated (pun not intended) the whole thing himself, but he had help. That's a good thing to take to heart, that not every single feature piece has to be done alone.