Although you will most often use a summary lead to provide a clear, professional, non-gimmicky paragraph for editors, there are times when special features (or even "straight" news releases) may benefit from a special lead. Note that these are all considered "delayed leads," and require the 5 W's to be supplied in a "nut graf" immediately following the special lead. Use the following as guidelines:

Summary lead:

A summary lead gives the editor the gist of the story in the first paragraph. It is terse, with generally no more than 35 words in one sentence, and summarizes the major elements of your story, stressing the newsworthinesss. The point is that readers do not have to guess or wait to find out what is going on.

Chicago students will soon be able to study history, math and science as easily and enjoyably as they now play video games -- that's the idea behind a new computerized education project being developed by Associated Products Corporation and the National Education Association.

The proposed APC/NEA project slogan is "Johnny can learn to read," but the scope of the program goes well beyond basic literacy. Students at all grade levels will be stimulated to learn a variety of subjects, by interacting with their classroom material on a computer screen. Computer-assisted educational programs are planned for grades 1-12 in history and science, and in math for grades 9-12.

or

BRADFORD, England--Police said Sunday that the final death toll could exceed 85 in a fire that engulfed the main grandstand at a soccer stadium in Bradford on Saturday. On a day that civic celebrations had been planned to honor the championship Bradford City soccer club, flags flew at half-staff to mourn what Sports Minister Neil Macfarlane called "the worst tragedy we have ever seen in English football" (soccer).

Narrative lead:

This is a popular lead for news features. It draws people into a story by putting them suddenly into the middle of the action. Although it can be written in a single paragraph, it is usually written in a lead block of two or more paragraphs that build up to the major point. Typically, it will use more vivid words than a summary release. The nut graf is used, to tell the readers what the story is about (5 W's).

Johnny breaks into a wide smile of sudden satisfaction, as his video game erupts into the chirpy noises of electronic celebration. It's the same happy look he used to wear whenever he wiped out a nest of Electro-Klingons -- the villainous foe on the video games he used to play after school. But today the enemy is math -- Johnny is staying late at school, doing extra homework on an interactive computer, as part of an innovative educational program...

or

The flags flew at half-staff in Bradford City as West Yorkshire Chief Constable Sampson and others dug through the rubble of the burned soccer club and hunted for clues and bodies.

Contrast lead

Often written in 2-graf blocks, like the narrative lead, this approach compares or contrasts new & old, then & now, small & large, etc. Usually the first graf (or sentence) deals with what your release is not about; the second introduces the point of your release.

Last summer, students aged 7-13 spent on average seven hours a week, playing video games in shopping arcades or on home computers. But this fall, those same students may spend twice that much time playing video games that teach history, math and science -- in their classrooms.

or

It started as a day of celebration; it ended in tragedy as fire engulfed the main grandstand...

Staccato lead

This short burst of phrases is meant to tease readers and set the mood. Like the narrative lead (but in a different way) the intention is to draw the reader into the drama. You need a nut graf right away. Use with caution.

History lessons. Wars and treaties. 1776 and 1492. History gets old fast. But not any longer, if a new computerized educational project realizes its aims...

or

Soccer on Saturday. A tradition. A celebration. Now, a nightmare.

Direct-address lead

The writer communicates directly with the reader by using the word you in the lead. As in the first example below, it can use elements of the narrative lead, setting the scene; but it can also be drier, as in the second example:

You never thought you'd see the day when your child volunteered to do extra homework. She's already three lessons ahead of her class. Yet there she is, begging to put off bedtime for another half hour, so she can start yet another.

or

You cannot comprehend the nightmare of Bradford City until you have walked through the charred wreckage, where spectators, their clothes and hair aflame, were crushed to death in a stampede.

Question lead

Although you see this overused in advertising, it is not common in releases or other news writing. Editors complain that writers use them as a crutch, when they can't decide what their main point is. On the other hand, it can effectively tease the reader, and combines easily with direct address. The key is to answer the question in the first graf, or immediately in the second graf.

Will teachers be the latest profession to be automated out of their jobs by computers? A new teaching system may allow students to teach themselves, by playing video games...

or

Was it arson or was it accident that sparked the tragic fire at the Bradford City soccer stadium?

Quote lead

This allows a central character to begin a news story, and can communicate opinion along with essential information: don't "waste" a quote -- be sure that it conveys several of the 5 W's. A quote lead can also tie neatly to the conclusion of the press release -- a final quote. Still, use this lead sparingly: it annoys editors.

"It's going to revolutionize the world of education, just as surely as the word-processor revolutionized the workplace." So says James L. Sutton, of Associated Products Corporation....

or

"I saw a man on fire, and I don't want to see anything like that again," a spectator, John Waite, said Sunday as he recalled the horror of the fire at the Bradford City soccer stadium.