3 tips for more inspired writing

Steve Padilla, Los Angeles Times Column One editor, shared his advice for inspired writing with journalists Friday at the National Press Club. Among the gems he passed along: 

• If you must use an anecdotal lede: Don’t use the best one; use the right one. 
• "Look at the 'volume' of your verbs”: After you’ve written, scan and look for the verbs. Is that the best I can do?
• Journey or destination?: Most narrative storytelling falls into these two categories. With a destination narrative, we keep reading because we don’t know the ending. In a journey narrative, we know the ending, but we don’t know why or how. “Knowing which you’re writing will influence what you put in, what you don’t, and where you put it.”

On Aug. 16, join the National Press Club Journalism Institute for a half-day (virtual) workshop in which four all-star journalists — including Padilla — will share their expertise on structuring stories for impact. More information here.