Tips in Writing A Good Title for a Feature Story

Writing A Good Title for a Feature Story

In writing a good title for a feature story, you should take time to plan, think, and strategize. The title is oftentimes the most overlooked part of a feature story, when in fact it is at times as important as the lead or introduction. It is actually the very first material your readers will encounter, because the title is written above the lead. In print media, titles or headlines are the initial magnet that draws people into reading, so writing a good title for a feature story is also as critical as writing a good and effective lead.

Here are some tips in writing a good title for a feature story:

1. Make sure your title is still connected with the topic or the thoughts, ideas, and facts presented in your feature story. Do not put “just any title.” Some writers have this tendency to rush the writing of their title since they it less important. Some times they write it during the last minute, just before handing in their feature story to their editors, teachers, professors, or feature writing contest judges, and therefore having only a little time in conceiving and conceptualizing a good and effective one.
2. The title for a feature story could be  likened to the lead, so make it strong and interesting enough that it will draw your readers’ attention.
3. Playfully connect your title with the topic of your feature story. One of my favorite entrepreneurial books is Joey Conception’s “GoNegosyo, Celebrity Edition.” It is a compilation of feature stories on celebrities own businesses. Aside from I love how the stories are presented; the titles are likewise skillfully written. A feature story about a business owned by famous celebrity make-up artist Fanny Cerrano was titled “A Fanny  Story.”
4. Present your title with a tinge of ambiguity. In the same entrepreneurial book, a feature story on a lingerie business owned by sexy star Joyce Jimenez is entitled “Not-so private Joyce.” Her business name is “Private Joyce.” You see, her business name itself is ambiguous. It could suggest something about her being a sexy actress and it also conveys something about the nature of her business — a shop for lingerie, underwear and the like. The title of the feature story about her business could also mean a lot of things — her work in show business, her personality as a sexy celebrity, her business and how it’s not supposed to be “private” (or kept in secrecy) since it is something to be promoted to the public.
5. Use your wits in thinking of a good title that matches your feature story’s topic. In the same book by Joey Conception, a feature story on a restaurant business owned by actor Dingdong Dantes is entitled “Success on a Plate.” You could just sense at once the wit that comes with the writing of the title. The word “success” refers to the  flourishing business, and the word “plate” refers to the nature of the business, which is food business. Very witty, indeed!

Writing a good title for a feature story includes wits, skills, time, organization, planning, and an ample amount of thinking and pondering.

In line with this blog entry on writing a good title for a feature story, you may want to check out other related blogs:

1. How to Write an Effective Conclusion

2. Dos and Donts in Writing an Effective Feature Lead

3. Tips in Writing a Good Introduction

4. Dos and Donts in Writing

5. Feature Writing Contest Tips

6. Feature Writing Taboos