What makes a good story?

To continue the theme from my last blog post, another frequently asked question is “what kind of stories are you looking for?”

Usually, my response is “anything!”, which probably doesn’t seem very helpful. But the truth is it’s very difficult to know what kind of story a client may have, or how it may work, until I’ve discussed all the possibilities and explored all the angles available.

It’s great when a client comes to me with a very firm idea of what their story is, but it’s also good when someone approaches me with a variety of ideas which we can talk over together.

Having said that, there are a few themes which are always popular and I find these are a good starting point to get people thinking about stories they may have.

Here they are:

Crime: Have you been the victim of a shocking crime? Or do you know someone who has? Did your husband/ partner commit the ultimate sin? Have you been held up at gun point? Violently attacked or conned out of all your possessions? Was a loved one tragically murdered? Have you been the victim of knife crime?

Romance: Did you meet your partner in strange circumstances? Did you meet after a long absence? Is your partner a lot older or younger than you? Did your partner shock you with something unexpected on your anniversary? Is there another unusual twist to your relationship?

Betrayal: Has your partner betrayed you? Perhaps with a close friend? Did you plot to catch him out? Have you sought revenge from a love-rat? Did you or your partner/ husband stray? Did you somehow manage to forgive each other and now you are more in love than ever? Did you end up marrying your partner’s brother? Or did your sister steal your man? Are you still friends or has it divided your family?

Health: Have you or a family member suffered from an unusual illness or condition? Have you given birth despite the odds against you? Are you addicted to plastic surgery? Have you had a dramatic operation which has transformed your body and your life? Was it a disaster – or the best thing that’s ever happened to you? Do you have a fear or phobia of something irrational?

Weight: Have you been anorexic/bulimic? Are you overweight? Have you shed pounds? Has your eating disorder led you to find love? Did your partner try to control you with food? Did he realise how controlling he was? Did you work things out or did you leave him?

Holidays: Have you had a holiday romance? Did it lead to marriage? Have you had a holiday disaster?

Weddings: Have you had an unusual wedding? Did you marry against the odds? Were you left at the altar? Or did you leave him on the big day? Was your wedding/ honeymoon a nightmare? Did something happen on your Hen that changed your life forever? Or did he overstep the mark at his Stag?

Crazy world: Of course, your story could be just simply strange! Maybe a pet that saved your life, or a strange fetish or fascination.

FAQs

The questions I get asked most frequently when talking over stories with clients are: “Will I have to be pictured?” and “Do you have to use my real name?” And the answer to both of these questions is yes.

That often seems to surprise people, but with real life features it’s essential that readers can really connect with the person telling the story.

When you start changing people’s names and blanking their faces out, or using models instead of real pictures, it distances the reader from the story.

I know that when I’m reading a magazine I always want to know what the people behind the story look like, how old they are, where they work, who their friends are... all the little details that help you build up a picture of what they’re really like.

Of course, some people aren’t keen on their names appearing in the national media, while others just don’t like having their pictures taken. Which is why we always make sure we talk over the process very carefully before we get to the stage of pitching ideas to editors.

There’s never any obligation to go ahead if the client decides it’s not for them, but I find most feel reassured when they know they will have the final article read back to them before it’s published, so they know exactly what’s going in. And they often get a professional photo-shoot with the magazine, so there’s no need to worry about unflattering photos!

And I never mind people asking lots of questions – in fact I welcome it. It means that they’re thinking everything through very carefully. Then I know, when I’ve answered all the questions, we’ll get the best possible feature from everyone’s point of view.

Here comes the bride

Magazines always love unusual stories with anything to do about brides, weddings, hen nights... So when Katie got in touch some time ago and told me how she'd had a massive row with her bridesmaids on her hen night and sacked ALL of them just weeks before the wedding, I knew we could get her a deal. Now magazine loved her story about the blazing argument and how she'd had to find new bridesmaids at the last minute.
Likewise, when Joan, who appeared in the Channel Four documentary My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, got in touch with my colleague Nic to share her story about how her life had turned out after the big, lavish wedding, we knew the newspapers and magazines would be interested. We were right.
Women just seem to love reading about weddings. Maybe it's the romantic streak in us... or maybe we just love looking at pictures of beautiful dresses and big, fancy cakes.

Forgiving and forgetting

In between buying fancy dress outfits, drinking too much and then tending to my hangover, an unpleasantly large chunk of my weekend was devoted to dealing with an ex-friend who has turned rather nasty.
I won’t go into the details here, mainly because just thinking about it puts me in danger of an anger-induced heart attack. But it got to me to thinking about how relationships (by which I mean friendships as much as relationships of the romantic kind) can break down in the most spectacular fashion.
Sometimes the reasons for those breakdowns are only too clear – and one or other of the parties involved is most definitely in the wrong (this always depends whose side you’re on of course).
But sometimes arguments can explode over the most trivial of matters. Ironically, sometimes the most ridiculous issues end up ruining a relationship forever, while I have spoken to women who have forgiven friends after the most terrible of betrayals (sleeping with their boyfriend being top of the list).
I suppose it depends on how strong the friendship was to begin with, and how understanding the individuals are able to be of human weaknesses. We all make mistakes after all... (not me, I was totally in the right)

Long-distance and other love stories

Today I’ve been mainlining tea to try and stave off the utter exhaustion that comes from getting up before dawn to drive three hours to work.
I do this commute every few weeks so I can spend Sunday night with my boyfriend, who lives about 140 miles away from me. We only get to see each other at weekends so, knackering as it is, it’s worth the early start to spend that precious extra night with him.
Long-distance relationships aren’t easy. We have to plan when we’re going to see each other weeks in advance and it’s hard missing him, and not being able to get a hug after a hard day at work. Phone calls just can’t replace actually being with someone. But we just get on and do it because, for now at least, it’s the only option.
And, difficult as I find it, I know that many other couples have it much harder. In the course of sourcing features for magazines I’ve spoken to women who have managed to make relationships work when their partners live on the other side of the world, or when they’ve faced fierce opposition from family and friends.
There are the women who’ve been heartbroken when they discovered their man was cheating but decided to give them one more chance and I’ve even spoken to a couple of women who met their men in prison and stuck by them until they got out.
It constantly amazes, and inspires me, how hard people are prepared to work in the name of love. And the good news is that magazines never tire of these stories. So if you’ve battled against the odds to keep your relationship alive, get in touch.

Every parent's worst nightmare

When Cassie took her sick baby boy to hospital she just wanted doctors to make him better. But instead she and her partner, Wayne, were accused of harming their little boy and he was taken away from them.
That visit to the hospital became the beginning of a year-long nightmare as the couple fought to prove their innocence and get their son back. In their darkest moments they even began to suspect one another.
Doctors finally found that little Cavern was suffering from a rare medical condition which was causing the symptoms. A judge ordered social services to hand the couple their baby back.
Although they’ve got their boy back the pain they felt at losing him for all those months, and being accused of harming him, will never leave them. Cassie came to us because she wanted her story to be heard and for others to know what the couple had been through.
We were only too happy to help and placed her story with The Mirror and in Chat magazine. Cassie was delighted with the coverage and the sensitive way in which her story was told.
View the story as it appeared in The Mirror here:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/life-style/real-life/2010/09/09/each-of-us-feared-the-other-had-beaten-our-baby-115875-22547119/

Dramatic first dates

Victoria got in touch a while ago with her story about a date which took a very dramatic turn...
Years after leaving college an old school-friend got in touch and asked her out. She agreed, and they arranged to go to the cinema.
All was going well, until halfway through the film Victoria suddenly lost sensation in the right-hand-side of her body.
Understandably, she was terrified. Her date was engrossed in the film and completely oblivious but she managed to fumble in her phone and send him a text message saying she needed to be taken to hospital.
He rushed her to A&E where Victoria was told she’d suffered a stroke. She broke down in tears from the shock and as Colin held her in his arms she realised she loved him.
Thankfully, Victoria has now made a full recovery, and the close call made the couple realise we were meant to be together. They’re now engaged and planning to get married next year.
We successfully placed Victoria’s story in Love It magazine – Victoria’s story appeared in last week’s edition.
As first date stories go, it’s a pretty unusual one. Have you had any dramatic or crazy first dates?