So you've mastered the basics of writing a feature story - the delayed or anecdotal lede, and the increased use of description, color and background to produce articles that are often more in-depth and more human-focused than the typical spot-news story.

However, some people make the mistake of thinking that feature stories can be written on the sort of relaxed schedule normally enjoyed by magazine writers and novelists, with deadlines that are days or even weeks away.

But in the world of newspapers and news websites, where deadlines are constant, nothing could be further from the truth. Feature stories typically must be banged out on deadlines that are just as tight as those for breaking news. Such features are called spot-news features or simply spot features.

Spot features are just what they sound like - feature stories written on a breaking news deadline. Spot features often involve coverage of happenings that aren't necessarily big news in the traditional sense, and, as such, don't really warrant a hard-news lede. Examples could include small-time athletic events, lectures, community forums and debates.

The challenge in writing a spot feature is to incorporate the creativity of feature writing into a story that must be written quickly. So here are some tips for doing spot features.

Write the B Copy Ahead of Time

Always have B copy, or background copy, prepared in advance of the event you're covering. Let's say you're covering a lecture by a visiting scholar.

Write up some B copy that includes the person's background and the subject they are speaking on. The B copy will make up the bottom part of your story, which you'll top off with the new information taken from the lecture itself. B copy is a real time-saver.

Find Your Lede

The toughest part of writing any story is in finding the lede. So when doing a deadline feature story, try to develop a lede in your head even before the event you're covering starts. You can base the lede on the research you've done for the B copy.

If the event turns out to be very different from what you expected, don't be afraid to throw out your pre-planned lede and go with something different. Planning can save time, but flexibility is required in covering the news.

Use Your Own Judgment

Breaking news stories often have pretty obvious ledes. If two people are killed in a house fire, you pretty much know what the lede of that story will be. If the mayor holds a press conference on the city budget, again, you know your lede will focus on some aspect of that topic.

But the kinds of events that are covered as spot features don't always have an obvious lede. Let's return to the example of the speech by the visiting scholar. Imagine that she says several interesting, provocative things during her talk. As the reporter you must use your best judgment to decide what part of her lecture to use in your lede. Another reporter might choose something different, but that's okay. There's not necessarily a right or wrong answer.

Write As You Go

This is self-explanatory. Instead of waiting for the event to end before you write, start writing while the event is still going on. This technique is used often by sportswriters, who must often cover night games on a tight deadline.

Don't Write Chronologically

Beginning reporters often making the mistake of covering spot features like a stenographer, typing out everything that happens in exactly the order that it occurs. The problem with this method is that you're bound to bury your lede and produce a really boring article.

Repeat after me: FORGET CHRONOLOGY. Look at the event you're covering as raw material to be shaped into a coherent work, just as a sculptor shapes an unformed piece of clay into a work of art. Put the most interesting material at the top of your story, the less interesting stuff lower down, and leave the boring stuff out.

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