The title The lead Generally,  a  magazine  article  can  be  divided  into four basic components: The  body The conclusion THE TITLE The title of a magazine article should tell the readers the nature of the article. It usually features a short, terse statement designed to attract their attention or to arouse their curiosity. The title should entice the audience to read the article immediately. A title, like the article itself, should be slanted or directed toward a particular market. Each magazine has its   own   title   requirements   for   style,   length   and typographical   arrangement.   Some   magazines   prefer titles  that  summarize  the  information  in  the  article. Others want descriptive titles. Still others prefer titles that  maim  striking  statements.  And  some  favor  titles featuring   questions,   quotations,   direct   appeal   or alliteration. In developing titles for their articles, writers must be honest. They should not mislead the reader with facts not  supported  by  the  articles,  and  they  should  avoid exaggeration or sensationalism. The title should convey the tone and spirit of the material  featured  in  the  article.  Declarative  sentences with concrete nouns and active verbs are best. If you have not thought of a good title when you begin  writing  an  article,  do  not  worry  about  it.  Few writers title their stories in advance. Usually, the facts will  suggest  something  suitable  as  you  write.  Often  a strong sentence in your copy will provide the exact title you need. THE  LEAD The lead of a magazine article is similar to the lead of a news story, except it is usually longer and nearly always more difficult to write. The lead may run only one paragraph in length, or it may run as much as 10 percent of the entire article. Whatever  space  you  allot  to  your  lead,  it  must accomplish the following objectives: Indicate  the  central  idea  to  be  conveyed  in  the article. Contain a hint of the spirit and movement of the article. Locate the subject as to time and place. Show  any  relation  that  may  exist  between  the facts and the reader. Generate enough interest to make the reader want to read the rest of the article. Leads  for  magazine  articles,  like  those  for  news stories, should be written in a manner suitable for the subject matter. The lead is the most important part of a magazine  article.  If  it  fails  to  sustain  the  readers’ interest, they will not read the article. Therefore, many professional   writers   spend   nearly   as   much   time developing a good lead as in writing the remainder of an  article.  As  trite  as  the  expression  may  be,  a  good writer knows  that  “a story well begun  is half  done.” THE BODY The title of a magazine article attracts an audience’s attention.  The  lead  arouses  curiosity,  stimulates  interest and whets the readers’ appetite for more facts. The body of the article must keep the readers interested. Keeping your audience interested for two or three thousand  words  is  a  tough  job.  To  do  this,  you  must weigh every word, every sentence and every paragraph carefully. The facts you use must not only be interesting in  themselves,  but  they  must  be  presented  in  an interesting   manner. The body of a narrative or personal experience story is probably the easiest to write. All you have to do is relate the details in the order in which they happened. With this approach, you can depend on the action to hold the readers’  interest.  However, an article that contains no  action  and  only  presents  straight,  factual  information is  harder  to  write.  Because  the  facts  themselves  are constant restrictions, you must use skill and imagination in presenting them. The facts must flow from the article naturally, without awkward pauses or sudden changes in  direction. In   all   magazine   articles,   paragraphs   should   be written  so  they  interlock.    The  end  of  one  paragraph should  lead  naturally  into  the  beginning  of  the  next. Transitions  should  be  used  in  such  a  manner  that  the readers are not even aware of them. The key for you to make   the   body   of   the   article   interesting   is   in appropriately  inserting  anecdotes,  specific  examples and hypothetical situations. These devices help illustrate points and emphasize important facts. 4-12