GUIDELINES

• Generally, journalism is non-fiction prose rather than poetry, although you'll always find exceptions to the rule. In fact, you'll see many examples of poetry as hard-hitting commentary on youngwritersproject.org, such as the poem, I Wonder, about gun violence. Feel free to choose whatever genre works best for you in conveying your message.

Written pieces do not need to be long, but they should be more than a few words. The "sweet spot" is probably somewhere between four and 10 paragraphs, if you're writing prose, so that the piece has some structure and moves from its beginning through the middle to the end.

Personal experiences are a great source of inspiration and storytelling. When you link these personal experiences to a larger issue you can create a powerful connection that touches the reader.

Photography and art are also important! Your work should aim to capture aspects of your community, such as the architecture, the landscape, scenes of public life, and changes, such as a new park or building. There are some restrictions related to photography — permissions, especially. More on that later.

• If in doubt, post it anyway! This is the first year for this project, and we don't want rules to get in the way. Express yourself freely!

You'll see that the Community Journalism Project has four main categories — journalism 101, commentary, photography, and art — along with some specific examples to give you a sense of the possibilities. This isn't the only way to go about it — be inspired!

And, as always with YWP, the core value is to be civil and respectful.

YWP

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