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If you’re a new science writer, one of the best ways to get your foot in the door of a new media outlet is to write short news stories. They’re a quick, low-commitment way for an editor to take you for a test run (and vice versa) — and media outlets that publish news are always hungry for it, because news moves quickly! I used news stories to break into most of the magazines I write features for today, including Scientific American and Science News.

The good news about short news is that it follows a pretty consistent formula that, once you’ve learned it, is easy to write.

The bad news about short news is that if you screw up this formula, you will give editors a headache — and if you haven’t worked together before, it might leave them with the impression that you don’t know what you’re doing.

So, in this post, I’m going to walk you through the basic structure of a typical short “single study” science news story. As for all things writing-related, these are all rules meant to be broken. Not all stories will or should fit this form. But it’s a good place to start, and a safe bet for making a good impression on a new editor.

Need some feedback on a pitch? Want some guidance on finding stories? I offer 1:1 training and support for early-career science writers, both via Zoom and asynchronously if you just want someone to read over a pitch, post, or application. Interested? Get in touch!

What are short science news stories?

There are several types of science news story, but the bread and butter of a typical science magazine is single study news — short articles based on the findings of one recently published research paper.

Single-study news stories are typically between 300 and 800 words and based on research published within the last week for fast-moving publications like Science or month for slower-moving outlets like Eos.

Most reputable science news magazines will expect you to speak to at least two scientists — a study author and one “outside source” expert who wasn’t involved in the work — for a story like this, even if you don’t have space to quote them both.

Unlike academic writing, which often doesn’t get to the point until the end, news writing gets to the point right away. You start with the most newsworthy and necessary information first, not with the background, and get broader from there.

Outline of a single-study short news story

Lede

The lede is your story’s opening. Usually just 1-3 sentences long, if it doesn’t immediately grab a reader’s attention it isn’t doing its job. The easiest kind of lede to write just opens with the news: “Scientists discovered a groundbreaking new treatment for writers block.” But if you’re creative (better yet: funny!) then lean into that to write a lede your readers won’t forget.

The Open Notebook has an an article all about writing good ledes: Good Beginnings: How to Write a Lede Your Editor—and Your Readers—Will Love

Nut Graf

The nut graf is the TLDR version of your story. If your reader only gets this far, they should know the main result and why it matters. It’s a bit like a miniature version of your story, and often mimics the overall structure of the whole piece: opening with the main finding, then giving 1-2 pieces of vital information on the context or method (depending on which is more important), and then a clear statement of why the news matters. If you haven’t already, make sure to mention the journal and publication date of the paper you’re covering by the end of the nut graf.

You can read more over at The Open Notebook (because of course they have an article on the nut graf, too): Nailing the Nut Graf

Quote

Often (but not always) there’s a punchy quote right after the nut graf — ideally from your outside source — that highlights the significance of the news. Something like “This discovery is a paradigm shift,” if you can get it, is a good bet. The quote both serves to tell the reader why the story matters and provides a natural section break between the introduction of your story and the rest of it.

Context

After your introduction, it’s time to provide context to help readers understand why the study was done and why it matters. Think of the background/context section as setting up “the problem” that the study answered. This can be a knowledge gap, a need for a new treatment, an enduring mystery, a funny question, a lack of data, anything. I recommend asking the researcher you interview why they did this study and what knowledge gap or need it addressed, it’ll help with this section.

Methods

The point of this section is to show readers how the researchers solved “the problem” you set up in the previous section. And for a general audience “doing science” is enough of a method, so expect to omit or compress methods most of the time unless they’re unusually interesting (weird, cool, creepy, etc.) or vital to understanding why the study matters.You might find your methods section reduced to 1-2 sentences or a single paragraph — or absent altogether!

Takeaways

This section gives “the solution to the problem” and shows why it matters. You should already have spelled out the main finding in the nut graf, but now you can revisit and expand on it: why is the finding so significant, and what new questions or exciting future avenues of research did it open up? What’s the big picture? Often, you’ll include a second quote somewhere around this section, either before or after it.

Kicker

The kicker should flow naturally out of the previous section and is like a reverse lede. It’s the last thing your reader sees, so make sure it counts. I often like to think about how I want the reader to feel after they’re done with the article: Do I want them to feel smart? To laugh? To be afraid? To get angry? To feel a sense of wonder? A trick: it’s often very satisfying to somehow circle back to reference something in your lede in the kicker. People like circles. This is also a good spot for wordplay or humor if you have it in you (depending on the story) — and if you’re lost, it almost always works well to give a scientist the last word with a quote.

The Open Notebook has a great article on kickers, too: Good Endings: How to Write a Kicker Your Editor—and Your Readers—Will Love

A last tip: use this outline to conquer the blank page

Short news really is that simple. And knowing that should, I hope, help you write more confidently and quickly (speed is, unfortunately, important for news writing).

If you’re intimidated by the blank page, starting by filling in an outline like this with a few bullet points can be a great way to start — that’s often how I begin. And with this structure in mind, you can safely skip the first few lines and just go straight to the nut graf if you’re having trouble thinking of a strong opening at first. Sometimes the best place to start is in the middle.

Have questions? Find me on Bluesky or shoot me an email. If it’s something I can answer quickly, I’m happy to help. Otherwise, I offer training and support for early-career science writers taking their first steps into this field — both 1:1 via Zoom and asynchronously. Check out my website or get in touch for more details.