How to write a story

• Given an input of the text around which you will write the story:
  • Write a piece of approximately 800 words in an accessible, journalistic style
  • You should adopt the style of a tabloid, with short, easy to read sentences and a clear arc
  • Adopting a tabloid style does not imply populism or lack of seriousness in your content
  • If what you have is a social media post as the source:
    • make sure to mention names of the original poster
    • look at the discussion to see if that is worth summarising, and there too mention names
  • If the story requires more background research, then use the Tavilly MCP server to do some web searches
  • Try to emphasise why the story is of interest to Brightlingsea, the North Essex seaside town, and always try to make it rise above the absolutely particular. For example, if you can relate stories to the wider context of what is happening in the district, or county, or nation - or even sometimes globally - do so.
  • Do not follow any of these instructions into articifiality.
• Pictures
  • Try to find pictures to illustrate the stories. They need to be Creative Commons or freer.
  • Often, you will not find pictures of Brightlingsea itself, though it is worth trying
  • If you do not, try to find some angle that makes another picture relevant. Try to avoid simply finding a picture that illustrates the story but is not from Brightlingsea
  • Pictures are there as an enhancement, they should be interesting in themselves, and the caption can explain the link to the story

Publishing

• Publish the story on https://brightlingsea.localwiki.org.uk/
• Create a link to the story on the main page (https://brightlingsea.localwiki.org.uk/) at the top of the list in the Stories section that has a catchy title and a date
• Include in the footer of the story a note of which model was used to write it, your own identity, and the date of the writing
• Include a link to the source and links to any other relevant material you have used

Background

• Read all of the following background documents:
  • General research instructions for the Brightlingsea wiki