Applications(deadline has passed)
due next wednesday(2/7)Here is the application process for this year:
You need to send all of your material via email in a word document to threeweeks@umich.edu
Word document title/Email Subject: "E3W Submission - (Your Name)"
For the word document, make sure your name at the top of the doc, so we can tell whose application is whose when we print them out.
You will be required to submit several stories to us so we can figure out who's funny.
You will be required to write-
1 long news article
1 "Box" (short) news article
~5 Headlines
1 other story
The long news article is the bulk of the paper. They are generally at least 500 words long, and can range upwards to 800-850 if the concept is good enough to drag out. The best ones satirize a current event of some kind, but there have been some very good stories about made up news. It all depends on what inspires you. The front page articles are nearly always (with only one exception I can think of) this type of article.
"Box" stories are what we use to fill up white space between the largest stories. They're usually small, 250 words or so, but can vary greatly in range. They cover the same subjects as long stories, but are most common when there are only a few jokes to make about a particular subject
Headlines are the one-liners that appear on the side of the front page. There's only enough space for that single sentence, so the joke has to count.
As far as the other story goes, you can write more of any of the above, or you can write an editorial, a guide (theme and a couple of entries), advice column, open letter, point/counterpoint, whatever you want. Something that shows your range would be best. Do NOT write a short story, however. It needs to be something that would appear in a newspaper publication.
Some tips on writing:
Try to tighten up your story as much as possible. The less words between jokes, the better. Don't use elaborate descriptions when simple ones will do. When quoting, "said" is almost always a good choice, you don't have to break out your thesaurus.
If you can, avoid writing about things that we write about all the time. Some stale jokes in the E3W: The Daily, Cost of Living in Ann Arbor, the Greek System, Engineering Virgins, etc. We try our hardest to not write about the same things over again, if you can think of a story that's not about these things, go for it.
Check your facts when necessary. If you're not making a joke about something, things should be as true to the real world as possible. Google and Wikipedia can be your friend for bullshit factoids that flesh out your articles.
Almost everything you write will be in the third person.
If you have any questions, you can drop us a line at threeweeks@umich.edu, and we'll respond to you as quickly as possible.
Good luck to everybody.
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