This one is a wee bit obscure but very intriguing. Among Fed employees as a target audience, it’s a winner. And even for us heathens, it piques curiosity. Clever use of the apostrophe to save ~3 words.
I learned from the best!! Honestly, on the pithiness, you trained me, honed me, to the point that I started getting all the NSF folks thinking 8-word headlines, too. It's such a fundamental thing -- scroll Google News or any sort and it's immediately apparent why verbal real estate matters. So many crappy, cut-off heds
That’s a really good hed for the right platform an audience. I mean, really good. It has facts, a super descriptive subject /verb combo, and pizazz. Nicely done.
This is a great question, because it forces me (and others) to think. Turns out next week's newsletter will include a bit about the risks of clickbait in headlines. Obviously I haven't read the story your headline would refer to, so I can't properly judge it. I will say this: Your headline might work for certain publications and audiences, but #7 better be a legit zinger for ALL targeted readers, otherwise you've lured them in and disappointed them, which is a great way to lose readers. I can't imagine a headline like that on most publications (or for any writers) aiming to cultivate long-term credibility and readership. More on this next week!
Headline: Reader Appreciates Story!
3 words. Well done! (And thank you.)
DOGE'd Fed Pivots to Sci-Fi
This one is a wee bit obscure but very intriguing. Among Fed employees as a target audience, it’s a winner. And even for us heathens, it piques curiosity. Clever use of the apostrophe to save ~3 words.
I learned from the best!! Honestly, on the pithiness, you trained me, honed me, to the point that I started getting all the NSF folks thinking 8-word headlines, too. It's such a fundamental thing -- scroll Google News or any sort and it's immediately apparent why verbal real estate matters. So many crappy, cut-off heds
Or, . . . Shameless Self-Promoter Self-Promotes ;)
That’s a really good hed for the right platform an audience. I mean, really good. It has facts, a super descriptive subject /verb combo, and pizazz. Nicely done.
Assuming you mean the DOGE one :)?
How about "Ten People Die in Bridge Collapse — You Won't Believe #7!!!"?
This is a great question, because it forces me (and others) to think. Turns out next week's newsletter will include a bit about the risks of clickbait in headlines. Obviously I haven't read the story your headline would refer to, so I can't properly judge it. I will say this: Your headline might work for certain publications and audiences, but #7 better be a legit zinger for ALL targeted readers, otherwise you've lured them in and disappointed them, which is a great way to lose readers. I can't imagine a headline like that on most publications (or for any writers) aiming to cultivate long-term credibility and readership. More on this next week!
That's a much better response than the "No. Shut up." it deserved
I’m not much of a “shut up” editor. Though in life otherwise I’m pretty good at it.