In this feature article written by Kerim Besic, it shows the journey of Julia Lawrenz, a UH Manoa women’s volleyball athlete.
The story shares the struggles she faced, not only transition from indoor into beach volleyball, but even just starting out as a volleyball athlete. Besic asked the right questions to get the information needed for the story.
Besic wrote, ““I was so shy and taller than everyone else, and I was embarrassed because I wasn’t very good in the beginning,” Lawrenz said.”
This quote is meaningful to Besic’s story because it shows a vulnerable side of an athlete, and it provides emotion from Lawrenz which can allow the reader understand and connect to her more.
The story is written in chronological order, which makes it flow well. It starts off with providing context to how Lawrenz got into volleyball and ends off with Lawrenz’s plans after college and reflecting on her past experiences.
This article can serve as a “mentor text”. The author used LQTQ, meaning their transition paragraphs are longer than their quote paragraphs. It meets human interest and proximity. It meets these elements of newsworthiness because it shows the challenges Lawrenz faced, which some people may be able to relate or feel emotion to. It meets proximity because she is an athlete who attends UH Manoa.
