Writing—More on Nut Grafs

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What is a “nut graf”? Is it an essential component of the well-constructed story?

The short answer is this: The nut graf, coming high in the story (~3rd/4th graf, depending), answers the “So what?” question. After the lead—summary or narrative or whatever—it is a pause as the story gets under way that explains in a tight, focused kernel why the story is important. Does it repeat a summary lead? No. It expands the summary lead “hook” to give the reader the larger picture.

A summary lead might say:

Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama met for the third and final televised debate of their long and hard-fought campaign at Hofstra University Wednesday in an encounter that highlighted their differences on economic issues and someone called “Joe the Plumber.”

The nut graf, coming after a background and possibly a quote graf, would expand that summary to answer reader questions, highlight implications and address the “So what?” question—why does it matter?

Though tough and substantive, the debate apparently did little to change the trajectory toward election day, less than three weeks away, as the Democratic candidate maintains a substantial lead in national polls

For more on Nut Grafs, see these links through the Poynter Institute for Media Studies:

1. The Nut Graf, Part I

2. The Nut Graf and Breaking News

3. The (Sometimes) Superfluous Nut

. . . and this from “No Train, No Gain,” the site for writing coaches:

1. Nut Grafs

2. “So What?” Graphs [sic]