Sunday, August 31, 2008

See Anything Wrong With This Writing?

From Sunday's Minneapolis StarTribune -- Do you see anything wrong with the writing in this story?

An unidentified man robbed a Walgreens in Savage this morning, then led authorities on a chase reaching speeds up to 100 miles-per-hour before flipping his car and dying.

The man walked into the Walgreens at 8100 Eagan Dr. dressed in a ski mask and heavy, winter-like clothing and grabbed one of the employees, said police Capt. David Muelken. The robber pressed a hard object into the employee's back and demanded money.

Store employees in the pharmacy called 911. The suspect fled with an undisclosed amount of money, but was confronted by two police officers in the parking lot, Muelken said.

"Despite the attempts to stop him at the scene, he took off," Muelken said. "He just sped away."

The suspect fled southbound on Hwy. 13 toward Prior Lake. Two Savage police squads with two officers total pursued him. The suspect's vehicle reached speeds in excess of 100 miles-per-hour, Muelken said. The speed limit on Hwy. 13 is 55 miles per hour.

Prior Lake officers were setting up stop sticks near Hwy. 13 and 152nd St just within Prior Lake city boundaries, so the Savage officers pulled back, Muelken said.

"They were slowing down, hoping the suspect's vehicle speed would also slow down," he said.

But the suspect kept driving, lost control of his car and rolled over. He died at the scene.

Muelken said he was about half-a-mile from the stop sticks and could not see them when he lost control of his vehicle. The pursuit lasted about 1 1/2 miles, or about minute, Muelken said.

No one else was injured in the robbery or pursuit. Traffic was light during the pursuit and crash, Muelken said.

It's unclear if the suspect was wearing a seatbelt.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Newspaper to Run Original Fiction

Here's an interesting development--fiction writing that is being generated by a local newspaper. Here is an excerpt--to read the entire article click here.

'Rocky Mountain News' To Run Original Fiction

By Edward Nawotka -- Publishers Weekly, 8/27/2008 3:02:00 PM

As host for the Democratic National Convention, Denver is very much in the spotlight right now. The city is also celebrating its sesquicentennial anniversary this year, an event that is being marked in an unusual fashion by the Rocky Mountain News: The paper has commissioned 11 short stories from local writers that they will publish each Tuesday starting next week.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

ECPA's Bestsellers for August

BESTSELLERS: August Marketplace Bestsellers from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association


Hardcovers


3:16: The Numbers of Hope
Max Lucado. Thomas Nelson

Love and Respect
Emerson Eggerichs. Thomas Nelson

Mistaken Identity
Don & Susie Van Ryn and Newell, Colleen & Whitney Cerak. Howard Books.

Walking with God
John Eldredge. Thomas Nelson

Jesus Calling
Sarah Young. Thomas Nelson

Have a New Kid by Friday
Kevin Leman. Revell/Baker

Dead Heat
Joel C. Rosenberg. Tyndale

Heaven
Randy C. Alcorn . Tyndale

Jesus
Charles R. Swindoll. Thomas Nelson

Adam
Ted Dekker. Thomas Nelson


Paperbacks


The Shack
William P. Young . Windblown Media

A Sister's Hope
Wanda E. Brunstetter. Barbour

90 Minutes in Heaven
Don Piper with Cecil Murphey. Revell/Baker

The List
Robert Whitlow. Thomas Nelson

The Five Love Languages
Gary Chapman. Moody/Northfield

Captivating
John and Stasi Eldredge. Thomas Nelson

The Edge of Recall
Kristen Heitzmann. Bethany House

The Purpose Driven Life
Rick Warren. Zondervan

Wild At Heart
John Eldredge . Thomas Nelson

The Power of a Praying Wife
Stormie Omartian. Harvest House

All rights reserved. ©2008 The ECPA Bestseller Lists are compiled using adult book sales data from Christian retail stores across the U.S.

Welcome, Student Journalists!

Welcome to the Newswriter's Blog, where I hope you will contribute at least as much information as you consume.

Watch this blog regularly, as I'll be posting many articles and links that will contribute to our understanding of journalism today. You're welcome also to bring articles, links, editorial gaffes, and anything that will help us better understand and perform as capable journalists who have a biblical worldview.

Class starts Labor Day Monday evening at 6 -- see you then!