“Three is a magic number,” as the song says. And it’s true. The number three has always been special. How many strikes until a batter is called out? How many tries until you succeed? How many recommended meals in a day? Legs needed to make a table stand? Three. This “life number” is significant in many ways, including your life as a student. In your mathematics class, you have learned the importance of the geometric relationship theory discovered by Pythagorus, who proved a universal relationship among three opposing angles, the triangle. The ancient Egyptians, discussed early in your social studies text, utilized the sturdy features of the triangle to build lasting Pyramids. In science, art, physical education, even health, the triangle is a fundamental unit that holds the key of success in many fields of study. The phenomenal relationship of three doesn’t quit. In language arts, you will find that the love triangle has been utilized for centuries by novelists, dramatists, and today journalists, to engage readers to their craft— their “stories,” their writing.
By human nature, most of us draw quickly as readers to stories about quirky love quandaries—or, indeed, pleasures!—where three are involved. But we too, as writers, can enjoy the triangle—the relationship of three. We can utilize the triangle to help us write with clarity, organization, and conciseness. Three elements of good writing! I know, it’s not as interesting as reading gossip rags about ménages à trios or jilted lovers, but as a writer you can use the triangle yourself to create tales of your own.
Professional writers, particularly those in the journalism field, approach their topics
from an “angle,” limiting the scope of their subject so it is easy to read yet complete—offering researched facts, colorful quotes, detailed background information, as well as answers to the collective 5W-How? questions: who, what, when, where, why, and how. A biography, for example, about your personal hero should cover customary information like who she is in name as well as status, for what she is best known, when her dates are from birth to death, where she is from or has lived, why she is heroic to you, and how she influenced your life. More engaging than this, however, interesting facts and color quotes from this heroic figure and those who knew her make readers engaged with your subject as they read your piece. This part of writing, of course, would require you to research your topic—which itself is a mammoth project. You must know whom your audience is and then find information and fresh facts that elicit the never-knew-that reaction from your readers. The kind they will want to read, and be glad they did.
For your assignment, use The Triangle Writing Technique to come at your topic from at least three (3) fresh and exciting angles. Each should be colorful and engaging, making your writing as interesting to readers as a story of she-loves-him-he-loves-another. At first, use The Triangle Writing Technique to limit the scope of your ideas—only three. Then plan your writing on the Writing Triangle page and use rough notes to record your ideas. Remember that later you will develop each side of your triangle completely, as each side will become its own paragraph for your final graded piece of writing. If you need additional help completing your final piece of creative or formal writing, check out one of the following: the GIST organizer for journalistic and summary writing, the Story Map for narrative writing, or the Answer Sandwich for constructed 5-paragraph writing.