- Team YP is the perfect place to get your start in the world of journalism
- Learn about reporting, interviewing and writing from the experienced reporters and editors of Young Post
Why should I join?
Learn about the art of reporting from professional journalists who have covered some of the most important events in the world. Take part in workshops about essential skills such as photography, live reporting and interviewing basics. Write for us and have the chance to see your stories go global.
Being part of Team YP is an amazing way to meet inspiring people, a star or two, and make some great friends, too.
In the end, Team YP is all about experiences that challenge you. So whether you aspire to be a frontline reporter, a hard-hitting columnist or a respected film critic, or even if you have no desire to work in media and just want to have fun and learn some writing skills, this is the place for you.
Click here to fill out our application form!
How to write for Team YP
Here are some tips on how to pitch your articles to our editors:
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Before you even start writing, think about what your angle is. Why is this story relevant now? Why will teens in Hong Kong find this interesting? What perspective is missing from most other news outlets?
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Then, send your pitches to us in our Slack channel. You will receive an invite to join this platform when you apply to join Team YP.
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Once your story has been approved, keep in mind that everything must be written in a Google Document, and pictures should be sent in a Google Drive folder.
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Do not add any fancy layout to the body of the text. The story text must not be coloured, indented or contain pictures or tables. If you wish these to be included in a specific part of the article, make a note such as <insert photo1 here> in the text.
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In the document, include your email, name and school name. After the body of the story, give us photo captions with names/numbers which correspond to the photos you will send. eg. Image 2: At the rugby match yesterday were (from left) John Smith, Joe Leung Kwai-yan, David Lam Ho-on, Kibble Chang Ho-ching, Heidi McCleod and coach Jayvee Khan. Photographer: James Wong Chun-on (student)
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In the first sentence of the story, tell us what happened: Michael Tsang Wai-in, 14, of Shatin College broke the all-Hong Kong record for the Under-16 100 metres at Tseung Kwan O sports ground on Saturday. By the end of the second paragraph, you should have answered the who, what, why, when, where and how of the story. Next, put in the best quote you have from the whole story. Then create a quote-detail sandwich until you are done.
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Before you send your work in, check that you have spelled all the proper nouns (names, places, school names, etc) correctly.
Photographs don’t have to be a nightmare if you follow these guidelines
- All photos must have captions.
- Label your pictures numerically (Pic 1, Pic 2, Pic 3) and then describe what is happening in them like this:
- Pic 1: Patrick Chan, captain of the Blue House team, makes a 3-point shot in a game against Diocesan Boys.
- Pic 2: Participants try to pop a balloon with a dart at a game booth during the school’s annual English Festival.
- All photos must tell us who took the picture or who gave you the picture. Never take pictures off the internet.
- If there are five people or fewer in the photograph, we need all their names, captioned from left to right.
- Don't spam us with loads of photos. You have the power to decide which are the best and send only those. Five good photos are really a maximum, but feel free to indicate if there are more.
- Pictures must be high resolution (at least 300dpi). Try for action shots that add emotion to the story.
What makes a good picture?
- Only a few people in the shot – large group pictures are static and don’t work for newspapers and online.
- Action. Rather than ask someone to stand still to have their picture taken, get them to do something and photograph them while they’re doing it. Often you can ask them to use their hands to explain something to you and that way you will get a range of expressions to photograph.
- A clean background – pictures taken against a solid background, like a plainly painted wall, always look better than those taken with random strangers or equipment behind the subject.
- We need both vertical and horizontal shots for stories.
- Think about what the story is about and what the picture will say about it, and try to select the best picture for that.
Any questions?
If you have any questions about the formatting or the process of how to submit your article, please email [email protected] or [email protected].
How-to guides for writing specific types of articles
A guide to reporting on school events
Writing an op-ed with purpose and style
And here's some info you'll need to write almost every article: