Well into the 2003 holiday season, and the cliché elves are hard at work, says Mike Weinstein, an editor with The Charlotte Observer. As reported by Chip Scanlan of The Poynter Institute, Weinstein issued a memo recently advising staffers to resist the temptation to put a holiday spin on every story, headline or caption.

As early as 23-shopping-days-‘til, Weinstein had already observed a plethora of seasonal news leads.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times for retailers…” (Probably the worst cliché offense, regardless of season.)

“The clock is ticking faster than you can say, ‘Ho, ho, ho.’”

“Chestnuts roasting on the open fire.”

“’Tis the season—for sharing hats, heading indoors, and head lice.”

“Ah, the leaves are turning crimson, gold, and orange.”

“Eventually, the holiday blahs afflict most of us. But writers and editors have a special obligation to inoculate their prose against the cliché bug that infects so much print and broadcast copy during this season,” Scanlan said. “Like the best gifts, it will take a little extra effort. Clichés and stereotypes float on top of our brains, easily making their way into first drafts. To write well you may have to write badly first—another reason to start writing early.”

As the subject of a holiday story interview, you can’t prevent the reporter from falling into the cliché trap. The reporter will write the copy without you there. But knowing the writing challenges reporters face, especially during the holidays, may give you reason to think through your interview agenda a bit more thoroughly. Can you offer messages with a holiday flavor without careening into the cliché pit?

According to Scanlan, humor columnist Mitch Broder of The Journal News in New York identified the 10 clichés of lead writing. “Even a great lead can’t guarantee that a reader won’t stop reading. But when I come upon one of these, I usually won’t even start,” Broder said.

The cliché lead lists includes:

The “move over” lead: “Move over Steven Spielberg, here comes Larry Bulansky of Shrub Oak.”

The “came early” lead: “Easter came early for Irma Blumkin, when gang members pelted her with nine dozen eggs.”

The “one word as a paragraph” lead
Springtime.
Baseball
Lentils.
Herpes.

There are others, such as “the quote lead,” “the question lead,” and the “times they are a-changin’” lead. You may enjoy reading the entire list. Meanwhile, do what you can to prevent some poor, struggling reporter from falling victim to the cliché malady.

Broder’s advice to journalists: “Think again. When something is the first thing that pops into you head, yours is probably not the first head it popped into.”

The advice bodes well for your own interviews and for those your counsel.