Ah, the coveted front page. Thousands have tried, and thousands have failed. HackerNoon receives hundreds of story submissions every day, yet, only the best of the best make it to the coveted front-page placement. With only 5 placements per day, here’s how you can maximize the chances of your story being left, right, and center of readers. best of the best your your Front-page selection isn’t luck—it’s craft + timing + packaging. Editors aren’t chasing “good stories”; they’re chasing the best possible story right now that reflects the brand, fuels conversation, and respects readers’ time. Editors weigh five levers—hit at least three hard to make it to the top: five three Timeliness: Why this today? (embargo, breaking change, looming deadline) Novelty: What’s new here? (scoop, contrarian take, unseen data, leaked doc) Impact: Who’s affected and how? (policy, price, privacy, safety, jobs) Authority: Why us and why you? (access, expertise, proven beat depth) Package: Can we show it? (original charts, annotated screenshots, demo video) Timeliness: Why this today? (embargo, breaking change, looming deadline) Timeliness Novelty: What’s new here? (scoop, contrarian take, unseen data, leaked doc) Novelty Impact: Who’s affected and how? (policy, price, privacy, safety, jobs) Impact Authority: Why us and why you? (access, expertise, proven beat depth) Authority Package: Can we show it? (original charts, annotated screenshots, demo video) Package Get those right, and you won’t be chasing the front page—the front page will be chasing you. Here’s how. Timeliness — Why This, Today? Timeliness — Why This, Today? Today Every great story answers one question better than any other: why now? Editors live by the clock. A piece that could have run yesterday—or next week—won’t survive a morning pitch meeting. why now? Build an instinct for momentum. The closer your story feels to the pulse, the better your odds. Speed up your workflow, jump into the following templates to rush right into a draft. Speed up your workflow, jump into the following templates to rush right into a draft. Speed up your workflow, jump into the following templates to rush right into a draft. following templates following templates Novelty — What’s New Here? No editor wants a recap of something the entire internet already summarized yesterday. Novelty is about new information or a new frame of understanding. new information or a new frame of understanding That could mean an unreleased data point, a leaked doc, or a fresh contrarian angle that reframes the story everyone else missed. Ask yourself: Can readers learn something here they can’t get anywhere else? Can readers learn something here they can’t get anywhere else? Use HackerNoon’s Tech Company News In Context template to stand out of the riff raff. Use HackerNoon’s Tech Company News In Context template to stand out of the riff raff. Use HackerNoon’s Tech Company News In Context template to stand out of the riff raff. Tech Company News In Context template Tech Company News In Context template Impact — Who’s Affected, and How? Editors greenlight stories that matter. “Matter” means people, money, privacy, safety, or jobs. The broader or deeper the impact, the more shareable and defensible the coverage. Don’t assume readers will connect the dots—spell it out. Who gains? Who loses? What changes tomorrow because of this? The story’s human consequence is what makes it front-page material, not just its technological cleverness. Who gains? Who loses? What changes tomorrow because of this? Authority — Why Us, and Why You? Authority — Why Us, and Why You? Every newsroom has its domains of trust. Maybe yours is gaming hardware, data privacy, or emerging AI tools. Editors will prioritize a story if it feels like it’s coming from someone who owns that beat. That’s “authority.” Show your reporting depth—it’s evidence that you can tell this story better, faster, and more accurately than anyone else. reporting depth Keep an eye out for HackerNoon's Blogging Courses if you want to sharpen your blogging skills. Keep an eye out for HackerNoon's Blogging Courses if you want to sharpen your blogging skills. Keep an eye out for HackerNoon's Blogging Courses if you want to sharpen your blogging skills. HackerNoon's Blogging Courses HackerNoon's Blogging Courses Package — Can We Show It? Package — Can We Show It? Good writing gets you in the room. Strong packaging gets you on the homepage. Even the cleanest prose can’t compete with a weak visual presentation. Always pitch with a visual in mind: a teardown photo, a side-by-side benchmark, a GIF showing the glitch, a map of where layoffs hit hardest. If you can show what others only tell, you’ll almost always win the slot. show tell Use the HackerNoon AI Image Generator to create your own images! Use the HackerNoon AI Image Generator to create your own images! Use the HackerNoon AI Image Generator to create your own images! HackerNoon AI Image Generator HackerNoon AI Image Generator You don’t need to max out every lever—but your story should lean hard on at least three. lean hard If you can answer all five clearly, your editor won’t just approve your story—they’ll feature it. Because front-page stories aren’t about luck or politics. They’re about precision—knowing which levers to pull, and when. Good luck!
