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We often highlight stories from reporters who are well-known in the world of narrative journalism, but a lot of unsung writers slip narratives into print and online daily. Here are some moving stories with sharp scenes or imagery from three people we bet you’ve never heard of.
“Sacia’s Promise,” from Kaitlin Manry of The (Everett) Herald:
“She remembers waking up in the middle of the night, just 2 or 3 years old. Her nightgown is wet. So is her bed. She walks into the living room, calling for her mom. She’s not there. Sacia instead finds a stranger, a man, dividing piles of little white rocks spread across the coffee table. The pearly white stones are like baby teeth and crumble when he touches them. She runs back to her bed and stays up all night, kneeling on wet sheets, waiting for a mother who never comes.”
“Did self-help course lead to woman’s suicide?” from Kristen Gelineau of the Associated Press (who also has a 2007 story on the Nieman Narrative Digest):
“The young woman stood naked in her downtown office building, swaying next to an open window. Her final words were sudden and calm: “I know I am going to jump.” Rebekah Lawrence — so modest and shy she often blushed around others — burst into song and leaped out the window.”
“Father, son get a second chance in the most unlikely place,” from Colleen Jenkins of the St. Petersburg Times:
“A sore back brought Michael Thornton to the jailhouse infirmary, but far worse problems plagued him. He was in trouble — again. Even more devastating, his youngest son had gotten into trouble, too. Serious trouble. Somewhere in the jail, William was wearing the same inmate uniform.”