5 Questions

A literary take on a hole in the ground

A conversation with David Margolick, who takes a deep dive into a NIMBY story playing out in his Upper West Side neighborhood

By Chip Scanlan • June 19, 2019

The private swimming pool being dug on West 69h Street in Manhattan

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One Great Sentence

“There are more what-ifs than there are stars in the sky.”

New Yorker writer Jill Lepore, in a profile of Ruth Bader Ginsberg

By Jacqui Banaszynski • June 14, 2019

Narrative News

A writer who cared enough to strap in; an editor who cared enough to show up

Tommy Tomlinson pays tribute to Charlotte Observer editor Frank Barrows

By Tommy Tomlinson • June 13, 2019

Featured Contributors

Katia Savchuk

Julia Shipley

Tom Warhover

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Investigative Reporting Short Narratives Tom Junod Poverty Narrative Journalism
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Annotation Tuesday!

A “book report” on The Mueller Report

By Jennifer Hager
June 11, 2019

A high school English teacher grades Washington Post Alexandra Petri's column on one of the most important documents of our times

Digital Storytelling

Rethinking how we see and understand news — and who frames it

By Nancy Richards Farese
June 7, 2019

As the digital revolution challenges the trustworthiness of visual images, it also inspires diverse and creative ways to portray a truer, more complex story

Notable Narratives

Not just a guilty pleasure: “Game of Thrones” holds essential writing lessons

By Roy Peter Clark
June 5, 2019

Esteemed writing teacher Roy Peter Clark shares the 12 things he learned (or re-learned) about storytelling from the epic HBO series

Annotation Tuesday!

A sex worker plunges to her death and a reporter demands to know: Who was she?

By Chip Scanlan
June 4, 2019

Dan Barry led a team at The New York Times to uncover a name, a life history, and the sinister world of power and exploitation on 40th Road

Narrative News

Getting in the writing zone

By Jacqui Banaszynski
May 31, 2019

Can writers achieve flow to ease the struggles of the work and soar?

Why's This So Good?

A tribute: On Herman Wouk and the incandescence of “Youngblood Hawke”

By Chip Scanlan
May 28, 2019

A 12-year-old Chip Scanlan "borrowed" his brother's book, read under the covers by flashlight, and vowed to become a writer

Short Takes

What a “true war story” is really about

By Jacqui Banaszynski
May 27, 2019

Postscript from a reader about the powerful and troubling narratives of war

One Great Sentence

“A true war story is never moral.”

By Jacqui Banaszynski
May 23, 2019

Tim O'Brien, from his novel "The Things They Carried"

5 Questions

What’s in a 50-year-old photo? The lingering gutwrench of the Vietnam War

By Steven A. Smith
May 23, 2019

An iconic photo from the 1968 Tet Offensive is revisited, raising questions about memory, identity, and and how we honor those who served

Story Craft

Roy Peter Clark on the search for the “embedded narrative”

By Roy Peter Clark
May 21, 2019

How to find a compelling storyline in arts coverage — or any beat topic

Narrative News

Reflections on the challenges and triumphs of masculinity in changing times

By Kari Howard
May 16, 2019

An anthology of profiles by award-winning journalist Steve Oney is out in paperback, offering lessons in an essential journalistic artform

Annotation Tuesday!

On trial for the Ghost Ship warehouse fire: Was an accused villain miscast as the bad guy?

By Katia Savchuk
May 14, 2019

For "In the Ashes of Ghost Ship," Elizabeth Weil saw beyond existing news coverage to explore a story no one else had told

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