Story Craft

Not just SayWhat, but SezWho?

A magazine writer and editor argues that it's not enough to fact-check our reporting.— we have to know-check our conclusions

By Dale Keiger • August 12, 2022

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Personal Essays

Unlearning old-school lessons from a J-school education

An early-career experience taught a journalist that the people she writes about are more than cardboard cut-outs for her stories

By Lauren Kessler • August 11, 2022

From the Editor

Bill Russell, unbeatable on and off the court

Reflections on the death of an American great by two sportswriters who know that games reflect life — and can make for serious journalism

By Jacqui Banaszynski • August 9, 2022

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Chip Scanlan

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Julia Shipley

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Roy Peter Clark

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Short Takes

Punning the way to a point

By Jacqui Banaszynski
August 5, 2022

Political satirist Dana Milbank of the Washington Post digs deep into Donald Trump's latest tax-deductible venture

Story Craft

Yardscaping your way to a story

By Jacqui Banaszynski
August 3, 2022

A writer has a flagstone path built at her cabin, and watches the story process in action, one stone (word, paragraph, scene) at a time

From the Editor

Do Not Erase! the magic that happens on deadline

By Jacqui Banaszynski
August 2, 2022

Some thoughts on creation of the "daily miracle" that few people ever see

Why's This So Good?

Dan Barry, baseball and the love of the (writing) game

By Jacqui Banaszynski
July 27, 2022

An exploration of mud becomes a meditation on America's pastime through the sharp, romantic view of The New York Times master storyteller

Story Annotations

How Rolling Stone revisited a mass tragedy to ‘humanize the horrendous’

By Chip Scanlan
July 26, 2022

After the Florida condo collapse, Matt Sullivan vowed not to forget a teen survivor. The year-later profile has credibility, empathy and a haunting ending

From the Editor

Bear essentials and beyond

By Jacqui Banaszynski
July 28, 2022

A few shares on bears and books, puppies and propaganda, football and failures of leadership

Story Annotations

Shaping a historic narrative: The Jan. 6 hearings as story craft

By Jacqui Banaszynski
July 21, 2022

The public hearings of the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol draw on core narrative elements

Narrative News

The Mayborn is back! In person and online

By Jacqui Banaszynski
July 20, 2022

Save the dates, register and enter your work: One of America's premier narrative journalism conferences is returning at a new venue

From the Editor

Francis X. Clines: The consummate newspaper journalist

By Jacqui Banaszynski
July 19, 2022

From covering New York characters to the Cold War to The Troubles in Ireland, Clines was a master of credibility and elegance

Story Craft

Raise your glasses to four lessons all writers can learn by judging craft beer

By Charles Scudder
July 15, 2022

A newsman applies core journalistic skills as he brews, sips and rates homebrew

Narrative News

A tribute to the consummate reporter/writer: Francis X. Clines

By Roy Peter Clark
July 14, 2022

Writing coach and scholar Roy Peter Clark offers memories and wisdom gleaned from the career and clips of a consummate newsman and storyteller

Personal Essays

So you want to write a book? Brace yourself for some serious self-promotion and, yes, TikTok

By Lauren Kessler
July 13, 2022

First published in the wine-and-dine era, Lauren Kessler now manages a blog, Instagram account, YouTube videos and more to help market her books

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