Nieman Storyboard

When syncopation rocks a nation: “Hamilton” enthralls fifth-graders (and parents) with a rockin’ story of history

By Kim Cross

November 28, 2018

Shop class: What the hit musical teaches about the art and reach of narrative

Braving the Drake Passage, swimming with leopard seals and interviewing a non-talker

By Cheryl Katz

December 4, 2018

National Geographic writer Craig Welch drafts behind visual storytellers and turns silent subjects into the compelling voices of climate change

“We don’t carry that brand, but I think Gimbel’s does.”

By Jacqui Banaszynski

November 28, 2018

Macy's sales clerk in "Miracle on 34th Street" (the original)

Large writing lessons from a small space

By Jacqui Banaszynski and Traci Angel

November 22, 2018

The many things you can learn by writing and sending thank-you notes. Bonus: You'll make someone very happy. What could be better?

“…readers want to feel secure in the hands of the author.”

By Jacqui Banaszynski

November 21, 2018

Novelist John Sandford (aka Pulitzer Prize winning journalist John Camp)

Eulogy for Paradise: A breaking news story framed as the profile and history of a town

By Jacqui Banaszynski

November 15, 2018

Lizzie Johnson of the San Francisco Chronicle dared a different route to a dramatic fire story

“And a lean, silent figure slowly fades into the gathering darkness, aware at last that in this world, with great power there must also come – great responsibility!”

By Jacqui Banaszynski

November 14, 2018

Stan Lee, co-creator of Spider Man

Serendipity brings two men together on the football field, and in the rest of life

By JD Malone

November 13, 2018

How Sarah Spain and a team at ESPN reported the amazing true tale of a father and son who found each other without knowing who they were

A brother’s death, written by a sister, channeling their mother’s voice

By Greg Bowers

November 8, 2018

Writer Kitty Sheehan reconstructs the day of her brother's death from her mother's perspective — observed, interviewed and imagined

“Developing a writer’s voice is almost a process of unlearning, one analogous to children’s painting.”

By Jacqui Banaszynski

November 7, 2018

Susan Orlean from "Telling True Stories: A Nonfiction Writers' Guide"

Thoughts on voice: What it is (and isn’t). And how to find yours

By Esther Wei-Yun Landhuis

November 6, 2018

A panel of writers and editors offer tips on nurturing your authentic writing voice, and modulating it for your story and audience

The Power of Storytelling: Daring to bear witness to society’s villains

By Cătălina Albeanu

November 2, 2018

How do you tell the story of an extremist without allowing your own judgment to cloud your reporting? How do you interview people who are racist or violent, white supremacists or members of terrorist organizations? And why do we tell the stories of the bad guys in the first… Read More

"Ephemeral" true stories that inform, surprise and delight

A Washington Post editor raps to the rhythm of the Broadway musical

Sarah Berns took Outside readers smokejumping (and brothel-hopping). Now she takes us on a screenwriter's journey through narrative

Featured topics