Articles

Reading fiction through the filter of current events

Reading fiction through the filter of current events

Who we are when we encounter a story can have a lot to do with how we engage with that story and what meaning we take from it. Our age,…
March 2, 2022
Jacqui Banaszynski
The battle for Ukraine is also a battle for sustained attention

The battle for Ukraine is also a battle for sustained attention

EDITOR’S NOTE: This essay is excerpted from a Storyboard newsletter originally published Friday, Feb. 25, 2022 Just one day into the madness being visited upon Ukraine,…
March 2, 2022
Jacqui Banaszynski
The pioneering narrative work of "girl stunt reporters"

The pioneering narrative work of “girl stunt reporters”

A while ago, preparing to teach a literary nonfiction class, I reread Nellie Bly’s “Ten Days in a Mad House,” her account of going undercover in 1887 into Blackwell’s Insane…
February 24, 2022
Kim Todd
So you want to write a book? Part 2: Agents, queries and timelines

So you want to write a book? Part 2: Agents, queries and timelines

You’ve written that gripping long-form story, and you’re champing at the bit to get a book deal. What do you do?My own journey started with a lot of wrong turns…
February 23, 2022
Bryan Denson
So you want to write a book? Part 1: Have a strong story and resilient ego

So you want to write a book? Part 1: Have a strong story and resilient ego

All the great writers have proffered wisdom on the craft, the best-in-show quote being Norman Mailer’s: “Writing books is the closest men come to childbearing.” But the literary sages have…
February 22, 2022
Bryan Denson
What personal pain reminded two writers about the gift listening

What personal pain reminded two writers about the gift listening

The longer I dwell in the world, the more I believe our greatest values, as human beings and as journalists, come through empathy and listening. Also, alas, our greatest failures.…
February 18, 2022
Jacqui Banaszynski
Reporting trauma: Nathan Rott on the tragedy of the Granite Mountain Hotshots

Reporting trauma: Nathan Rott on the tragedy of the Granite Mountain Hotshots

The NPR reporter honored his "no-knock" rule to find personal stories about the loss of a wildlands firefighting crew
February 17, 2022
Clarise Larson
How a reporter found the true story behind a false story of sex trafficking

How a reporter found the true story behind a false story of sex trafficking

Jessica Contrera of The Washington Post revealed the numerous victims of a viral internet thread, from a retailer to a 13-year-old girl
February 15, 2022
Trevor Pyle
Comedian Chris Gethard on the power of listening

Comedian Chris Gethard on the power of listening

Chris Gethard’s career may be the most zigzag-filled in comedy.He’s the author of several books, including “Lose Well,” on the importance of failure; an actor who’s appeared in high-profile TV…
February 11, 2022
Trevor Pyle
Reporting trauma: Moni Basu on following an earthquake survivor

Reporting trauma: Moni Basu on following an earthquake survivor

“When you don’t see something with your own eyes, it’s almost not real.”Moni Basu wrote three stories about Falone Maxi, a young woman who was  with her friend, Mica Joseph,…
February 10, 2022
Gentry Hale