Author Their Eyes Are Wide Open This piece takes on the theme of idealism; the two others in the paper’s series (of which we are aware) took on themes of optimism and fear. These latter pieces… June 21, 2005 A Journey to Water’s Edge We admired the efficient, effective structuring of the reader’s experience, the muscular approach to an unusual narrative. And we think the writing even does Raymond Carver justice.Read “A Journey to… June 21, 2005 Life and Death in the Animal ER This piece would be even better with clear point or “take.” We wondered: How does the author want us to think about this story? What themes could he have explored?… June 13, 2005 Crossing Over This piece is built around an extraordinary character, an extraordinary setting—Gee’s Bend, Ala.—and tells an extraordinary history. Moehringer’s voice does the subject justice: The voice is at once eloquent and… June 8, 2005 Thy Kingdom Come This is a finely reconstructed account of a charismatic leader who moved into a town and changed nearly everything about it. We like Lewan’s opening paragraphs: His language suggests legend… June 6, 2005 Andy’s Last Secret This series got a lot of attention: The Plain Dealer’s Web traffic increased dramatically during the week of its publication, says Stuart Warner, an editor and writing coach at the… June 3, 2005 14 Tips for Building Character This essay is adapted from Rick Meyer’s notes for a talk at the 2005 Nieman Narrative Editors’ Seminar. Rick’s presentation was paired with Laurie Hertzel’s talk on scenes. We probably ought… June 1, 2005 Mower Power to Him Benham strikes the right tone in this piece—friendly and a touch ironic. The piece is punctuated by creative passages and playful quips. But there’s substance here, too: The playfulness is… May 26, 2005 Up From the Holler This is a wonderfully consistent profile, with thorough and effective characterization. Lewin provides telling details that stick to a theme, and yet the portrayal is not simplistic. Her material is… May 26, 2005 The New Plague Like another series by Nutt on this site, “The Seekers,” this piece is not truly narrative. But it shows how a companionable voice and a sense of destination, applied to… May 24, 2005 Previous 1 … 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 … 245 Next