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2022 Power of Narrative: The matrix of editor, reporter and story

2022 Power of Narrative: The matrix of editor, reporter and story

How a longtime contributor and a top editor at The New York Times Magazine work together to create award-winning journalism
2022 Power of Narrative: Expert advice on covering drug addiction

2022 Power of Narrative: Expert advice on covering drug addiction

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is one of five posts from the 2022 Power of Narrative conference at Boston University. Read Ellen Barry on first-person narratives, Lizzie Johnson on deadline narratives and Debbie Cenziper…
2022 Power of Narrative: Debbie Cenziper on the reporting-writing partnership

2022 Power of Narrative: Debbie Cenziper on the reporting-writing partnership

Editor’s note: This is one of five posts from the 2022 Power of Narrative conference at Boston University. For other takeaways, see Ellen Barry on first-person narratives and Lizzie Johnson…
Book bans: An assault on knowledge

Book bans: An assault on knowledge

During summers of my childhood, a highlight was the twice-monthly visit by the bookmobile. Our small village had no formal public library at the time — we weren’t blessed with…
2022 Power of Narrative: Lizzie Johnson on questions that shape deadline narratives

2022 Power of Narrative: Lizzie Johnson on questions that shape deadline narratives

As the wildfire reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle, Johnson looked beyond events to people and place for award-winning work

2022 Power of Narrative: Ellen Barry on inserting yourself into the story

The New York Times reporter takes on first-person writing in her profile of a mysterious Indian "prince"
Award season 2022: A peek behind the scenes at some narrative winners

Award season 2022: A peek behind the scenes at some narrative winners

It’s that season. Not erratic spring, but the reliable roll-out of journalism awards, aka a free education in the best of this work and how it’s done. You can roll…
Word play: when clarity and creativity merge

Word play: when clarity and creativity merge

One of my engineer brothers often pesters me about the thicket that is the English language. Silent or paired letters that defy logic: psychic, knave, climb. Words that have letters…
What a modern reading of "The Canterbury Tales" can teach us

What a modern reading of “The Canterbury Tales” can teach us

A journalist's mother tuned her, and then her daughter, into the sound of written language by reading Chaucer aloud in Middle English
Lessons in good writing from the love of a good dog

Lessons in good writing from the love of a good dog

As a man grieves his dog, he argues that the best writing is as much about the feeling as it is about the words