Nell Lake

"The archbishop’s wedding made headlines around the world," Manseau e-mailed us, "but it struck me that no one had really attempted to tell his story in a personal, engaging way.…

As part of his 12-step program, William Beebe apologizes to Liz Seccuro for the harm he caused her. He and others expect Seccuro to forgive and move on. Not surprisingly,…

This series was written and reported by Kevin Van Valkenburg and Lem Satterfield. It follows a cast of characters through a football season, focusing on one central game. It explores…

This is an effective and persuasive coming-of-age tale. It’s persuasive in part because it’s not entirely a story of triumph. Shawn McDonald struggles and rails against losses along with his…

This narrative follows the efforts of one woman to help her son, a 10-year-old with progeria, a disease that causes rapid aging and early death. The mother is also a…

This elegiac piece is at once memoir and a tribute to both DeSilva’s own father and his generation. It poses a mystery, draws readers in with it and resolves it,…

This story about the construction of Boston’s new Institute of Contemporary Art building is a good example of involving readers in an overarching narrative, covering a lot of ground in…

Getlen wants us readers to consider—and really, to be persuaded—that competitive eating is just as much a sport as football. We weren’t convinced, but Getlen makes an interesting case. He…

This story received the AAAS best science writing award in 2006 for newspapers and appears in Best Science Writing 2007, edited by Gina Kolata. It’s a fine example of both…

This is one of those stories that makes us believe all over again in journalism, in its power to bring truth to light. Pasternak’s use of narrative in certain chapters…