Strictly Q&A

David Grann Part 1: A deep-dive into "The Wager"

David Grann Part 1: A deep-dive into “The Wager”

The New Yorker writer and bestselling author — who says he's not a “natural writer” — shares the research and writing process behind his latest book
When a Pulitzer-winning book is banned

When a Pulitzer-winning book is banned

Robert Samuels' co-authored book about the life and death of George Floyd was labeled inappropriate for students at a Tennessee high school
Jennifer Senior follows a personal trail to undo the erasure of her disabled aunt

Jennifer Senior follows a personal trail to undo the erasure of her disabled aunt

The Atlantic writer uncovers the painful truth behind the treatment of a generation of Americans warehoused in asylums and denied by families
Nonfiction author Kim Cross breaks down how to sell a book proposal

Nonfiction author Kim Cross breaks down how to sell a book proposal

The narrative journalist details the upside of rejection, the importance of timing, the value of a good agent and the reality of advances
Chasing the emotional escape of Dungeons & Dragons on death row

Chasing the emotional escape of Dungeons & Dragons on death row

Author and one-time prisoner Keri Blakinger worked through nicknames, bureaucracies and emotional truths to write about gaming on death row
A meditation on violence, grief and healing in Uvalde, Texas

A meditation on violence, grief and healing in Uvalde, Texas

By Trevor PyleWhen a former student killed 19 students and two teachers in a Uvalde, Texas, elementary school last year, the ache spread worldwide. One who felt the pain keenly…
Sally Jenkins on her intimate interview with Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert

Sally Jenkins on her intimate interview with Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert

The Washington Post sports columnist used a career of trust and "sincere curiosity" to talk to the tennis greats about rivalry, cancer and friendship
Six profiles and a first-person approach give dignity to the many faces of homelessness

Six profiles and a first-person approach give dignity to the many faces of homelessness

By Trevor PyleIn opening paragraphs of her Chicago Reader piece about six deaths in Chicago last year, Katie Prout makes a rare and daring admission: She reveals that she keeps…
Auschwitz stories told by those who lived them

Auschwitz stories told by those who lived them

The director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Poland has collected hundreds of survivor testimonials, told with a rawness that no outsider could
How a documentary filmmaker captures "lived experience"

How a documentary filmmaker captures “lived experience”

By Kristen ChinA self-described “perennial schoolboy” at heart, Omar Mullick is both romantic daydreamer and pragmatic journalist. It’s in the first few moments speaking with him that I can tell…