Narrative News

The power of historical nonfiction: "Let me tell you what happened right on this spot a long time ago"

The power of historical nonfiction: “Let me tell you what happened right on this spot a long time ago”

A weekly roundup of some favorite things, for your reading and listening pleasure
December 1, 2017
Kari Howard
We look under the storytelling hood, with great tips on pitching *and* writing

We look under the storytelling hood, with great tips on pitching *and* writing

We really looked under the hood of literary journalism this week, with wonderful tips on how to pitch and write your stories. In the second installment of our series “The…
November 17, 2017
Kari Howard
Reporter Tom French and "the three most beautiful words in the English language: What happens next?”

Reporter Tom French and “the three most beautiful words in the English language: What happens next?”

Note from Storyboard editor Kari Howard: Reporter Tom French recently spoke at the annual Power of Storytelling conference in Bucharest, Romania. His speech, a remarkable feat of storytelling about storytelling,…
November 16, 2017
Thomas French
"Won’t it be a fine day when anthology specifically focused on women journalists won’t make any sense?”

“Won’t it be a fine day when anthology specifically focused on women journalists won’t make any sense?”

This week we spotlighted talented women on Storyboard — be they writers, performers or proto-feminists of the 18th century. I love this quote from Adrian LaBlanc, one of the women included…
November 10, 2017
Kari Howard
For Halloween week, supernatural podcasts and the haunting of Joan Didion

For Halloween week, supernatural podcasts and the haunting of Joan Didion

A weekly roundup of some favorite things, for your reading and listening pleasure
November 3, 2017
Kari Howard
The Joan Didion documentary: a nephew's loving portrait of "a cool customer"

The Joan Didion documentary: a nephew’s loving portrait of “a cool customer”

In her memoir about the death of her husband, John Gregory Dunne, Joan Didion writes about the night she lost the man who can only be described as her other…
November 2, 2017
Kari Howard
Reporting on racism in America: One writer confronted with rage, another driven by it

Reporting on racism in America: One writer confronted with rage, another driven by it

These words from journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones sum up this week’s posts on racism and white supremacism better than I ever could: “The truth is even though this is fundamental and foundational…
October 27, 2017
Kari Howard
Nikole Hannah-Jones on reporting about racial inequality: "What drives me is rage"

Nikole Hannah-Jones on reporting about racial inequality: “What drives me is rage”

New York Times Magazine writer Nikole Hannah-Jones doesn’t pretend to be an objective observer of her subject: racial segregation.[pq]”Our job as storytellers – if we want to get people to…
October 26, 2017
Kari Howard
The power of immersion journalism -- for a year, or the moment we're living in now

The power of immersion journalism — for a year, or the moment we’re living in now

Immersion journalism usually means the kind of reporting that Ted Genoways does: He and his photographer wife spent a year practically living with a soybean farmer and his family in…
October 20, 2017
Kari Howard
This week Storyboard launched a series on the unicorn of longform: the story pitch

This week Storyboard launched a series on the unicorn of longform: the story pitch

I’m so excited about this series we’ve just launched on Storyboard called “The Pitch,” in which we try to demystify the unicorn of longform: the story pitch. Contributor Katia Savchuk will…
October 13, 2017
Kari Howard