Narrative News

Katy Butler on Greek tragedy, reader comments and how "scenes keep you close to the bone truth of things"

Katy Butler on Greek tragedy, reader comments and how "scenes keep you close to the bone truth of things"

We recently spoke with Katy Butler about her New York Times Magazine piece, “What Broke My Father’s Heart,” our latest Notable Narrative. Butler, whose work has appeared in magazines such as…
July 6, 2010
Andrea Pitzer

Thomas Lake on mythical storytelling and the editing process: “sometimes it’s hard to kill your darlings”

We spoke by phone this week with Atlanta magazine senior editor Thomas Lake about his story, “The Golden Boy and the Invisible Army,” our latest Notable Narrative. Lake, who also…
June 17, 2010
Andrea Pitzer
Pictory’s Laura Miner on curation and storytelling: "I don’t really believe the world is fundamentally different"

Pictory’s Laura Miner on curation and storytelling: "I don’t really believe the world is fundamentally different"

Here at Storyboard, we've written before on the question of words and captions in relation to photos, so we were intrigued by Pictory, an online photography site that assembles images…
June 4, 2010
Andrea Pitzer
In the shadow of the ivory tower: what can university magazines offer narrative journalists?

In the shadow of the ivory tower: what can university magazines offer narrative journalists?

Should university magazine editors regularly challenge their publishers? That’s what Ohio State University Assistant VP for Research Communications Earle Holland suggested last week in a comment on the Knight Science…
May 25, 2010
Andrea Pitzer
Michael Kruse on monkey business and narrative writing: "if a story's not moving, a reader is probably stopping"

Michael Kruse on monkey business and narrative writing: "if a story’s not moving, a reader is probably stopping"

We talked by phone this week with St. Petersburg Times reporter Michael Kruse, the author of our latest Notable Narrative. An unusual profile of a monkey on the loose in…
May 20, 2010
Andrea Pitzer
Ian Johnson on A Mosque in Munich: narrative as “the sugar around the medicine”

Ian Johnson on A Mosque in Munich: narrative as “the sugar around the medicine”

We spoke this week with writer Ian Johnson about his new book, A Mosque in Munich. After winning a Pulitzer Prize in 2001 for his coverage of the Falun Gong movement…
May 12, 2010
Andrea Pitzer
International Journalism Festival in review: talking story in Italy (or, "Is social media really more dangerous than terrorists?")

International Journalism Festival in review: talking story in Italy (or, "Is social media really more dangerous than terrorists?")

Last month, I went to the International Journalism Festival in Italy for a panel on the future of story in the digital era. Since a potential benefit of the growing number…
May 10, 2010
Andrea Pitzer
David Finkel on The Good Soldiers: "I’m not obligated to these men, but I do want to tell a story that they recognize"

David Finkel on The Good Soldiers: "I’m not obligated to these men, but I do want to tell a story that they recognize"

Tomorrow, Washington Post national enterprise editor David Finkel will receive the 2010 J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize for The Good Soldiers, a bruising account of a U.S. Army battalion’s service…
May 3, 2010
Andrea Pitzer
Adam Hochschild on narrative nonfiction, history and finding the next story

Adam Hochschild on narrative nonfiction, history and finding the next story

Adam Hochschild arrived at the narrative journalism conference at Boston University last weekend feeling liberated after an intense six-year relationship.But soon this writer will be looking to fall in love…
April 30, 2010
Janet Heard
New York Times editor Bill Keller on narrative's future: three "threats" to it he's not buying

New York Times editor Bill Keller on narrative’s future: three "threats" to it he’s not buying

New York Times executive editor Bill Keller thinks the death of narrative journalism has been greatly exaggerated—and he brought some examples to Boston University’s 2010 narrative conference Saturday to prove…
April 27, 2010
Beth Macy