Short Takes

The story calling you: Todd Frankel connects with one St. Louis Cardinals fan

Some events cry out for narrative treatment. Take a look at this wire story about a St. Louis Cardinal fan injured in Pittsburgh and the assist he got from player…
October 12, 2009
Andrea Pitzer

Innocence and suspense: David Grann’s “Trial by Fire”

David Grann “Trial by Fire,” from the September 7 issue of The New Yorker, recounts the story of Cameron Todd Willingham, executed in Texas for setting fire to his house and…
October 4, 2009
Andrea Pitzer

The Oregonian’s Shawn Levy on how to find the story

At last weekend’s American Association of Sunday and Feature Editors conference, keynote speaker Shawn Levy spoke about "getting the story" and the connections between writing books and journalism. The film…
September 28, 2009
Andrea Pitzer

The Boo Radley character

Today at the American Association of Sunday and Feature Editors (AASFE) conference, St. Petersburg Times reporter Lane DeGregory talked about how her Pulitzer-winning feature “The Girl in the Window” came…
September 24, 2009
Andrea Pitzer
Dissecting disaster: Chris Jones' "The End of Mystery"

Dissecting disaster: Chris Jones’ "The End of Mystery"

The first Notable Narrative for September takes a police procedural as its template. The article begins with the loss of a Sikorsky S-92 helicopter in March 2009 off the coast…
September 12, 2009
Andrea Pitzer

Playing the right way: Tom Friend on his Chauncey Billups piece for ESPN.com

Excerpts from a July 2009 interview with Tom Friend on his story “The Disposable Superstar”:How long did you take on the Chauncey Billups story?I spent a week in Denver and I…
July 24, 2009
Andrea Pitzer

Thomas Curwen interview on "Waiting for death, alone and unafraid"

From a March 2009 email interview with Thomas Curwen:Q: How did you first meet Edwin Shneidman, and what made him interesting to you? A: I met Edwin Shneidman in 1999…
April 3, 2009
Andrea Pitzer