Nieman Storyboard

Notable Narratives

A conversation with Nathaniel Rich on “Losing Earth,” human inertia and storytelling as “a moral act”

By Rebecca Boyle

September 21, 2018

In the longest single piece ever published by The New York Times Magazine, the author takes on a crucible decade in the battle against climate change

One Great Sentence

“To the press alone, checkered as it is with abuses, the world is indebted for all the triumphs which have been gained by reason and humanity over error and oppression.”

By Lauren Kessler

September 19, 2018

James Madison, a Founding Father and fourth president of United States

Annotation Tuesday!

After the fires: A surprising story of a haunted hero and the ashes of regret

By Julia Shipley

September 18, 2018

Lizzie Johnson of The San Francisco Chronicle revisits the headlines to ask about the aftermath. Not all endings are happily-ever-after.

Why's This So Good?

An alligator attack sparks a Facebook attack – and an invitation to reconsider meanness

By Tom Warhover

September 13, 2018

After a woman drowns saving her dog from an alligator, a reporter sits on a nearby bench and poses a challenge to the trolls who would shame her

One Great Sentence

“No matter how long we study them, the images are unfathomable. No matter how quickly we look away, they are unforgettable.”

By Jacqui Banaszynski

September 12, 2018

Chuck Haga, Sept. 16, 2001, the Star Tribune of the Twin Cities

Annotation Tuesday!

Christopher Solomon on how he captured the controversial wolf man of Washington

By Linda Shaw

September 11, 2018

No huffing or puffing. Just research and notes. Lots and lots of notes.

One Great Sentence

“Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.”

By Jacqui Banaszynski

September 5, 2018

Poet Mary Oliver, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award

Why's This So Good?

Rebecca Solnit’s long and winding road through the tangled tale of politics

By Jacqui Banaszynski

September 4, 2018

Shop Class: Matching sentence structure to story tone and purpose

One Great Sentence

“Do not despair of our present difficulties. We believe always in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here.”

By Don Nelson

August 29, 2018

U.S. Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, 1936-1998

Annotation Tuesday!

The Pitch (Take Two): Erika Hayasaki on the reality of landing a big freelance story

By Katia Savchuk

August 28, 2018

In the second of a two-parter, the former LA Times reporter scrutinizes the first pitch – and then the revision – that earned her a cover piece in Wired

5 Questions

Parachute reporting in a foreign land: Getting it fast and getting it right

By Shannon Wianecki

August 23, 2018

To cover the Kilauea volcano, Simon Romero had to push past tourist brochures, myths and cliches to discover a more authentic Hawai'i

One Great Sentence

“Words. Words upon the wind. What will endure, perhaps is what I have written. If so, it is enough.”

By Jacqui Banaszynski

August 22, 2018

Journalist and Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Geraldine Brooks

Cynthia Gorney fumbled with gear and interviews to report her first podcast

What an impatient longform wannabe is learning from writing short

Senior editor Kayla Webley Adler scouts for both hard-hitting and fun stories with women at the center. Helpful hint: pitch a story – not a topic

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