Search results for “why's this so good”

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"Why’s this so good?" No. 55: Dave Gardetta, inside the Hollywood scene

Around the turn of the millennium, big changes swept Hollywood. Suddenly and as never before, screens were clotted with the teen-fodder likes of Scream and Buffy the Vampire Slayer and…
August 21, 2012

"Why’s this so good?" No. 51: Gary Smith and Coach O’Leary’s lies

We may as well begin the way Gary Smith begins – with a question, and near the end. Why is it that when you finish reading “Lying in Wait,” Smith’s…
July 24, 2012

"Why’s this so good?" No. 50: Jennifer Gonnerman and real lives

I often tell students, both undergraduate and graduate, that beautiful stories are everywhere. You can head off to Iraq and Afghanistan and pen a riveting war epic, but you can…
July 17, 2012

"Why’s this so good?" No. 49: Wendy Brenner and the snake master

When the Winter 2005 issue of The Oxford American arrived, I flipped through the pages, glimpsed the reptilian close-ups accompanying Wendy Brenner’s profile of Dean Ripa, creator and caretaker of…
July 10, 2012

"Why’s this so good?" No. 48: Burkhard Bilger noodles a catfish

The story I want to tell you about, “In the Monster's Maw,” was published in 1997, and that's important. Because in 1997, when Burkhard Bilger went out to Oklahoma for…
June 27, 2012

"Why’s this so good?" No. 47: Calvin Trillin and classic Edna Buchanan

Where is Edna Buchanan when we need her? Admittedly, the lede on this recent Associated Press story wasn’t half bad:MIAMI — A witness says a naked man chewing on the face of…
June 19, 2012

"Why’s this so good?" No. 46: David Gonzalez and faith

When I decided to become a journalist, I believed that I had to choose between writing and my love for visual imagery and sound. David Gonzalez’s “House Afire,” a three-part…
June 12, 2012
"Why's this so good?" No. 43: "Radio Diaries" on teenage drama

"Why’s this so good?" No. 43: "Radio Diaries" on teenage drama

Boxing stories leave me cold. Like many sports stories, they seem to assume an audience of fans who will be thrilled − rather than sickened − by a narrative built on grueling workouts, bloodied…
May 22, 2012

"Why’s this so good?" No. 40: Roy Blount Jr. lets Jerry Clower talk

Over the years Roy Blount Jr. has written a number of superb magazine articles, one of my favorites being “Knock ’im Out, Jay-ree!” a profile of the great Southern raconteur…
May 1, 2012
"Why's this so good?" No. 37: Ben Hecht walks the high wire of voice

"Why’s this so good?" No. 37: Ben Hecht walks the high wire of voice

I love teaching “The Pig” because students, especially narrative nonfiction students, always freak out. “Wait, we can do this?” they want to know.Yes, you can do this and I’d like to…
April 10, 2012