In this first-person piece, we liked the wealth of dialogue, rich scenes, vivid characters and satisfying narrative arc. Darr uses a familiar structure: She starts the piece with the moment just before the climax of the narrative, then goes back … Read more
This 7-part series’ strengths, it seems to us, are first, its ability to keep readers wondering, its handling of suspense. (Notice the suspenseful section endings in particular.) Second, the series persuasively links a particular narrative to larger social themes. One … Read more
We admire this piece for the way its tone and content match its protagonist’s own qualities. Elizabeth Balraj is the exacting and dignified coroner of Cuyahoga County. Long’s writing, too, is precise and composed. We like the considered attention to … Read more
This series was written and reported by Anh Do and Teri Sforza. We admired the masterful blend of emotional material—the boy’s and his family’s experience of separation, loss—with engaging explications of Buddhist traditions and belief. The piece also rightly emphasizes … Read more
We liked this piece because it’s well written—good verbs, vivid scenes—and because it applies narrative to a complicated sociological subject: the internationalization of a formerly fairly homogeneous community. LaForgia gets at that dynamic by portraying the life of a single … Read more
Two children were killed and two injured in a hit-and-run accident. This series tells, in long form, the story of two women—the mother of the children and the young woman who hit them—and the defense lawyer who took the case … Read more
Nazario’s reporting for this series was remarkable. She followed Enrique for part of his journey—from the U.S.-Mexican border to North Carolina—and reconstructed the rest. As part of her research into his experience, she rode seven freight trains, hitched a ride … Read more
This is a real story, structurally speaking: The main character’s problem is clear from the outset, and we are engaged by the central question of whether he will succeed. Secondary dramatic threads—the missing mother, the dissatisfied girlfriend—enrich the narrative and … Read more
Mark Kramer cautions his students against writing “How I Got the Story” stories. A particularly amateurish version of such a story might begin: “I felt nervous as I walked into Jane Doe’s elegant office. I knew she was one of … Read more
The amused view on this piece’s topic makes it an entertaining read—while taking inventory of the consequences of high urban rents. It also acknowledges that not all crises are washed in tears. Read “Talk About Renting a … Read more
