Articles

Be a Reporter, Not a Guest

Be a Reporter, Not a Guest

Interview time is not social time, and a mistake that younger narrative reporters frequently make is to be too nice and too obliging and to act too much like the…

‘Reporting is the key to good journalism.’

Steven A. HolmesIn daily journalism, you often don’t get a lot of time. But in trying to cover the lives of ordinary people and make it news, your best friend…

Peeling the Onion

Seven Steps of Interviewing

Writing About Ordinary Lives

‘I wanted to move the realm of curiosity into the lives of people who had been ignored….’

Filling a Notebook With Narrative

Select a good topic. Secure good access. Find good narrative runs. Find character hints in action. Find the right scene details. Find emotionality for your subjects, not for you. Do…

What Happens Next?

Tom French’s talk was an argument for the power of the slowly unfolding story—the wait, the suspense (though I don’t think he ever used the word cliffhanger). For him, the…

Editors and Reporters

‘Quite frankly, we need each other.’

Reporting Differently

How to come back with a notebook full of narrative.

More Tips for Editors

A collaborative relationship at The Oregonian

Indulging Curiosity

Talese and Michel MarriottNew York Times reporter and 2002 Nieman Fellow Michel Marriott introduced Gay Talese at the Nieman Narrative Journalism Conference. Excerpts of their comments follow:Michel Marriott: As a…