I grew up reading “Writers at Work,” the interview series collected from conversations published in The Paris Review, and treasure my dog-eared collection. Beginning with E.M. Forster in 1953, the series continues to this day, a master class in the arts of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, theater, and documentary and, in the words of critic Joe David Bellamy, “one of the single most persistent acts of cultural conservation in the history of the world.” They were my inspiration when I began interviewing winners of the American Society of Newspaper Editors Writing Awards after joining the Poynter faculty and editing the annual “Best Newspaper Writing” published yearly. I edited, co-edited and contributed to ten volumes. More recently, I’ve begun producing in-depth annotations of prize-winning stories for Nieman Storyboard, the premier site about narrative for writers, editors, teachers and students. Interviewing writers—besides reading their work, there is no better to
Elizabeth Bruenig: “Exposing what the police and courts wouldn’t — and what society owes in return.” Nieman Storyboard, Sept. 10, 2019
Noelle Crombie: “Chasing ghosts that will forever haunt” Nieman Storyboard, August 27, 2019
Michael Kruse; “14 hours from event to post: Delivering narrative with context on deadline.” Politico Magazine, August 6, 2019
David Margolick: A literary take on a hole in the ground. Nieman Storyboard, June 19, 2019
Dan Barry: Annotation Tuesday: A sex worker plunges to her death and a reporter demands to know: Who was she? Nieman Storyboard, June 4, 2019
Malachy Browne: “How The New York Times tracked public data to produce “Killing Khashoggi.” Nieman Storyboard, May 9, 2019.
Dan Barry: An interview with Dan Barry, the writer of the NYT’s ‘The Case of Jane Doe Ponytail’ Poynter Online, October 19, 2018
Tommy Tomlinson: A conversation with Tommy Tomlinson: Getting naked in print and public
Nieman Storyboard, October 9, 2018
John D. Sutter: CNN sheds light on family’s harrowing experience, Alaska’s highest rape rate
Poynter Online, February 26, 2014
Mary Pilon: Caged fighter’s faked death gives life to rich NYT storytelling
Poynter Online, October 35, 2013
David Folkenflik: Eye to Ear: From Newspapers to Public Radio
Poynter Online, February 20, 200Poynter Online, October 7, 2002
Craig Silverman: We Stand Corrected: When Good Journalists Make Stupid Mistakes
Poynter Online, December 12, 2007
Tom Opdyke: The Art and Craft of Podcast Narration
Poynter Online, May 25, 2006
Arthur Plotnik: Move Over Strunk & White: There’s a New Kid in Town
Poynter Online, February 28, 2006
Larry Welborn: A Reporter’s Cold Case File: Justice for Linda
Poynter Online, January 12, 2006
Mark Maremont: On the Executive Course
Poynter Online, October 20, 2005
Kevin Pang: Writing as Magic: It Only Looks Easy
Poynter Online, August 18, 2005
Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan: https://www.poynter.org/news/shoulder-shoulder-art-and-chaos-collaboration
Poynter Online, July 6, 2005
Ben Yagoda: The Sound on the Page
Poynter Online, July 21, 2005
Hank Stuever: Appreciating “Deep Throat“
Poynter Online, June 1, 2005
Mirta Ojito: When the Reporter is Part of the Story
Poynter Online. April 26, 2005
Sally Jenkins: Performance Under Pressure
Poynter Online, February 28, 2005
Donald M. Murray: Inside the Writing Process
Poynter Online, November 15, 2004
Dan Barry: Stories to Share: A Reporter’s Memoir
Poynter Online, July 6, 2004
Kate Bramson, Mimi Burkhardt, Joel Rawson: “Rape in a Small Town”: The Story of the Footnotes
Poynter Online, July 9, 2003
Walt Harrington: How Memories Become Memoirs
Poynter Online, October 7, 2002