The Journalism of Why: How we struggle to answer the hardest question In the wake of a shooting, there are frantic efforts to answer the question: Why? The public wants a definitive cause. We may never get one. July 19, 2024 Roy Peter Clark
The best Pulitzer leads (or ledes) in 2024 Longtime writing coach Roy Peter Clark gives this year’s award to a gripping narrative about two octogenarians who died in a hurricane May 20, 2024 Roy Peter Clark
Shakespeare and the power of wordplay … featuring the pun that launched my career Four words from Hamlet collide with multiple meanings and offer a stimulant for the brain as strong as the most sophisticated puzzle April 23, 2024 Roy Peter Clark
How politicians abuse language to magnify fear and reflect grievances Orwell, Trump, and the zombie apocalypse: An essay about diss, dys, and dat March 27, 2024 Roy Peter Clark
What those covering the Key Bridge collapse can learn from reports about the 1980 Skyway disaster The journalism about Florida's Skyway disaster is full of lessons for those who are now called upon to make sense of the unthinkable March 26, 2024 Roy Peter Clark
The original Swifties: What writers can learn from Tom Swift’s adverbs ‘Let’s speed up the tempo,’ said Taylor swiftly. February 9, 2024 Roy Peter Clark
Yes, Virginia, it is OK for writers to play with story form As an example, Here's a lighthearted take on how PolitiFact might examine the existence of a certain Mr. Kringle. December 22, 2023 Roy Peter Clark
What I learned about writing from watching Hallmark Christmas movies Each one is similar, employing a number of archetypes, bending toward stereotypes. But they might be the antidote to what ails you. December 20, 2023 Roy Peter Clark
What I learned about writing and storytelling from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer There may be no more efficient example for teaching the elements of story than the story of Rudolph, just 88 words. December 18, 2023 Roy Peter Clark
An illustrated guide to the basics of interviewing 12 tips on interviewing, listening and note-taking that could improve your next story October 31, 2023 Annie Aguiar
Opinion | News organizations need beat writers. They also need offbeat writers. News avoidance is a real thing, and it’s dangerous for democracy. Offbeat stories are rewards for readers for hanging in there September 28, 2023 Roy Peter Clark
What I learned about writing by listening to Jimmy Buffett To fully appreciate Buffett, we have to understand the ‘power of the particular,’ the spongecake, the six-strings and the boiling shrimp. September 12, 2023 Roy Peter Clark
An appreciation of the UNC front page and of news as ritual The staff of The Daily Tar Heel did more than transfer information. They opted instead for an expression of communal fear and suffering. September 6, 2023 Roy Peter Clark
Opinion | What Tony Bennett taught me about the life of a writer The 96-year-old singer never stopped learning and would not accept a creative death, even as the culture of music changed. July 24, 2023 Roy Peter Clark
What I learned about writing from Tina Turner: Rough writing is good In a prologue to an iconic performance of ‘Proud Mary,’ Turner explained how she revised the song with a radical change of tempo — from easy to rough. June 1, 2023 Roy Peter Clark
