Filed under: General advice | Tags: funny story, narrative story, writing advice
He was as drunk as I’ve ever seen anyone, and I once watched a guy chug a full pint of gin.
I waited for his next words like he was an apostle. He was among the greatest journalists of his generation, and I’d finally gotten him hammered enough to share his secret to our craft.
John rocked back on his heels, less than 30 seconds from passing out and rolling under a picnic table.
In a brief moment of near-divine clarity, his voice boomed:
“When you cover a story, you have to notice everything. Every little thing. If a little squirrel jumps from a branch to another branch way off in the background, you need to see it…”
He grabbed my shoulders and shook me, his bloodshot eyes wobbling in different directions.
“Whatever you do: Don’t! Miss! That! Squirrel!“
That’s the best writing advice I’ve heard.
My goal with this blog is to share ways I’ve learned to hone and apply this eye for detail to create powerful journalism. I believe it’s possible to tell a great narrative story in the same amount of time and words that it takes to file a standard “report”-like article on nearly any subject.
Now let’s keep our eyes out for the squirrels.
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