Write a creative non-fiction article in ten difficult steps

I figured it was time to take something that was both art form and civic institution and reduce it to a set of insultingly simple instructions. This is especially fun as I am a not especially notable journalist of only a few years experience. So here we go:

By the way: never write on spec, and I mean, never write on spec. But once you've got the assignment, here's the steps I've been able to work out to the normal literary non-fiction/new journalism article. (With apologies to Tom Wolfe, David Foster Wallace, John McPhee and many, many others.) (Also with apologies to the scads of other people I'm about to offend.)

Materials needed:

• Time
• English skills
• Probably some existing journalism experience
• Self loathing

Step 1 Get the material

Record everything, absolutely everything you can. Every detail is fair game, including your own emotions. Given it's poncy new journalism, especially your own emotions.

The clothing habits of the janitor, the temperature of the meadow, and the smell of the backpack. It's like an old text adventure- you pick up everything because you don't know where you will need it later in the story, or for what odd purpose. Writing is actually more about seeing than make pretty words.

Comments

[DrWeird117]

LOL, step 8...