March 28, 2024

A Conference for Nonfiction Writers

Someplace, right now, a writer is stuck in the middle of a story, or a paragraph, or a sentence, and at a loss for what should come next. Make that a lot of writers. “When Bad Things Happen to (Your) Good Stories” that takes dead aim at the reasons writers find themselves stuck, and offers pathways out. This day-long collaboration between Columbia Journalism School’s Continuing Education Program and The Big Roundtable is designed for serious nonfiction writers, no matter what their experience or their canvas. It will also provide chances to meet and brainstorm with other writers about the craft, about pathways to success, and about how to fund the writing habit.

Instructor: Michael Shapiro, Professor, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and founder, The Big Roundtable, will facilitate the opening discussion. Other accomplished journalists will serve as facilitators in the breakout sessions and mentors throughout the day.

Facilitators include :

Dexter Filkins, former New York Times correspondent and Pulitzer Prize winner; now staff writer, The New Yorker, and author of “The Forever War”
Ben Frumin, Editor in chief, Theweek.com
Steve Kandell, Longform editor, BuzzFeed.com
Jaime Joyce, author Moonshine, and KILL ME NOW: The Troubled Life and Complicated Death of Jana Van Voorhis
Andrea Elliott, Pulitzer Prize winning reporter for The New York Times, author “Invisible Child: Dasani’s Homeless Life”
Brendan Spiegel, Editor and Co-Founder, Narrative.ly
Kevin Heldman, Livingston Prize winning writer, author of “My Rehab: Coming of Age in Purgatory”

More information >>