Meredith Sell

narrative nonfiction

  • Good Reads: Investigating cults, drug mules, and Martin Luther King

    This is the fifth in a new series of weekly posts recommending well-written narrative nonfiction/longform articles. The Man Who Saves You from Yourself: Going undercover with a cult infiltrator by Nathaniel Rich, Harper’s David Sullivan, a private investigator in LA who specialized in cults, passed away last October, shortly before this article was published. The piece tells the story of

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  • NYC Week Sixteen: Internship over, or positive self-talk

    11:51 pm. MONDAY, MAY 19th. I’ve been in writing mode all day. I haven’t written much, but my mind has been super focused and soaking up everything. My thoughts are toward the future, as in next week, when I come back from my college commencement and return to my bedroom in Queens, my food service

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  • Good Reads: Little league, a horseman, and death row

    This is the third in a new series of weekly posts recommending well-written narrative nonfiction/longform articles. This week’s picks: The Undefeated Champions of Defeat City by Kathy Dobie, GQ Artfully written, this piece introduces North Camden, New Jersey, a city known for drugs and violence, and Bryan Morton, a North Camden native who decided to combat decay by starting

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  • Good Reads: The underdog, the addict, and the rescuer

    This is the second in a new series of weekly posts recommending well-written narrative nonfiction/longform articles. This week’s picks: Ra’Shede’s Road by John Rosengren, SB Nation Ra’Shede Hageman, senior defensive tackle at the University of Minnesota, has the potential to secure a bright future. But he also has a past and a temper to overcome.

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  • Good Reads: My favorites from this week’s longform/narrative nonfiction

    I read a lot of articles every week, and I try to focus my reading on the pieces I want to write, meaning longform or narrative nonfiction. This is a genre that’s published all over the place: in marketing materials (typically company magazines), consumer and trade publications, newspapers, web site — even BuzzFeed publishes longform.

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