{"id":11375,"date":"2024-07-24T15:35:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-24T15:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/niemanstoryboard.org\/2024\/07\/24\/nonfiction-journalism-books-structure-organizing-scenes\/"},"modified":"2024-10-16T20:34:36","modified_gmt":"2024-10-16T20:34:36","slug":"nonfiction-journalism-books-structure-organizing-scenes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/niemanstoryboard.org\/2024\/07\/24\/nonfiction-journalism-books-structure-organizing-scenes\/","title":{"rendered":"The art of the narrative interview: Sequencing your story"},"content":{"rendered":" \n
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EDITOR\u2019S NOTE: The fourth post in our series on narrative interviewing describes how a reporter begins to zoom in to explore defining moments and plot points in a character\u2019s story. <\/em>Previous posts outlined the difference between reporting for news and for narrative<\/a>, the pre-interviewing needed<\/a> to find a character and make a successful story pitch, and the interview that outlines a story arc<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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Your story idea is solid and focus is clear. You have a compelling character<\/a> for readers to follow. You\u2019ve outlined the character\u2019s journey<\/a> through a situation or ordeal. Now it\u2019s time to identify the main beats of that journey.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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Fiction writers call these \u201cplot points.\u201d Something happens that sets the story into motion. Soon something else happens. Then another thing, and so on. All of these happenings are linked in part by chronology and \u2014 typically, but not always \u2014 an element of cause-and-effect.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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\"Nonfiction
Kim Cross<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div> \n
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In this stage of narrative interviews, I look for what I call \u201cpivotal moments\u201d and \u201cdefining moments.\u201d They\u2019re similar, but with an important distinction. One involves external or situational factors. The other is largely internal.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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A pivotal moment is when something happens that causes the story to pivot in a new direction. Often it\u2019s an event or situation shaped by external forces. The hiker, miles from help, is bitten by a venomous snake. The wide receiver leaps into the air in the end zone; catching the ball means winning the game, and not-catching it means losing. Often, these moments are self-evident thanks to their inherent drama. They make vivid scenes.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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A defining moment is also pivotal, but nothing actually changes except a character\u2019s perception. It\u2019s an \u201ca-ha\u201d moment, the realization of some insight or truth that changes everything. A wife answers the phone and learns her husband has a second family. A detective realizes the prime suspect didn\u2019t actually do it. The external situation hasn\u2019t changed at all, but the internal shift rocks the character\u2019s world. These don\u2019t always make for action-packed scenes, but they open the door to internal dialogue and getting in a character\u2019s head.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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Often pivotal moments and defining moments are linked by cause and effect. Like a series of tumbling dominoes, these events cascade into action, each one triggering the next. That sequence informs story structure when it\u2019s time to sit down and write.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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Start with a timeline<\/h2>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n
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People who tend to free-associate often share things out of chronological order. Let them. Unless I\u2019m pressed for time in an interview, I try not to interrupt and just let them run. Then, after they\u2019ve talked themselves out, I take a break, read through my notes and identify gaps and questions about the sequence in which things occurred.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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Pulitzer-winning feature writer Lane DeGregory<\/a> told me she scribbles questions in the margins of her notebook that arise during an interview. That way she doesn\u2019t have to interrupt the person she\u2019s talking to, but doesn\u2019t forget things they mentioned that she wants to know more about.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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I recently spoke on a panel of \u201cfact crime\u201d authors assembled by the\u00a0Mystery Writers of America,<\/a>\u00a0 where my book, \u201cIn Light of All Darkness,\u201d was nominated for a Best Fact Crime award. The moderator asked us about our storytelling process, and I was surprised when we all said the same thing: We start with a timeline.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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The art of the narrative interview<\/h2>\n\n
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Introduction:\u00a0News interviews vs story interviews<\/a><\/p>\n

Phase I:\u00a0Pre-interviewing for the pitch<\/a><\/p>\n

Phase II: Interviewing for story arc<\/a><\/p>\n

Phase III: Interviewing for sequence<\/p>\n

Phase IV: Interviewing for scene<\/a><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\t\n<\/div> \n

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In all of my books, the timeline has been integral throughout the process, from the minute I start reporting to the very end, when I\u2019m fact-checking. It helps me stay grounded in time and immersed in the \u201cnarrative now\u201d of the story \u2014 the time frame in which most of the scenes are unfolding. Those primary scenes also are the point that suggest supporting scenes \u2014 flash backs and flash-forwards \u2014 which determine verb tense shifts.)<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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My timelines have evolved with each book project.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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For \u201cWhat Stands in a Storm<\/a>,\u201d a narrative account of the biggest tornado outbreak on record, I had a series folders filled with Word documents listing chronological events unfolding from different Points of View: Main Characters (people in the path of the storm), Meteorologists, First Responders and Community Members (people helping victims in the aftermath). I highlighted Pivotal Moments from each POV and merged them into a master timeline \u2014 a Word document into which I pasted screen shots of radar screens, text messages between characters, Facebook posts, 911 calls and first responder radio transmissions, all of which were time-stamped. This created the backbone for a story that unfolded minute-by-minute.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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Kim Cross’ approach to organizing the timeline for “What Stands in a Storm.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div> \n
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A matrix of time, themes, scenes and sources<\/h2>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n
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In \u201cThe Stahl House<\/a>,\u201d a book about the making of a historically significant Modernist house, I created a spreadsheet with columns for Month, Year and Event. I color-coded based on theme, which helped me see patterns that threaded through the story and informed my chapter structure. In the example below, pink reveals the Stahl family storyline. Yellow reflects moments related to the architecture and construction of the Stahl House. Blue is for photographer Julius Shulman. Green is related to John Entenza, the Arts & Architecture magazine editor who created the Case Study House Program.<\/a> White indicates historical events that I could reference to anchor the story in time. Those events often place a story in time for readers better than specific dates. For example, mentioning the first time man walked on the moon conjures a black-and-white moving picture framed by a console TV with rabbit ears and big knobs.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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The color-and-time coded plan nonfiction author Kim Cross used to build her book, “The Stahl House.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div> \n
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My most recent book, \u201cIn Light of All Darkness<\/a>,\u201d is an insider account of the Polly Klaas kidnapping in 1993. I used a spreadsheet to log the timeline, which grew to more than 800 lines. Again, I color-coded, which helped me identify thematic threads (green for moments that advance the investigation, purple for \u201cred herrings\u201d that lead investigators astray, red for roadblocks or problems, orange and yellow for pivotal moments that should be written in-scene) and Point of View (blue for law enforcement agents, yellow for volunteers). I added a column on the right to keep track of primary sources to reference when writing scenes.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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For “In Light of All Darkness,” Kim Cross built a color-coded spreadsheet of events, themes and sources.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div> \n
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This is when I realized another valuable use of the timeline spreadsheet: It\u2019s an index that provides a 30,000-foot view of the narrative, but also allows me to \u201czoom in\u201d and get granular. That\u2019s an important function to consider when choosing a timeline format.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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Visualize the storyline<\/h2>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n
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Pro tip: Pick a format that works for your particular brain. I\u2019m a visual person, so I see patterns in the color-coding that lead to insights and cause-effect relationships. I also need to see a calendar format with only a few key moments, because my brain likes the left-to-right flow of weeks stacked on top of each other in monthly blocks.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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A physical calendar provides a visual of how story events unfold.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div> \n
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I printed these out and taped them to boards that surrounded me as I wrote. It\u2019s particularly useful when writing transitions. Whenever I change scenes, I make sure to signal when and where a scene is taking place relative to the previous scene. Time cues such as \u201cAn hour later at the police station across town\u2026\u201d or \u201cFive days earlier\u2026\u201d will orient the reader in time and space, which is essential when a narrative deviates from strict chronology.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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I also had other boards with maps and photos, which helped keep me oriented in space\/geography as well as in time. Here\u2019s what my workstation looked like as I was writing the first draft of \u201cIn Light of All Darkness:\u201d<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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\"Nonfiction
The various physical boards and spreadsheets Kim Cross used to organize her book “In Light of All Darkness.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div> \n
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* * *<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n

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Kim Cross<\/em><\/strong> is a journalist, historian author of three nonfiction books, including \u201cIn Light of All Darkness.\u201d She teaches feature writing in Harvard Extension School\u2019s master\u2019s degree program in journalism and is a founding instructor of the Hemingway Center\u2019s <\/em>Sawtooth Writing Retreat<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A matrix of spreadsheets and physical calendars can help a writer organize notes, track scenes and visualize a story timeline<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11383,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"topics":[],"authors":[287],"issue":[],"class_list":["post-11375","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-essays-on-craft","authors-kim-cross"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe art of the narrative interview: Sequencing your story - Nieman Storyboard<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/niemanstoryboard.org\/2024\/07\/24\/nonfiction-journalism-books-structure-organizing-scenes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta 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