Episode 46
“…The truth is that my stories often choose me. Somehow, I get connected with a topic and feel really compelled to tell the story.
And, sometimes, it’s a combination of a compelling story that maybe hasn’t been told or hasn’t been told in the way that I think I can tell it and access to the primary source material that would be required to really make it come to life on the page.”
What are some helpful things to learn from an award-winning author on the key components of being a good narrative non-fiction writer?
Welcome to the CARC Podcast! Listen to learn more.
We spoke with best-selling author and journalist, Kim Cross. Kim is known for her narrative non-fiction work and she is a full-time freelance writer, with bylines in The New York Times, Nieman Storyboard, Outside, CNN.com, ESPN.com, and USA Today. Her work has been recognized in “Best of” lists by the the New York Times, the Columbia Journalism Review, The Sunday Longread, Longform, Apple News Audio, and Best American Sports Writing. And she also teaches Feature Writing here at Harvard Extension School!
Kim’s three book-length works include What Stands in a Storm, a chronicle of the 2011 storm that unleashed catastrophic tornadoes in 21 states and was a finalist in the 2015 GoodReads Choice Awards. She also wrote The Stahl House: The Making of a Modernist Icon, a unique and intimate biography about a legendary Southern California mid-century home that is widely considered to be an architectural marvel.
Her latest book, the 2023 chronicle of the Polly Klaas case titled In Light of All Darkness, won the Truman Capote Prize for Literary Non-Fiction in 2024 and was also the 2023 Edgar Award Finalist for Fact Crime.