Roy Clark
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Articles by Roy Clark
How Jim Dwyer found the words to write about 9/11
When I see the bylines of certain reporters, I will read whatever they write. Jim Dwyer of The New York Times is one of those. Jim became, in my mind, the prose-poet of 9/11, the journalist who has, with a special decency and power, managed to chronicle the lingering effects of a horrible day.
The writing lesson hidden inside ‘The Odyssey’
Editor’s note: This essay was originally published in 2012 and has been lightly edited. With “The Odyssey” back in the cultural conversation ahead of Christopher Nolan’s star-studded adaptation, opening July 17, we’re revisiting one of Roy Peter Clark’s favorite writing lessons: “Get the name of the dog.” Our dog Rex, a Jack Russell terrier, turned 18 years old this week.
Is this sentence in the Declaration of Independence really the greatest ever written?
I can’t think of a more fitting celebration of this Fourth of July than a reading of Walter Isaacson’s thin volume “The Greatest Sentence Ever Written.” Isaacson is an influential public scholar and biographer of Leonardo da Vinci, Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, Henry Kissinger and Benjamin Franklin. This timely text coincides with the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, a milestone for a democratic form of government that suddenly seems fragile.
When the best answer is ‘No’: A tribute to the leadership of Andy Barnes
The author Anne Lamott argues that all prayers can be reduced to one of two words: “please” or “thanks.” I admit to leaning more to the first, so I have had to learn a tough lesson: There are times when you pray hard for something and God hears you, loud and clear, and answers “No.” That notion works not just for deities, but also for leaders, managers and supervisors of every kind. I need not look far for a telling example.
Is this the best news headline of all time?
The season of journalism awards is behind us, and, once again, I have not won a Pulitzer or the Nobel Peace Prize. Placing my resentment aside, I would like to honor a bit of writing that has not yet won an award. Still, in my immodest opinion, it ranks among the most scintillating gems of short writing ever created to head a consequential news story. It’s a headline. It may be the headline of the century. It came out of Chicago. It is rendered in six letters: two words and a mark of punctuation.
Man United confirm interest in Tonali with initial contact made — Romano
Manchester United have taken their first concrete step toward signing Sandro Tonali, with transfer expert Fabrizio Romano confirming the club have formally communicated their interest to the Italian midfielder's camp and made initial contact with his agents. "For sure, he's one of the names of Manchester United short list. before Manchester United make final decision on who are the midfielders they want to sign because it might be two considering the situation of Casemiro," said Romano.
What my golf coach taught me about writing
When my friend and colleague Rick Edmonds died after a traffic accident, I began to think about all the things I had learned from him: about the news business, about crafting clear sentences, about raising daughters. Rick and I were good friends, but not close friends. Close friends share meals and have phone calls, sometimes late ones. They help each other solve personal problems. Rick and I did none of that. We were contemporaries. Born a year apart. Graduated from college a year apart.
A college admissions essay reveals the power of storytelling
This article was originally published by Nieman Storyboard and is republished with permission. There’s a famous quote about creative inspiration, attributed on the internet to songwriter Sammy Cahn, who was asked in an interview, “What comes first, the melody or the lyrics?” He answered: “What comes first is the phone call.” For many artists, and most definitely journalists, it is often the assignment and the deadline — not inspiration — that launches the work.
Two presidents, two female reporters and two revealing nicknames
This is the story of a 10-year-old St. Petersburg girl named Bonnie Harris, who would one day become a reporter covering the presidential campaign of George W. Bush. When Bush learned she was from Florida, he gave her a nickname: “Sunshine.” Contrast that with a recent moment involving another female reporter and another American president.
Poynter’s logo almost looked very different. Here’s how we landed on the dot.
On the occasion of Poynter’s 50th anniversary, I am pleased to reveal, for the first time ever, the secret history of the institute’s enduring logo. When Nelson Poynter created a nonprofit school to inherit his newspaper, the St. Petersburg Times, he named it the Modern Media Institute. That was a pretty good name and an even better abbreviation: MMI. On a T-shirt, a newsroom wag created a funny logo: Two em dashes followed by an eyeball. MMI. No one knew exactly what the school would teach.
Why I’m begging TV showrunners to stop writing journalists as villains
Maybe it’s an age thing. I find myself yelling at the TV screen. An angry old man shouts in frustration as the quarterback of his favorite team, driving toward a winning touchdown, throws an interception. It feels almost unmanly — dare I say unpatriotic — not to vocalize my frustration. But the anger I’m about to describe is different. I just shouted at the screen — with obscene words for punctuation — because of a scene in a streaming drama series.
10 reasons I want my news in paper
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, an important American newspaper with a significant history related to the desegregation of the South, announced last week that 2025 will be the final year it is delivered in paper form. The newspaper that Poynter owns, the Tampa Bay Times, has gone to twice-a-week (Wednesday and Sunday) delivery, with significant sections being reduced or deleted. I am no expert on the economics of news, but you don’t have to be a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.
My favorite short newspaper story of 2024, appreciated and analyzed
In June, Poynter announced the creation of the Roy Peter Clark Chair in Writing and Editing to build on the legacy of Roy Peter Clark and train the next generation of great writers. You can support the effort here. July 13 marked the first anniversary of the assassination attempt on President Donald Trump, an attack that bloodied the president and killed one of his supporters.
What happens when you get the name of the dog? Journalism magic.
In June, Poynter announced the creation of the Roy Peter Clark Chair in Writing and Editing to build on the legacy of Roy Peter Clark and train the next generation of great writers. You can support the effort here. If the citizens of Philadelphia now have the power to judge the popularity of the name of their dog, they have me to thank. Let me explain.
At 50, Poynter doesn’t have a hall of fame. If it did, these 12 former students would be in it
This article is part of an occasional series from Roy Peter Clark, who witnessed the Poynter Institute’s founding, that explores its history in honor of its 50th anniversary. When people imagine the work of the Poynter Institute over half a century, they are likely to envision seminars and workshops where professional journalists meet with experts to study best practices and perfect their craft.
Who better than Will Packer?
This article is part of an occasional series from Roy Peter Clark, who witnessed the Poynter Institute’s founding, that explores its history in honor of its 50th anniversary. I have a special fondness for my first book, “Free to Write: A Journalist Teaches Young Writers.” Long out of print, it was published in 1986 and described my experience working with young writers.
Damage Claims and Clawback are Needed to Stop the Climate Modeling Fraud
The Trump administration is starting to deal with the climate/net zero fraud by cancelling government contracts and rolling back government regulations. However, it has not yet addressed the root cause of the climate scam. This is the use of fraudulent climate models to create the illusion of CO2 induced global warming, now rebranded as climate change/extreme weather. Until this underlying fraud is eliminated, there is always the risk that a future administration will resurrect the climate cabal.
Get ready to write your book: 5 tips on becoming an author
My new book arrived on my doorstep today: “Writing Tools for the College Admissions Essay.” If you are counting, that makes 21 books with my name on the cover as editor or author. But it is only with the last eight, published by Little, Brown, that I have identified myself as an author. Since 2006, more than a half million of my books have found their way into print. This includes digital books, audiobooks and translations into eight languages.
What I learned from the writing teacher who changed my work forever
This third entry in an occasional series from Roy Peter Clark, who witnessed the Poynter Institute’s founding, explores its history in honor of its 50th anniversary. It would be hard to estimate how many talented writing teachers have over 50 years walked the halls of the Poynter Institute. One of them towers above them all. No, not me. I am a disciple, not the anointed one.
A message to grumpy veteran journalists: The kids are working hard and deserve your support
At a moment when American newspapers seem to be hurtling down a mountain toward insignificance, it’s time for news alumni to step up in support of their young, hard-working heirs. Some of us may have been fortunate enough to work in a newsroom with a news/editorial staff of, say, 400 — an enterprise now sustained by fewer than 80. I belong to a social media group of retired journalists.
Four circles on a chalkboard: How the institute first found its way
This second entry in an occasional series from Roy Peter Clark, who witnessed the Poynter Institute’s founding, explores its history in honor of its 50th anniversary. Although Nelson Poynter had a great interest in education, it is fair to say that his final concerns, before his sudden death in 1978, were more about his newspaper than the school that would come to inherit it. That newspaper was the St. Petersburg Times, now the Tampa Bay Times.
From storefront to global influence: A brief origin story as Poynter turns 50
This first entry in an occasional series from Roy Peter Clark, who witnessed the Poynter Institute’s founding, explores its history in honor of its 50th anniversary. Every superhero has a good origin story, and every ambitious American story has humble origins. So it is with the Poynter Institute.
Opinion: One more challenge Maine’s small businesses don’t need
No one in Maine needs a reminder that small businesses are the backbone of our great state. They are a point of pride for us all – not just their prevalence, making up 99% of all businesses in the state, but also their unique contributions to the cultural fabric of our communities. For me, it’s a privilege to work with them every day to reach new customers.
Don’t abandon dedicated, hard-working reporters and editors
I write this with the expectation that the presidential election will leave America a badly divided country, poisoned by streams of political lying and disinformation. There are legitimate concerns that our divisions will lead to violence. However the election turns out, the country will need institutions and individuals to stand against the forces of intolerance and autocracy. That, of course, includes hard-working, well-resourced, dutiful journalists, like those who work at The Washington Post.
Breaking down Donald Trump’s use of the word ‘hate’
The popular book “On Writing” contains surprising advice for writers: Read a lot of bad writing so you know what bad writing looks like. Then don’t write like that. Like other technologies, the written word is morally neutral, used by saints to spread love and sinners to enflame hate. All the devices of making meaning are right there for the well-intentioned and for those of ill will: active verbs, parallel constructions, emphatic word order, alliteration and much more.
Queen Canute
In earlier times, the king was an absolute monarch with a divine right to rule. In order to please the king, many courtiers resorted to flattery. King Canute was told by some of his courtiers that he had the divine power to stop the rising tide. He knew that this was wrong. In order to teach his courtiers a lesson, he took them to the beach and commanded the rising tide to stop. Of course, it did not. Today, the U.S. president is elected by the people and no longer has the divine right to rule.
A eulogy for America’s greatest living obit writer — Robert McFadden - Poynter
At 76, I am a contemporary of Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel, musicians from the Clark family territories of New Jersey and Long Island. Our seniors include the surviving members of the Rolling Stones, now touring into their 80s. Why are these codgers still at it? “Because it’s what we do,” they seemed to agree.
Understanding The Seven Major Errors In Climate Models
There are at least seven major mistakes found in climate models. Five of them come from oversimplified ideas about how energy moves. Another one involves errors that build up when solving complex equations about how air and water behave. The last mistake is assuming that the global average temperature is a good measure of climate change. I detail these errors in my paper “A Nobel Prize for Climate Modeling Errors”, Science of Climate Change 4(1) pp. 1-73 (2024).
What I learned about writing from watching the Olympic games
If you have watched Olympic sports, as I have, you probably think that you know enough now to become a judge. You know if a diver makes a big splash, points will be deducted. You know that if a gymnast fails to “stick the landing” and takes a big hop, yes, points will be deducted. It doesn’t matter if those athletes complete twists and turns and spins that defy the limitations of human strength and flexibility, you need a great ending to get a great score. The same applies to writing.
Do you remember where you were when JFK was shot? Original
When a crazed young man shot and injured a former president at a political rally in Pennsylvania, the shock registered differently for us baby boomers than it did for following generations. My generation’s coming of age is often characterized by that unholy trinity: sex, drugs and rock and roll. But there is a traumatic political reality you can add to the mix: assassinations. Roy Peter Clark [ Kenny Irby and Chaz Dykes ] John F. Kennedy, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Robert F.
The Journalism of Why: How we struggle to answer the hardest question
In the wake of a shooting, there are frantic efforts to answer the question: “Why?” Who is the shooter and why did they do it? Often the shooter winds up dead, making them unavailable for interrogation. In the absence of answers, political or cultural or religious antagonists will bend available evidence to enhance their cause. This is happening as I write this with a 20-year-old killer named Thomas Matthew Crooks, who tried to kill a former president but wound up killing another man.
The journalism of why: How we struggle to answer the hardest question - Editor and Publisher
Posted Friday, July 19, 2024 6:08 pm In the wake of a shooting, there are frantic efforts to answer the question: “Why?” Who is the shooter and why did they do it? Often the shooter winds up dead, making them unavailable for interrogation. In the absence of answers, political or cultural or religious antagonists will bend available evidence to enhance their cause.
Opinion | MLB just integrated its records. The Pulitzers should follow baseball’s lead. - Editor and Publisher
Posted Thursday, June 6, 2024 5:05 pm The first Pulitzer Prizes were presented in 1917. It took 33 years of prizes for a Black artist — the poet Gwendolyn Brooks — to be declared a winner. It took 52 years for the first Black man — photojournalist Moneta Sleet — to win as an individual. During the first seven decades of Pulitzer Prizes, the likes of W.E.B. DuBois, Langston Hughes, Richard Wright and Zora Neale Hurston produced work equal or superior to their white counterparts.
The MLB just integrated its records. The Pulitzers should follow baseball’s lead.
The first Pulitzer Prizes were presented in 1917. It took 33 years of prizes for a Black artist — the poet Gwendolyn Brooks — to be declared a winner. It took 52 years for the first Black man — photojournalist Moneta Sleet — to win as an individual. During the first seven decades of Pulitzer Prizes, the likes of W.E.B. DuBois, Langston Hughes, Richard Wright and Zora Neale Hurston produced work equal or superior to their white counterparts.
The best Pulitzer leads (or ledes) in 2024
Taken together, this year’s Pulitzer Prize stories were great. Their leads, not so much. This opinion reflects a bias, a preference for shorter leads, even for longer stories. But doesn’t a long narrative or investigation require a longer lead? I call to the witness stand Herman Melville: “Call me Ishmael.” And Ralph Ellison: “I am an invisible man.” Once again, I find myself sifting through the Pulitzer Prize stories looking for that golden lead.
The best Pulitzer leads (or ledes) in 2024
Taken together, this year’s Pulitzer Prize stories were great. Their leads, not so much. This opinion reflects a bias, a preference for shorter leads, even for longer stories. But doesn’t a long narrative or investigation require a longer lead? I call to the witness stand Herman Melville: “Call me Ishmael.” And Ralph Ellison: “I am an invisible man.” Once again, I find myself sifting through the Pulitzer Prize stories looking for that golden lead.
Some quick Pulitzer Prize arithmetic reflects atrophy among regional newspapers
I just watched with anticipation the announcement of the 2024 Pulitzer Prizes. It began with Pulitzer administrator Marjorie Miller sharing the soul-numbing news of 130 newspapers going out of business last year, with the loss of 3,000 journalism jobs. There was truly great journalism honored this year in spite of the widespread loss of news resources, especially from regional newspapers.
Shakespeare and the power of wordplay … featuring the pun that launched my career
This article is co-published with our friends at Nieman Storyboard with permission from the author. All good writers play with words, even when they write about grave matters. The device that makes such wordplay the most visible is the pun. My first sentence contains an allusion to a famous poem by Dylan Thomas. In “Do not go gentle into that good night,” he begs his dying father to rebel against his mortality.
How politicians abuse language to magnify fear and reflect grievances
An essay by George Orwell, “Politics and the English Language,” changed the trajectory of my career. I pivoted from a job as a college literature teacher to become a writing coach for students, journalists and other public writers.
What those covering the Key Bridge collapse can learn from reports about the 1980 Skyway disaster
For many living in Florida, news of the Francis Scott Key Bridge disaster in Maryland brought back terrible memories. A defining news event for a generation of people living around Tampa Bay was the destruction of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, struck by an oil freighter during a stormy morning in May 1980. Thirty-five people drove off the jagged end of the bridge to their deaths that morning, a tragedy often remembered by those who now drive over the magnificent span that replaced it.
The original Swifties: What writers can learn from Tom Swift’s adverbs
When I first learned that fans of Taylor Swift called themselves Swifties, I smiled. I knew the word Swiftie in a completely different context. The source of my knowledge is not a glamorous global celebrity. I grew up reading about a fictional character named Tom Swift. For more than a century, Tom Swift was the name of a popular boy adventure hero. In the spirit of the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew, Tom Swift solved mysteries and battled villains.
How to write a good story in 800 words or less
Originally published: October 6, 2003 Editor’s note: Poynter announced that the newly renamed 2024 Poynter Journalism Prizes will feature a category honoring longtime writing coach Roy Peter Clark and recognizing compelling short writing under 800 words. It seems fitting then to revisit an essay Clark wrote 20 years ago about powerful short-form writing. Most of the good stories we tell can be told in 800 words or less. Let me try one.
How to write a good story in 800 words or less
Originally published: October 6, 2003 Editor’s note: Poynter announced that the newly renamed 2024 Poynter Journalism Prizes will feature a category honoring longtime writing coach Roy Peter Clark and recognizing compelling short writing under 800 words. It seems fitting then to revisit an essay Clark wrote 20 years ago about powerful short-form writing. Most of the good stories we tell can be told in 800 words or less. Let me try one.
Yes, Virginia, it is OK for writers to play with story form
A version of this story was originally published Dec. 25, 2014. As a boy, my favorite story genre was the cowboy movie. As I got a little older, I left Hopalong Cassidy behind in favor of parodies of cowboy movies, the kind of thing Mad Magazine produced or Mel Brooks perfected in “Blazing Saddles.” No doubt, good writers learn how to fulfill the requirements of a particular writing form, whether it’s the inverted pyramid or the three-act play. One sign of mastery is the ability to parody.
What I learned about writing from watching Hallmark Christmas movies
For more than a year, I served as the official caregiver to my wife of 46 years, Karen Clark. Two years ago she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Two surgeries followed, along with three months of chemotherapy, and 37 radiation treatments. It has been a life-changing experience, of course, and I am happy to report that all her doctors express great optimism about her prospects.
What I learned about writing and storytelling from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
It’s been my habit, when faced with a question I cannot answer, to break into song. It happened once at a Harvard conference on narrative. Unable to think of a better story example, I began singing “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” It turned out to be a useful choice, and I’ve used the story of Rudolph as a “mentor text” ever since. At 88 words, Rudolph is shorter than the Jesus parables and the Lincoln speeches, works often praised for their brevity and high purpose.
The 2026 Poynter Journalism Prizes
The Poynter Institute announced the winners and finalists for the 2026 Poynter Journalism Prizes on April 27, 2026, honoring journalists and news organizations across platforms for exceptional work in 12 categories for writing, reporting, innovation and leadership.
News organizations need beat writers. They also need offbeat writers.
Poynter has a terrific program called the Beat Academy that provides training and support for beat writers. And although Jack Kerouac died in St. Petersburg, Florida, in 1969, we are not talking about those kinds of beat writers. Beat reporters — like the cops who used to walk the beat — are the ones assigned to develop sources and cover some of our most important institutions, such as governments, school boards and hospitals. If you are an aspiring beat writer, Poynter is the place for you.
What I learned about writing by listening to Jimmy Buffett
Over the years, I’ve written appreciations of musical artists who have influenced my writing and creative thinking, from Little Richard to Aretha Franklin to, most recently, Tony Bennett. The first poets we know about in Western culture were singers and musicians, so the connection between music and literature is ancient and enduring.
An appreciation of the UNC front page and of news as ritual
Much attention has been paid to this unusual front page of the University of North Carolina Daily Tar Heel. It caught the attention of the president of the United States. A graduate student murdered his adviser, and the student body, starting a new semester, suddenly became prisoners in an existential lockdown of what Danish theologian Søren Kierkegaard called “fear and trembling.” It matters not that the singular murder does not qualify as a mass shooting.
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