By Ben Cohen Smack in the middle of fiction and nonfiction is literary journalism, a style that employs narrative techniques to report the truth — or at least a version or two of it. “Literary journalism is almost like fiction – except it’s true,” says Bill Reynolds, co-founder the International Association for Literary Journalism Studies and editor of its journal. The style allows the journalist to eschew convention by writing the story in detailed scenes and from various perspectives. “You could even write from the character’s point-of-view or in omniscient third-person,” Reynolds added. I met with Reynolds in his office,…

By Ben Cohen Are fiction and journalism compatible? Can a journalist also be a fiction writer or poet? My Double Life: Journalists who also write fiction and poetry, a panel hosted by the Ryerson Journalism Research Centre last month, showed that yes, some people really can do both. The panel brought together three journalists with side careers in creative writing: Angela Misri, Waubgeshig Rice, and Marsha Barber. Professor Emerita and well-known literary reviewer Suanne Kelman moderated the discussion. You can watch the whole panel below: How do you manage the work-work balance?    Angela Misri, who writes YA detective fiction…

Watch the 2019 Atkinson Lecture from Ryan McMahon, “We become the stories we tell ourselves: Indigenous realities in media today.”   Ryan McMahon is host of Canadaland’s Thunder Bay podcast and an Anishinaabe comedian, writer and media maker. He spoke at Ryerson University on April 4, 2019.