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How Does Malcolm Gladwell Find the Story in His Research? · How I Write

How I Write

Malcolm Gladwell: The Most Useful Hour You'll Ever Spend on Storytelling | How I Write

Malcolm Gladwell is on the show today and he's one of the most influential nonfiction writers of the 21st century. You know him from books like Outliers, The Tipping Point, and David and Goliath, as well as his essays in The New Yorker. I told Malcolm, "I want to learn one thing from you: how you tell a story like you do. What is your process? How do you…

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Notes

  1. Why Does Writing Make Malcolm Gladwell Get Lost? at 1:04

    Malcolm Gladwell gets lost when he stands up from deep writing because he uses the same part of his brain for writing that he uses to make sense of direction. Full answer

  2. Who Should Writers Interview for a Story? at 7:35

    Malcolm Gladwell says writers should interview the person who can bring the most specificity to a topic. The most important person does not help. Full answer

  3. Why Does Day of the Jackal Read Like a How-to? at 18:04

    Malcolm Gladwell says Day of the Jackal reads like a how-to, and he calls it the most important book of its genre. Full answer

  4. How Does Malcolm Gladwell Find the Story in His Research? at 29:08

    Malcolm Gladwell finds the story by talking with no plan until one detail clicks. Full answer

  5. Why Does Malcolm Gladwell Give Readers a Framework? at 33:38

    Malcolm Gladwell says writers who do his kind of writing have an obligation to give people tools to organize their experience. Full answer

  6. How Does Malcolm Gladwell Find the Moment a Story Turns on? at 39:06

    Malcolm Gladwell finds the moment a story turns on by listening back to a long interview and building the piece around the line that turns one case into a… Full answer

  7. Does Malcolm Gladwell Regret Broken Windows? at 46:11

    Malcolm Gladwell fell in love with broken windows in Tipping Point, and he has regretted that choice many times. Full answer

  8. What Would Malcolm Gladwell Teach First in a Writing Class? at 55:26

    Malcolm Gladwell would start a writing class by teaching students how to ask questions. Full answer

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