As promised, here is my somewhat crude link to the best feature article I’ve ever read.
In the winter/spring of 1993, I was a University of Delaware junior looking for a summer internship. I sent my stuff to, oh, 150 places, and received very few personal replies. Mostly, it was either nothingness, or form letters.
Then, on March 16, 1993, a package came from Boston Magazine. Inside were a couple of issues, along with a three-page letter from Steve Buckley. He critiqued my clips, offered some suggestions (“I am 36 years old, have worked for six newspapers and one magazine, have written a book and a play, have won a batch o’ writing awards, am a college graduate, have all my teeth and am not now nor ever have been a Communist. My resume is one page.”). Best of all, Steve included a story he was particularly proud of—a lengthy enterprise piece on the name behind a nondescript traffic circle.
The article immediately blew me away—and still does. Perfectly written, perfectly constructed, the weaving of the present and past; the search and the tragedy. I can see people reading it, shrugging and saying, “What’s the big deal?” but—in my opinion—that’s almost the point. The whole thing flows so effortlessly … it remains my all-time favorite piece of journalism.
Anyhow, I hope you enjoy it. Or at least read it. I’d love to hear thoughts …
