War Reporting, Novel Writing, and How to Tell a Great Story

Powerhouse literary couple Geraldine Brooks and Tony Horwitz didn’t start their careers writing books. The two were war correspondents covering events like the Gulf War in the 1990s. In this episode, Brooks and Horwitz are onstage for a lecture series held by Aspen Words, the literary organization of The Aspen Institute. Besides recalling their reporting experiences, the duo discuss what it takes to write a great book. Brooks is a Pulitzer Prize-winning historical novelist. Her first book "Year of Wonders" was an international bestseller. Her latest work "The Secret Chord," is based on the life of King David. Horwitz is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and has written several bestsellers, including "Midnight Rising" about a raid in the slaveholding South that sparked the Civil War.