Taught by award-winning author and magazine writer Mychal Denzel Smith, this writing intensive course will ask students to read and examine various styles of writing that fall under the umbrella of longform journalism—reportage, analysis, criticism, and personal narrative—in order to deepen their understanding of the rigors involved in producing such work. Students will also be expected to engage with audio and video media formats, which will add an extra dimension to understanding the development of voice, style, and structure. Together we will discuss the work of Nikole Hannah-Jones, Leslie Jamison, Doreen St. Felix, Andrea Long Chu, Tressie McMillan Cottom, Parul Seghal, Pablo Torre, and many others, in an expansive view of what constitutes longform journalism. Additionally, students will be responsible for pitching and writing their own piece of longform journalism, employing techniques we discuss in class, on topic of their choosing, due at the end of the semester.