Stories by Tony Bartelme

     Meditations on Uncertainty                                               For the past twenty years, I’ve written stories for newspapers. This can be a heady job; you meet famous people, go to interesting places, paint the first brushstrokes of history. Best of all, it’s a continuing education in how we handle moments of uncertainty: What will the governor do now that he’s been caught with his Argentine mistress? [i] Will a burned-out neurosurgeon stick to his predictable career path or risk everything to teach in the African bush? [ii] The rise of the Internet and other external economic and social factors have fueled doubts about the viability of narrative and investigative journalism, but I suspect that demand for well-told stories will survive. We pay attention to stories because uncertainty is with us all the time, says Marshall Ganz, Harvard public policy lecturer.  This presents us with a constant stream of choices. “And because we have so many choices, we are infi

Thoughts about being named a Pulitzer finalist: What a thrill! And what great recognition for narrative writing in small- and medium-sized papers!   The Post and Courier put together   “One Brain at a Time” during a period of intense financial pressure. The publisher, Bill Hawkins, could have said, “What are you crazy? You want to go to Africa?” In fact, it was Hawkins who first suggested I look into this doctor’s work. The paper then gave me the time and expense account to do a story that allows readers to experience a compelling story about an important issue that affects billions of people – the shortage of skilled doctors in low-income countries. I’m deeply grateful for the Pulitzer judges’ recognition of our work.