Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma

A sprawling investigation of domestic violence and criminal justice; a first-person narrative trying to understand the writer's rapist; a carefully orchestrated radio series on brutal sexual assault as a weapon of war. The stories honored yesterday as winners of the 2009 Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma appear, at first glance, to share little in the way of practical approach.

But the conversation between their creators at the post-award-ceremony panel discussion on "Voices of Witness" gave credence to the panel's subtitle, "The Craft of Trauma Journalism"; despite the differences in approach, thoughtful and sensitive treatment of the dark and intimate subject of gender violence poses some consistent challenges for reporting, writing, editing, photography and visual presentation.

For example, one of the first questions concerned the use of graphic detail. How do you decide what to select, what to hold back?

Joanna Connors, who wrote Beyond Rape: A Survivor's Journey exploring the cause and effect of her sexual assault while on assignment for The Plain Dealer two decades ago, described writing a very raw and explicit first draft that would later be pared back.

"[My editor,] Debbie said something really key to me early on, which was, 'You don't want to shock people. You want to move people.' And if you use too much detail you're going to just shock them and make them back off."

Some of the first draft's explicit description ended up leaving more to the imagination: "He pushed his body into my face."

Jeb Sharp told of a similar process in her work on Rape as a Weapon of War. Her stories begin at Panzi Hospital in Eastern Congo, where Dr. Denis Mukwege treats women and young girls brutally raped, often rendered incontinent because of tearing of the vaginal wall. An unforgettable detail comes early on encountering a young girl, clutching a doll and calling Dr. Mukwege "Papa":  "As we sit together I realize the child is incontinent; there's urine running down her leg."

"You could pick anything from Panzi Hospital to shock anybody ... this is also about the craft: when you get older and wiser and you get to do more of your own thing, you shed what you think you're supposed to say. And I think that this story, these stories are better, because I'm finally learning to use my sensibilities."

In the coming days and weeks, check back for more craft advice from these award winners and the Honolulu Advertiser team that produced "Crossing the Line: Abuse in Hawai'i Homes," plus full video coverage of both the panel discussion and the award ceremony.