And now: 31 notable WIRED longform stories of 2021

PLUS: More of WIRED's best longreads from this week.

View this email in your browser  |  Manage newsletter subscriptions  12.26.21 If 2020 was a weird, exhausting year, 2021 was the strange year that came after. But for writers of longform narratives, weirdness brings opportunity. Strangeness brings stories to the surface—some of them about the ever-present pandemic, some of them bubbling up through the fissures the pandemic opened. This year's list of standout WIRED features is drawn from readers, who voted with their clicks, and editors, who generally refuse to admit loving any one of their children any more than another. Through weird times and not, one thing remains true: We define ourselves by the stories we tell. Herewith, for your holiday-reading delectation, a list of 31 notable longform pieces from 2021. (Yes, thirty-one. We know: perfectly weird.) Mark Robinson | Features Editor, WIRED     And Now: 31 Notable WIRED Longform Stories of 2021 BY MARK ROBINSON In another strange year, our feature articles bubbled up through the cracks and managed to capture the zeitgeist. From the List     Sex Tapes, Hush Money, and Hollywood's Economy of Secrets BY AMANDA CHICAGO LEWIS | 22-MINUTE READ Meet Kevin Blatt, the celebrity fixer who's a master at shepherding compromising material off the internet—or into the hands of the highest bidder.     A Son Is Rescued at Sea. But What Happened to His Mother? BY EVAN LUBOFSKY | 20-MINUTE READ Nathan Carman went fishing with his mom. A week later, he was found on a life raft—alone. Tragic accident or murder? Ocean sensors may point to the truth.     I Called Off My Wedding. The Internet Will Never Forget BY LAUREN GOODE | 19-MINUTE READ In 2019, I made a painful decision. But to the algorithms that drive Facebook, Pinterest, and a million other apps, I'm forever getting married.     A 25-Year-Old Bet Comes Due: Has Tech Destroyed Society? BY STEVEN LEVY | 16-MINUTE READ In 1995, a WIRED cofounder challenged a Luddite-loving doomsayer to a prescient wager on tech and civilization's fate. Now their judge weighs in.     A Boy, His Brain, and a Decades-Long Medical Controversy BY SEEMA YASMIN | 16-MINUTE READ No one could deny that Timothy was sick. But when doctors can't agree on the cause of an illness, what happens to the patients trapped in limbo? GET WIRED HOLIDAY SALE! Get WIRED for just $10 $5. Get the print edition and exclusive subscriber-only stories. Give yourself the gift of information. Subscribe now.         Have questions or comments? Reply to this email.   This e-mail was sent to you by WIRED. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, wired@newsletters.wired.com, to your address book.   View our Privacy Policy Unsubscribe or manage your newsletter subscriptions