Big Charts

Nov 22, 2024 | bigcharts.substack.com | Alvin Chang |Caitlyn Ralph

This week I published Sitters and Standers on the Pudding, with an accompanying video. Please read the story, share it with friends, and tell me what you think. These pieces are labors of love, and I enjoy hearing the conversation they spark among readers. Also, I’ve made a big Bluesky list of data and visual journalists. If you belong on this list, let me know!Last weekend, I co-taught a data viz workshop at Columbia’s Brown Institute with Caitlyn Ralph.

Jul 15, 2024 | bigcharts.substack.com | Alvin Chang

This post is about how I made my latest piece in the Pudding – Who killed the world?The video version is above. You should read or watch it before reading this post. If you want to stay updates on my work, subscribe to this newsletter!I love science fiction. I love when science fiction imagines rich worlds that feel just barely within reach for humanity. I love when sci-fi explores our deepest fears and our most pollyannaish hopes. We are mere specks in an unfathomably large universe.

Apr 9, 2024 | bigcharts.substack.com | Alvin Chang

I recently published a piece in the Pudding called This is a teenager. This post is about how the piece was done, so it might be useful to read the story before you read this. I’m often asked how long a project takes and what that process looks like. I usually give a vague answer like, “Probably a total of four weeks, spread across several months.” But I always knew that was a bullshit answer, because time is actually a really bad measure for what it takes to finish a project.

Sep 29, 2023 | bigcharts.substack.com | Alvin Chang

Welcome to my very first Big Charts post! I’m devoting this newsletter to writing about how my stories come to be. My projects take a bit of time, so these posts will likely be sporadic. Today I’m writing about a story published in the Pudding this week: 24 hours in an invisible epidemic. Big Charts is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This story started with my obsession with the American Time Use Survey.