I realized that the reason I don’t like TikTok is that it’s optimized for channel-surfing .

Jerry Seinfeld once said: “Men don't care what's on TV. They only care what else is on TV.”

Everything on TikTok is just kind of mediocre, because nobody watches anything for very long, so there’s no reason to make anything very good. And increasingly, this endless, relentless feed of bland mediocrity is eating every other type of cultural consumption in America.

the entire internet is steadily turning into TikTok-style short-form video

In fact, many characters in literary fiction are so unusual as to be nonexistent — the author just dreamed up a guy who seemed kind of interesting. The best literary authors are typically incredibly skilled at making up fascinating fantasy people.

But this skill is extremely dangerous, because it can give the reader a false impression of what human... See more

In my opinion, that deserves our respect. Being born with fine cheekbones or a chiseled jawline is no accomplishment; figuring out how to use a bunch of Korean treatments and products to look more like you want to look is a feat of personal initiative and intelligence. As the beauty industry becomes more and more technologically advanced, beauty... See more

Basically, my theory of fiction is that it’s all some form of exotic travel writing. Whether you’re telling the story of a bitter rich man trying to get his ex-girlfriend back, or a World War 2 bombardier growing tired of war, or a dragon-riding queen battling an army of zombies, or a boy genius waging war against insectoid aliens, the appeal of a... See more