On the proliferation and efficiency of writing circles
It’s hard to write long-form essays without serious, socially-enforced deadlines. The reason my writing group (with Garrett & Yehudis) worked in October, November was because we had shared stakes. We all knew we were publishing on the 1st. Since we were linking to each other, you really can’t miss the train.
Deadlines really help human beings get things done. The only way that I've written books is because I set myself a challenging, but not impossible, schedule with the publisher. This contract of external accountability keeps the fire going through the long slog, and it forces me to make clear-cut decisions about what to include, what to leave out, a
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