writing

When I write about my very specific problems I trust that the reader can generalize to their situation - and they can. It also empowers them because they have to arrive at their own conclusions which is good.

I write like the 12 dollar desk salad, the bar that packs 20 grams of protein and plastic into one 200-calorie brick. But good writing, like a good meal, needs fat. It should indulge readers, is meant to be chewed and enjoyed, affording a generous escape from the prosaic and mundane.

My information consumption philosophy is simple: (1) It must have a long shelf life. (2) It must have taken considerable effort to create. With these two principles, you can cut out most of the junk from your information diet.

Perhaps you're the same kind of non- Writer writer. The playful amateur kind who uses it to explore and communicate ideas, rather than making the medium part of your identity. But even amateurs want to be good. I certainly want to get good.

Now, and for the rest of my brief life, I'll be trying to write narrative non-fiction that isn't entirely crap. Narrative non-fiction is the catch-all term for factual writing that uses narrative, literary-like techniques to create a compelling story for the reader. It's non-fiction work that goes beyond presenting bland information in chronologica... See more

We believe that when we start a new business or creative endeavor, it will be a magnificent event. That we’ll start off with applause. However, what’s far more likely is that after we hit publish, the only thing we’ll hear is the deafening sound of indifference.

I find explaining any actually interesting idea usually requires explaining like 5 subsidiary ideas. If you’re lucky. If you’re unlucky it’s like 25 and either they’re ready for a three hour lecture or you’re not going to succeed.

as people age, they tend to find themselves consuming more and creating less. To put it bluntly: the easiest way to live a short unimportant life is to consume the world around you rather than contribute to it.