Newsletter 41: When you subtract AI from writing, what’s left is creativity; ending garbage books; remembering Daniel Dennett; surprising truths about book sales; plus three people to follow and three books to read. Soon, only creative writers will remain. Huzzah! There are things AI excels at. Summarizing long documents. Finding patterns. Turning formulaic content into…
Newsletter 40: Principles for writing success, including why authoring is like sex; a new leader for embattled librarians; Meta fails to buy publisher; plus three people to follow and three books to read. Rules of thumb for nonfiction authors Everyone writes their own way. But after 50+ book projects and thousands of shorter nonfiction pieces,…
Newsletter 38: How to navigate a world dazzled by novelty; growing market for faith-based books; Russia’s steals a year of Wall Street Journal reporter’s life; plus, three people to follow and three books to read. The disproportionate visibility of the new I’ve been reading business news and analyzing business strategy for 40 years. One thing…
Newsletter 37: Why sharing and not hoarding is the only path to happiness, translators vs. AI, 500-billion word training set, plus three people to follow and three books to read. Why nobody owns anything We spend much of our lives striving to own things. We want to own a house, a car, a smartphone, a…
Newsletter 37: Ignorance amid abundant knowledge, traumatic writer’s block, burgeoning book bans, plus three people to follow and three books to read. The problem with ignorance Ignorance bugs the hell out of me. The urge to eliminate ignorance is the driving force in my career and much of my life. This is a good thing….
A new politics arises from the ashes of the American disaster, AI proponents and doomsayers wrestle, books as chatbots, plus three people to follow, three books to read, and a chance to see me debate at Berkeley. The inspirational rise of the muscular middle I’ve freakin’ had it with the American political system. It’s time…
Newsletter 34: Who tells the truth, authors back a new publishing model, Spotify’s audiobook subscription, plus three people to follow, three books to read, and chance to meet other authors in Northern Cal. Says who? Trump advisor Steve Bannon once described his communications strategy this way: “The real opposition is the media. And the way…
Newsletter week 32. How to think about ideas, book bans, AI killing everything, plus three people to follow and three books to read. Full-stack idea development: don’t be an ASS or a PEON Authors have ideas. Authors have expertise. But unless those ideas and expertise reinforce each other properly, you can’t build a good book…
Newsletter 31. Looking back on your career, in praise of college writing centers, the disruption of a Canadian bookseller, plus three people to follow, three brand new books to read, and a plug for the imperfect manuscript. My emotional résumé I’ve been helping a friend with her résumé. The hard part is shoehorning valuable experiences…