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Raymond Chandler cut his typing paper in half. He’d type until he made a bad word choice or botched a bit of dialogue, then he’d rip the sheet out of his typewriter and start again. Eventually he’d have a half page of fiction he could stand. Then he’d move forward—very, very slowly—to the next half-page of his novel.
The Big Sleep | Head Butler

Source: headbutler.com

    • #Raymond Chandler
    • #writing
  • 3 months ago
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Raising Some Concerns


  Apple in particularused a state-of-the-art sales operation that some say is unique, but is raising some concerns.


Okay. I’ll bite.

(First, I think you’re missing a space there somewhere.)
“state-of-the-art” - Really? Wow. Can you be sure it’s solely “state-of-the-art” and not also “cutting edge” or “best of breed?” Because, those are all probably really good things, too.
“some say” - Ooo. “Some?” And, it’s something they “say?”  Excellent sourcing! I’m a huge fan of “some.” I love when some “say” things.
“unique” - Oh, I’ll bet it’s “unique.” I’ll bet it’s literally unique.
I’ll bet it’s literally uniquely unique.
“raising some concerns” - Aha! Well, perhaps one reason that some say the uniqueness of this sales operation is so state-of-the-art has something to do with  its powers of intransitive levitation.
Oooooo…loooooook! The concerns! They’re riiiiiising!
Anyway. How about this:


  Apple’s novel approach to courting educators has increased sales, but drawn criticism from watchdog groups.


Not perfect. But, a little clearer.

And, as some say, cliches, buzzwords, and generalities muddy the clarity that defines this state-of-the-art sales operation that some have called, “writing.”

Skullfucking clarity raises some concerns.
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Raising Some Concerns

Apple in particularused a state-of-the-art sales operation that some say is unique, but is raising some concerns.

Okay. I’ll bite.

  • (First, I think you’re missing a space there somewhere.)
  • “state-of-the-art” - Really? Wow. Can you be sure it’s solely “state-of-the-art” and not also “cutting edge” or “best of breed?” Because, those are all probably really good things, too.
  • “some say” - Ooo. “Some?” And, it’s something they “say?” Excellent sourcing! I’m a huge fan of “some.” I love when some “say” things.
  • “unique” - Oh, I’ll bet it’s “unique.” I’ll bet it’s literally unique.
    I’ll bet it’s literally uniquely unique.
  • “raising some concerns” - Aha! Well, perhaps one reason that some say the uniqueness of this sales operation is so state-of-the-art has something to do with its powers of intransitive levitation.
    Oooooo…loooooook! The concerns! They’re riiiiiising!

Anyway. How about this:

Apple’s novel approach to courting educators has increased sales, but drawn criticism from watchdog groups.

Not perfect. But, a little clearer.

And, as some say, cliches, buzzwords, and generalities muddy the clarity that defines this state-of-the-art sales operation that some have called, “writing.”

Skullfucking clarity raises some concerns.

    • #writing
    • #That Guy
    • #New York Times
  • 3 months ago
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Like Hammers

Perhaps, a final word on FSM.

Excerpted from an email responding to a very nice person who makes a lovely-looking writing app.

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    • #Distraction-Free Writing Environment
    • #Full Screen Mode
    • #writing
  • 8 months ago
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Don’t worry too much about security. You will eventually have a deep security when you begin to do what you want.
Natalie Goldberg, Writing Down the Bones
    • #Natalie Goldberg
    • #writing
  • 11 months ago
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turbine

I often tell my students to throw out their thesauruses. The fancy sounding words they substitute for regular ones often have wide-ranging connotations, sometimes derived from something as simple as the word’s component phonemes.

I.

It might also be useful to advise them to throw out their dictionaries, periodic tables, and atlases. Geez. Especially those atlases.

I mean, what real cartographer uses an atlas?

Any country you have to hunt for in an atlas is the wrong country. There are no exceptions to this rule.

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Source: tumblr.steampoweredmedia.com

    • #Writing
  • 1 year ago
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Introducing “ū—”: A Distraction-Free Writing Environment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Experience “ū—”: The Last Distraction-Free Writing Environment You’ll Buy. Today.

PORTLAND, OR - The Ourobouros Fun Factory, LLC is proud to announce a revolutionary new tool for serious artists doing serious work. It’s a distraction-free writing environment that we call “ū—” (pron. “YOOOoooouuuuu…”). And, it’s going to change the way you think about thinking about maybe writing some day forever.

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Source: twitter.com

    • #Distractions
    • #Productivity
    • #Writing
    • #“Help”
  • 1 year ago
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Classic “Writer” Hat

Truly: “classic.”

Because, finally, you can announce your theoretical avocation by owning and wearing the very same baseball cap worn by Plutarch, Ovid, Aristophanes, and Heraclitus.1

Seriously. If you’ve ever wrestled with the complex and often difficult process of discovery confronting anyone who wishes to write often and well, consider that you may have neglected to buy a fucking hat.



As you know, Parmenides preferred to write while wearing the yellowed laurel of grapevines and olive branches that his father had fashioned for him as a toddler—positing that, like all matter, sartorial decisions are, by their nature, eternally unchangeable (viz. ὡς οὐκ ἐστίν). ↩
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Classic “Writer” Hat

Truly: “classic.”

Because, finally, you can announce your theoretical avocation by owning and wearing the very same baseball cap worn by Plutarch, Ovid, Aristophanes, and Heraclitus.1

Seriously. If you’ve ever wrestled with the complex and often difficult process of discovery confronting anyone who wishes to write often and well, consider that you may have neglected to buy a fucking hat.


  1. As you know, Parmenides preferred to write while wearing the yellowed laurel of grapevines and olive branches that his father had fashioned for him as a toddler—positing that, like all matter, sartorial decisions are, by their nature, eternally unchangeable (viz. ὡς οὐκ ἐστίν). ↩

    • #Writing
  • 1 year ago
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It’s a start.

In other news: God bless you, Messieurs Gruber and Penney. Sine qua non.
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It’s a start.

In other news: God bless you, Messieurs Gruber and Penney. Sine qua non.

mmd-png

    • #writing
    • #markdown
    • #multimarkdown
    • #john gruber
    • #fletcher penney
    • #meta
    • #inbox zero
  • 2 years ago
  • 11
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