BC WRITING
Saved by @Jacobtldr

I can second this observation through personal experience. I was only able to start writing because "it's just dumb weeb fanfiction quests, who cares." 100,000 pages of dumb weeb fanfic later, and I actually got better... but only because I was trying my best with every page.

 "It's dumb weeb fanfiction" gave me permission to be bad, to vomit things onto the page that I knew fell far short of what I wanted it to be. To just write and write instead of laboring over six paragraphs for weeks like I'd always done before.

But I still *wanted* to be good.
Writing is HARD. And unfortunately, most people don't appreciate just how hard writing (or communication in general) is, and that cultural attitude infects writers, too.

You must give yourself permission to be bad. And realize that all writing is practice.

IT. COUNTS.
And as the folks in my mentions are pointing out...

https://t.co/5kyxA5Ezm2
... it's an excellent way to find out what actually resonates with other people - putting work out there. Even your early bad stuff you'll cringe at later.

What resonates is NOT easy to tell, because we all, inherently cringe at ourselves, a lot.

https://t.co/g5Nt5LGTNN
Writing is inherently indulgent. We're plumbing our Id and dredging up the things we like and care most about after all; and inside our brains we're still six year olds playing with toy airplanes and wanting to be cowboys when we grow up, without a trace of self-consciousness.
But even then...

Not long ago I was in the Greenfield Village train museum, watching a young boy who reminded me much of myself. Despite his youth he clearly knew his shit about trains; he knew terminology I only vaguely recalled myself, as an adult.
And yet, despite being encouraged by everyone, and having a very receptive (and plainly thrilled) senior engineer happy to talk about trains and answer every question he could, the kid was very plainly painfully shy and had to be coaxed into talking about it.

It's always there.
Even at that age, it's already apparent that you like things others don't. Most kids don't play with airplane toys. They run out to the playground to play Power Ranger or whatever. They're into things you can actually see on TV.

Somehow, you always know.
It's always hard, then, to write about what you *really* want to write about. To turn people into dinosaurs instead of curing cancer, which is what Conventional Wisdom says you should do with your skills.

But if you do, you'll find out just how many people think like you do.
And if you're tempering your indulgence; if you're subjecting your deeply-held beliefs to the bite of reality, and exploring how they can be resolved, if ever, you're just mirroring the internal struggle of most human beings. It's perhaps the essence of the human condition.
Dumb fun indulgent things sell well. And I don't mean just "hurr cute" like Strike Witches; I mean the stuff your inner seventh-grade chuuni still loves and unironically thinks is cool as hell.

But we're ALL like that, deep down. We all have the inner chuuni, still lurking.
That's the stuff we really, truly love. Nobody loves being an adult, stuck on this bitch of an earth where dull pragmatism and soul-crushingly boring routine labors dominate, all so we can perpetuate existence till we're in a pine box.

We all *want* that magic back again.
But you have to remember that vast tension between our imagination and our reality is what has driven our civilization ever-onward. You'd have to be a chuuni to be a fighter pilot; bolting your ass to a supersonic fuel tank with a lit torch on one fucking end.
You have to be even more insane to do it with a moon rocket - especially given how mind-numbingly hard they are to engineer and build.

But that's where the hard-working, pragmatic adult and the chuuni have a meeting of minds; the former can realize the latter's ambition.
And that, IMO, is why I was pushing the limits and always *trying* for serious things even when I was writing what was effectively a weeb crossover fanfic romantic comedy.

Because I simply couldn't help myself. Because I really DO believe we can realize our chuuni dreams.
I'm not saying that pure fluffy escapism fantasy is bad. I'm certainly not qualified to judge. But I DO think that if you wall off your own work like that, because you think those nice things can never be realized, not even a little, in real life - you're going to live a sad life
I went through a very dark period after my grandmother died a few years back; what little I produced during that period was just an existential scream. I thought I'd embraced that philosophy wholesale, swallowed the blackpill.

But eventually I realized, I couldn't accept it.
Whatever your inner chuuni ambition is, you have to embrace it. *Fully,* and without shame. Use whatever excuse you have to, to start out with. But shed them, when you're ready. In the end, you can't outrun yourself. And really, you shouldn't try to.

Say what you truly believe.

More from Writing

Daniel Solis, Jive Turkey
Daniel Solis, Jive Tur...
@DanielSolis
Thread: Common instances of passive voice in rules text that can be clearer with more direct voice.

But first: Why do we so often write rules in passive voice? Outlining the "laws" of our game feels like a very formal position with an of aloof authority. Avoid that voice.

"THE PLAYER"

Question any instance of "the player" in a sentence. If you are addressing one player, address them directly in the first sentence of the paragraph and use "you" thereafter.

"If you are the first player, you may X, Y, then Z. If you X, see next page."

"HAVE/HAD/HAS/'D/"

Examine any of these words or contractions. There is usually a more succinct way of phrasing that sentence in the present tense and direct address.

"The player who has just moved must..."
vs.
"After you move, you must..."

"WE"

If you want to put yourself at the table with the players, do so CONSISTENTLY. A random "we" in one paragraph really sticks out. You can even play with voice that way.

"We suggest using option A for your first game."
vs.
"Ahoy, cadet! Use option A for your first game!"

"YOU MAY BUILD, HARVEST, or REST."

Break up action options into a bulleted list rather than a long sentence. e.g.

"On your turn, do one of the following:
• Build: Pay X to place a card.
• Harvest: Destroy a card to gain X.
• Rest: Draw a card from the deck."
WRITING
Beau Willimon
Beau Willimon
@BeauWillimon
A few words on the passing of William Goldman: In addition to being a legendary screenwriter, he was a friend and mentor to so many other writers, offering guidance and support, directly influencing hundreds of films beyond his own work...


In 2009 a few of us organized an outdoor screening to commentate the 40th anniversary of “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” at the Tribeca Film Festival. Writers such as Tony Gilroy, Aaron Sorkin, David Koepp & Scott Frank each spoke to praise Bill...


As each discussed how Bill had been instrumental in inspiring, teaching and supporting them, it really sank in as to what an extraordinary impact this man has had on the landscape of cinema...


Also at that screening we’re 5,000 people who had come to watch one of their favorite movies on a chilly April night by the Hudson River. Bill touched millions that never got the chance to know him personally, but got to know his films like close, enduring friends...

There are few screenwriter who have made the impact William Goldman has - on the form, on the culture, and on fellow writers. He is a world treasure. And though he is no longer with us, his films will be with us as long as people still have a love for cinema...
WRITING
Advertisement
People_of_Space: Nicholas
People_of_Space: Nicho...
@People_Of_Space
So a final thread from me as your host today: some top tips on how to write for a popular audience about complicated subjects #space #science #writing #storytelling


The essence of any good communication is simplicity. It’s the same in print, television, radio, online, or attaching notes to carrier pigeon’s legs.


In the sixties, a Granada current affairs show set the template for using a visual medium more effective: it was pioneered by a remarkable fellow called Tim Hewat, a flavour of whose personality is here:

Up to this point, most television in this country had been akin to putting radio on television: most of it was beyond parody though this from Harry Enfield is spot on -- the patronising smug tone that meant the BBC was nicknamed "Auntie" --

And take a look at the longest running TV show as it then appeared: https://t.co/T4FdppnQMo

(Patrick was a brilliant broadcaster. The point I am trying to make is the medium was not exactly groundbreaking in the visuals department)
WRITING
George Mack
George Mack
@george__mack
Flying is accidentally the best ever environment for DEEP work and reflection.

Writers like @rickygervais do their best work on airplanes.

Here's 6 reasons why.

THREAD...

What looks like a bug - can often be a feature.

“A change of perspective is worth 80 IQ points.”

The restrictions we face on airplanes is what makes the experience so liberating.

AIRPLANE FEATURE 1 - HIGH EXIT COSTS

You can't find any escapes.

If you try to escape, you face death.

Negative incentives are built into the system.

"Incentives are a super power." - Charlie Munger

AIRPLANE ADVANTAGE 2 - NO INPUTS

There's no newsfeeds to refresh. No emails to reply to.

It's like knowing your heroin dealer is in a coma.

Boredom is built into the system.

Your monkey mind can't access dopamine - so it starts creating its own.

It is a distraction-free environment:

1. No socialising - You don't know anyone. No small talk.

2. No sound inputs - The engine acts as white noise.

3. No visual inputs - The seating structure means you see barely anybody.
WRITING
Cory Doctorow #BLM
Cory Doctorow #BLM
@doctorow
I've been talking to @polygon's @TashaRobinson about my books for nearly two decades. She was one of the reviewers to dig into Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, my debut novel, all the way back in 2003 when she was at @theonion's @TheAVClub.

https://t.co/t55DCpCNAl

1/


She's always had smart things to say about my books (and is never shy about criticizing them) so I was delighted to talk with her about my latest, ATTACK SURFACE, for an interview: "Cory Doctorow on his drive to inspire positive

As the title suggests, the interview digs into the relationship between our narratives about the future and the future itself when it arrives - the delights and perils of dystopianism, a philosophy that I find seductive even as I reject it.

3/

Many conversations and books disabused me of dystopianism, but the turning points came from a pair of woman historians. First: Rebecca Solnit's "A Paradise Built In Hell" - a gorgeous, brilliantly researched book about the true histories of

And second was @Ada_Palmer's legendary end-of-year event with her undergrad Renaissance history students at the University of Chicago:
WRITING

You May Also Like

Simon DeDeo
Simon DeDeo
@SimonDeDeo
"I lied about my basic beliefs in order to keep a prestigious job. Now that it will be zero-cost to me, I have a few things to say."


We know that elite institutions like the one Flier was in (partial) charge of rely on irrelevant status markers like private school education, whiteness, legacy, and ability to charm an old white guy at an interview.

Harvard's discriminatory policies are becoming increasingly well known, across the political spectrum (see, e.g., the recent lawsuit on discrimination against East Asian applications.)

It's refreshing to hear a senior administrator admits to personally opposing policies that attempt to remedy these basic flaws. These are flaws that harm his institution's ability to do cutting-edge research and to serve the public.

Harvard is being eclipsed by institutions that have different ideas about how to run a 21st Century institution. Stanford, for one; the UC system; the "public Ivys".
LIFE
Greg Olear
Greg Olear
@gregolear
Trump is a Russian asset, a mob money launderer installed by his mob whoremasters to sow chaos and weaken the US & our allies.

EVERY SINGLE THING HE’S DONE since taking office is to achieve those purposes—that and to enrich himself personally.

[THREAD]


1/ His entire family is part of this. Melania is a fucking crook. Ivanka is a fucking crook. Junior and Gums are fucking crooks. They will all die in prison, except for Kushner, who, if he really *did* trade US intel for money, should be executed for espionage.

2/ Why do you think Trump installs uniquely corrupt & awful people to Cabinet positions? Pruitt, Zinke, Betsy, Rex/Pompeo, Wilbur "Melting Nazi Face" Ross. They are not there to serve us. They are not there to drain the swamp. They are there to BURN THE REPUBLIC DOWN.

3/ Trump steals. He takes taxpayer money—your money and mine—and lines his pockets with it. He exploits his office to make himself richer. This is all he cares about. Why are Republican citizens, you “fiscal conservatives,” not more angry about this? Riddle me THAT, #MAGA.

4/ Matt Whitaker, the human dildo and “acting AG,” was illegally installed to throw a monkey wrench in the Mueller investigation. That’s why they won’t release his financials. He’s fucking bought and sold. He’s going to prison for obstruction.
POLITICS
Advertisement
SK
SK
@sk_diary1
Margatha Natarajar murthi - Uthirakosamangai temple near Ramanathapuram,TN
#ArudraDarisanam
Unique Natarajar made of emerlad is abt 6 feet tall.
It is always covered with sandal paste.Only on Thriuvadhirai Star in month Margazhi-Nataraja can be worshipped without sandal paste.


After removing the sandal paste,day long rituals & various abhishekam will be https://t.co/e1Ye8DrNWb day Maragatha Nataraja sannandhi will be closed after anointing the murthi with fresh sandal paste.Maragatha Natarajar is covered with sandal paste throughout the year


as Emerald has scientific property of its molecules getting disturbed when exposed to light/water/sound.This is an ancient Shiva temple considered to be 3000 years old -believed to be where Bhagwan Shiva gave Veda gyaana to Parvati Devi.This temple has some stunning sculptures.
ALL
christmas cheer liz bruenig
christmas cheer liz br...
@ebruenig
one of the things i like about Batman is that it's fundamentally about being orphaned, and being an orphan — how this guy stays tethered to the world in his own weird, abstract, extrajudicial way when he feels that his link to it has been violently severed

Batman does this by permanently recapitulating his own trauma: solving crimes for other people, protecting them. But that's actually just the beginning; he also recapitulates his own experience of orphanness by essentially raising several orphans

Dick is an orphan in the traditional sense: dead parents. Batman sees it happen. Jason, less so: missing dad, known mom who eventually dies. Tim, even less so: parents are around a while, and involved, before both dying. Carrie, even less than that: negligent parents.

Steph: evil father, who openly works against her. And then there's Damian, whose parents are both alive and yet both have identities that totally obliterate their role as his parents. He doesn't relate to them as a mother and father; he can't, and neither can they.

In all these different cases, Batman tries all these different ways of making orphanness for them not what it was for him: Either by trying to teach them the (arguably poor) coping skills early that he learned over a very long time, or by literally legally adopting them, etc.
CULTURE
ThreadArchive33
ThreadArchive33
@ThreadArchive33
Made by NickHintonn 2 apr. 2018

Here’s a thread about The Black Tom explosion: a terrorist attack on American soil and major event in US history. However, no one has heard of it and I believe it’s proof that our timeline may be changing.


On July 30th, 1916, in Jersey City, German agents destroyed American ammunition supplies by setting them on fire. The incident is famous for causing damage to the Statue of Liberty.


The fires caused the ammunition supplies to explode, lodging fragments in buildings miles away including the Statue of Liberty and the clock tower of The Jersey Journal, stopping the clock at 2:12 am.


The explosion caused windows to shatter as far as 25 miles away, including thousands in lower Manhattan. Some window panes in Times Square were shattered. Even stained glass windows in St. Patrick's Church were destroyed.


The explosion was so strong is registered as a 5.5 earthquake on the Richter scale. It could be felt as far away as Philadelphia. The explosion cracked the outer wall of Jersey City's City Hall and the Brooklyn Bridge was shaken. People as far away as Maryland were woken up.
HISTORY