“It is good to vary in order that you may frustrate the curious, especially those who envy you.” – Baltasar Gracian, Born Jan. 8, 1601 As Harvey Danger once put it, “if you’re bored, then you’re boring.” And you DO want to frustrate the plans of people who stumble across you, so they stop what… Read More →
The Wise Man of the Wasteland Reveals His One Weird Trick
“The man who interprets Nature is always held in great honor.” – Zora Neale Hurston, Born Jan. 7, 1891. If you want to be the guru/expert/wizard in your chosen fields of expertise, you must become an interpreter of nature, as it occurs in that field. You are the wise man. The oracle. A wizard of… Read More →
Propaganda for Fun and Profit. But Mostly Profit.
“It is the emergence of mass media which makes possible the use of propaganda techniques on a societal scale.” – Jacques Ellul, Born Jan. 6, 1912. I say often that being able to persuade other people is about as close as you can get to having a real life superpower. It makes life easier. It… Read More →
Bloody Eyeballs Are Happy Eyeballs
“Don’t forget that the only two things people read in a story are the first and last sentences. Give them blood in the eye on the first one.” – Herbert Bayard Swope, Born Jan. 5, 1882. That’s why your opener should fuck the reader in the brain, right through their eye socket, planting the seed… Read More →
People Are Seventeen Forever on the Inside
“I’m 48 years old, not a kid anymore by any definition, but here is a universal truth that every adult at some point will realize: We are all always 17 years old, waiting for our lives to begin.” – Harlan Coben, Born Jan. 4, 1962. You can write pretty persuasively for people of any age… Read More →
Inside: Indulge in Your Weird Obsessions Without Shame
“People often ask me about what constitutes a nerd-friendly show – like, does it have to have sci-fi elements? But I think it’s just a show that satisfies the secret craving we all have to be obsessed with something and not feel at all stupid about it.” – Dan Harmon, Born Jan. 3, 1973. It’s… Read More →
Second Prize is Still a Prize
“If at first you don’t succeed, find out if the loser gets anything.” – William Lyon Phelps, Born Jan. 2, 1865. Finding success as a slacker has had a lot to do with figuring out how to plan things so that even if I don’t get the “Plan A” result, there is still a “Plan… Read More →
The Second Principle of Magic
“The second principle of magic: things which have once been in contact with each other continue to act on each other at a distance after the physical contact has been severed.” – James G. Frazer, Born Jan. 1, 1854. It goes this way with the sharing of ideas, too. Contact with the mental machinery of… Read More →
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