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Quote of the day
Being inhuman is not the natural order of things. People don’t instinctively behave that way: they’re made to by the circumstances they’re in and by the structure of the world around them. And being inhuman is not just about bad behaviour–it’s actually a big part of our deepest problems.
~STEVE HILTON, author of More Human: Designing a World Where People Come First
WRITING
Viewpoint, also known as point of view or POV, is one of the most complex facets of fiction. It is confusing and misunderstood, so viewpoint errors are among the most common errors editors see in new writers’ manuscripts.
- Writing habits and routines, filling the creative well, The Creative Penn | Tweet
Every writer is different but every professional writer also has some kind of routine to get the words onto the page. You can call this discipline if you like, but it’s better to think of it as a habit. Habits are things you do without having to debate whether to do them or not. Like brushing your teeth, which you likely do at the same time every day and miss if you don’t do.
- What it means to write realistic dialogue, Jane Friedman | Tweet
If you’re writing a scene with dialogue, it can be tempting to have the conversation follow a very logical flow, what writer Samsun Knight describes as a “call and response” method. But that’s usually a mistake.
- Lay vs. lie (vs. laid), Writer’s Digest | Tweet
The difference between Lay vs. Lie vs. Laid (Plus a handy chart).
→The Only Grammar Book You’ll Ever Need: A One-Stop Source for Every Writing Assignment
SCREENWRITING
- 30 Things about screenwriting: There are no screenwriting rules, Go Into The Story | Tweet
No matter what you have read. Or may have heard. Perhaps the source is a so-called screenwriting ‘guru.’ Maybe it’s a friend. A member of your writer’s group. Whoever it is, if they tell you there are screenwriting rules… they are flat-out wrong. There are no rules.
→Save The Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need
- Top 5 tips for submitting a screenplay, Script Mag | Tweet
Congratulations! You’ve completed your script and it’s ready to be submitted to companies. You’ve made sure that it’s really and truly ready for submission by receiving feedback from trusted sources. Now what?
→Selling a Screenplay: The Screenwriter’s Guide to Hollywood
SELF-PUBLISHING
- Authors and Internet Marketing + Links, The Book Designer | Tweet
Self-publishing authors—particularly writers of nonfiction—have a lot to gain by studying marketing, and today for most authors, that means internet marketing.
→The Author’s Marketing Handbook
Facebook is now letting you make your News Feed a lot more personal. The social network introduced a new set of tools meant to give users more control over exactly what they see in their News Feed.
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
- The logic of effective altruism, Boston Review | Tweet
A minimally acceptable ethical life involves using a substantial part of one’s spare resources to make the world a better place.
→Does Altruism Exist?: Culture, Genes, and the Welfare of Others
SCIENCE
- The science of Inside Out
, NYT | Tweet
, As scientists who have studied emotion for decades, we were delighted to be asked. We ended up serving as scientific consultants for the movie, Inside Out, which was recently released.
BOOKS
- Best books for summer 2015: what to read, The Telegraph | Tweet
We asked novelists and historians to tell us which new book and which classic they’re packing this year. From Ishiguro to Napoleon, here are their selections.
→More Human: Designing a World Where People Come First
SUCCESS
Successful people don’t typically become successful because they fought their way to the top on their own, or because they crushed all their competitors into dust along the way.Many successful people value passion and optimism in their work and prefer to be surrounded with a team who values similar traits.
→Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment
BUSINESS
Do you have a mentor? What kinds of things do you do together? Does your mentor have a friend who can be my mentor? Maybe we could all double sometime.
→The Mentor’s Guide: Facilitating Effective Learning Relationships