Today I watched the Steve Jobs Apple iPhone launch video after hearing Nancy Duarte’s TED talk explaining that all great presentations have the same structure: they move back and forth between the current state and the possible future, which helps the listener to make the shift to the future
I’ve made things too complicated again. It’s almost like, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, except for online presence. I got this secret blog, but then I wanted a secret digital garden, and then I wanted to redo my website, and then I wanted to restart my
Last week, I wrote three conference abstracts while pausing about every half-sentence to interact with my toddler. This workshop will— “Yes, it’s a pink circle.” —help participants to expand and apply their knowledge about— “Oh, you want daddy to draw a circle? Okay!” etc etc etc I finished
And it’s my second essay collection. My first essay collection, Even the Cemeteries Have Space Here, is sold out and I don’t talk much about it anymore. I’m glad I made it, I was so joyful designing it and getting it printed and connecting with people about
I’m reading Start More Than You Can Finish, by Becky Blades, which I believe I found through Tracy Durnell’s page documenting her explorations into creative process. I was instantly intrigued by the title, having also read Charlie Gilkey’s Start Finishing, which obviously has some similar themes but
That satisfying feeling of turning to the first exercise, with that virtuous thrill of embarking on a journey that will no doubt transform you in the exact ways the book’s title promises.
Today I learned how to make slides using Advanced Slides in Obsidian, and how to make diagrams using Mermaid. Both of these involve making something visual with just text commands. Instead of dragging shapes and text around, in Advanced Slides, you identify where you want it in relation to the
Why a book and not a pamphlet?
Trying out an exercise I designed to help get to know your creative practice and understand what challenges might exist and what can change to help work around those challenges. Initial inspiration for this exercise was drawn from an exercise in Abby Covert’s book, How to Make Sense of
I’ve just spent the last half hour searching around for the right way to go about a book idea I have. Was I wasting this time? Or was it a real investment, the way a comfortable office chair is an investment? Tools for writing, and thinking carefully about my