Something I see all the time in my research and writing and talk about frequently in my coaching practice is the need to marry fierce self-discipline with fierce self-compassion.

On sustainable success, peak performance, and career advice.

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In the last 60 days, I've helped 253 people build an online writing habit.

Here are 10 lessons they've taught me in behavior change, human psychology, and writing online.

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1. Start smaller

The foundation of Ship 30 for 30 is the Atomic Essay.

• One idea
• Under 200 words
• Fits in one iPhone screenshot

This eliminates any friction to publishing ideas online.

And without that friction, momentum is inevitable.

2. Constraints create freedom

"Write something every day" is hard.

There are too many choices to make.

"Publish a 200-word essay with a 30-minute time limit every day for 30 days."

This is easier.

Within these constraints, creativity thrives.

3. Results come from tight feedback loops

The foundation of Ship 30 for 30 comes from @jackbutcher:

Make noise, listen for signal.

Weekly blog posts sent into the void = no feedback.

Daily Atomic Essays on Twitter = immediate feedback.

Faster feedback = faster iterations.

4. Impostor syndrome is curable

But not with common advice of "believing" in yourself.

Early writers think everyone else has figured out.

Until they start writing.

Then, they realize everyone is figuring it out as they go.

Cure impostor syndrome with action, not belief.

FAQ: “How do I get better at writing?”
Me: Write a million words.
Follow up: “Hah but seriously.”
Me: Start with 20,000 words. Everyone gets to that 50 times in their first million.
Follow up: “No seriously.”
Me: Nobody expects 10 Quick Tips To Play Violin At Carnegie Hall.

The Internet is so much better at teaching writing than the traditional educational system principally because it removes an artificial and limiting constraint on output imposed by ability of gatekeepers’ limited time to evaluate output.

(Interestingly in fields where we actually care about performance we’re good at encouraging students to practice when no one is watching but for writing we basically assume all the value is created by the teacher-minute of attention. Teacher-minutes are scarce and rationed.)

If you ever want to be deeply, deeply disillusioned about the state of the world, compare what we do where we care about output quality and what we do where we don’t, and which domains sort into which column by revealed preference.

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...

LARPing Our Way To Armageddon

The intense and present danger of fantasy

a thread

One of the interesting things about the scifi / fantasy writing community is that it contains many people who have much higher tolerance for fantasy than the norm.

People who can be around fantasy a lot, without losing track of reality.

Counter intuitive perhaps. But people who deal with fantasy at a professional level become expert at recognising its stench.

That's a useful skill in 2021, when the world, and particularly America, is being sucked into a vortex of unreality.

Because human beings do not, as a rule, have good tools for distinguishing fantasy from reality.

This isn't a bug of humankind, it's very much a feature.

Humans are what we are because of our ability to engage in the shared fantasy we call society / culture / civilisation.

Homo Sapiens are the species that LARPs

Which has always brought with it some structural issues

That just got waaaaaaaaaaay more serious

So here is a secret: Not everything I write goes anywhere. I have at least 4 books completely written and edited that never went on submission. I have books that stalled out at 20k. I have docs on my computer with opening paragraphs I don't remember writing. But! 1/

Every now and then an idea sticks with me like that corner of tortilla chip that just won't go down your throat. It happened with SPARROWHAWK, which began as 40k of a YA story, died, and was reborn as a comic, thanks to @christopher_j_r and @boomstudios. And now... 2/

It's happening with THE WILLOWS, a short story that you'll see in @UncannyMagazine next year. This Southern Gothic horror story began as an attempt to sell my next Romance to @AbZurdity after the Blud books in 2014 or so. And she didn't buy it. Guess why? 3/

Turns out, it wasn't a Romance! It was Southern Gothic Horror. Even the bones of it screamed strangeness, not sexiness. I loved the taste of the world, but I hadn't found the right story yet. Tried to write it 2 more times and failed. Until I finally understood what it was. 4/

So I took the 50 pages I'd written and cut half of them, twisting the story around from a gothy Romance inspired by the band the Civil Wars and turned it into a spooky descent into madness. And it looked back at me from the abyss as if to say, DUH. Sometimes... 5/