The psychological benefits of writing by hand / Fast Company – “For those of us who spend most days in front of a computer, writing by hand can have refreshing benefits…When you write by hand, you write more thoughtfully. Such mindful writing rests the brain, unlocking potential creativity, saysneuroscientist Claudia Aguirre. “Recent neuroscientific research has uncovered a distinct neural pathway that is only activated when we physically draw out our letters,” she writes. “And this pathway, etched deep with practice, is linked to our overall success in learning and memory.”
The ‘School of Embodiment’: This Is How To Do Good Sex Writing
“[Garth Greenwell] is, a practitioner, with [Lidia] Yuknavitch and a few others, of what we might call the School of Embodiment: a kind of close tracking of sensation and response that we typically assign to poets or sensory neurologists. This doesn’t mean that work by these writers is stylistically similar, only that it seeks meaning in and through the body.” – The Point
Why Are Contemporary Writers Obsessed With Self-Awareness?
Critics—and the authors they cover—seem to be obsessed with self-awareness. Writing about oneself isn’t new at all, but what’s current (and quickly growing stale) is the overtly self-conscious way contemporary writers have chosen to go about it. – The Nation
The Great American Essays
“We’re going through a particularly rich time for American essays: especially compared to, 20 years ago, when editors wouldn’t even dare put the word “essays” on the cover, but kept trying to package these variegated assortments as single-theme discourses, we’ve seen many collections that have been commercially successful and attracted considerable critical attention.” – LitHub
'Smart People" Review: Prisoners of Their Politics
What makes “Smart People” more than just a brilliant hatchet job is that Ms. Diamond clearly feels for her characters, who are imprisoned by the stereotypes they embody. They are—so to speak—human beings beneath the skin, and none of them are happy with their privileged lives, least of all Ginny, whose ambition to get ahead is so powerful that it has cut her off from the ordinary pleasures of human existence: “I don’t do girlfriend well. I’ve never actually done girlfriend.”
Why Did President Obama’s First Memoir Take So Long To Write?
The 44th president’s memoir was indeed much longer than he originally planned, and this is only volume one. “He writes in a very classic way. … He sits down with a pen and pad.” And that’s another way he differs from many former presidents: Obama writes his own books. – The New York Times
In the Scottish village of Newburgh, the Christmas lights hung up around town were designed from drawings done by local schoolchildren. Poppy McKenzie Smith shared some of the displays on Twitter.
Reply from Authors of “To Save the Economy, Save People First” Regarding “Lockdowns Work”
More on lockdowns as a core response to community spread of Covid-19
When milkweed leaves are scarce, hungry caterpillar get angry
NEWS YOU CAN USE: Self Defense and Your Vehicle.
