Readings for May 22, 2023

I was reading recently that one thing readers like in general is learning about how writers (and maybe editors?) do their daily work. I know that I have read many daily routines of authors in order to compare and contrast my own comfortable rut with theirs. I also found myself reading four behind-the-scenes essays this weekend. It wasn’t my intention, but when you stumble across a theme, you might as well pick it up and run with it.

My Routine

7:00 to 9:00 a.m.: Morning things, like running the dog, eating breakfast, and reading the entire internet, by which I mean checking my Fediverse accounts and RSS feeds (I like NewsBlur, if you’re interested.

9:00 to 10:00 a.m.: Either listening to a relevant podcast, like my new favorite The Publishing Rodeo, or working on a book project, like my translation of Celeste Mogador’s memoir.

10:00 a.m. to noon: Writing for outlets or editing books

noon to 1:00: Lunch and fetch with the dog

1:00 to 5:00: More editing, with a break in the middle for reading or napping, whichever seems more pressing

5:00 to 7:00: Walk the dog, then do schoolwork or work on a writing project of my own. After that, I’m done for the day.

It’s very exciting. But it gives me lots of time to move projects forward without being to locked-in, plus there are plenty of breaks built in.

The Readings

From the New York Times: Fast and Furious drama

I spent years as an automotive journalist. I wrote regularly for the NYT Autos section, and I had a column on the PopSci website, along with other national outlets. And yet, I had never seen a Fast and Furious movie. This despite the fact that my colleague Jason Fenske, of Engineering Explained, loves the franchise and will talk about it at the drop of a hat. Like, before the hat even hits the floor. He loves those movies.

I finally caught up on most of the series when the movies became available via HBO Max. They are fun if you’re in the mood. I get the “it’s about family” jokes now. With the tenth movie coming out this summer, the NYT ran a primer on the behind-the-scenes drama over the years, so I’m caught up on that now too. Jason will be amazed.

The Hollywood Reporter: Guardians of the Galaxy drama

By the time the first Guardians came out in 2014, I was already starting to feel a little superhero fatigue. But I went to see this, and I liked it! Since I knew nothing of the comics, I was especially charmed by Groot’s light spores.

When Guardians 2 came out, I was definitely over superhero movies. I waited until this one was streaming and was not sad that I hadn’t paid for a ticket to see it in the theater. It was a fine way to pass an evening at home.

Now Guardians 3 is in theaters, and I am skipping it. I have heard it’s pretty good, but in these expensive and COVID times, it’s not the movie that’s going to get me back into a theater. I’ll again wait for streaming.

But I definitely read the recap of the directorial saga of this series, with James Gunn behind hired, fired, and rehired, and then moving to DC. And I learned Sean Gunn does the mo-cap for Rocket.

Pitchfork: Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love”

When I was but a wee child, two decades too young to be in any kind of disco, I was obsessed with Donna Summer. She was the most glamorous, gorgeous person I could even imagine, and I loved her voice. I danced in my living room and sang along to lyrics I did not understand even a little bit.

It’s funny how songs we hear as kids, when we have absolutely no ability to be critical about what we’re hearing, can turn out to be seminal in the world outside our living rooms. I know every synth beat and soaring vocal of “I Feel Love,” and it’s been covered at least partially — and very effectively — by Sam Smith and Beyonce in recent years. But Pitchfork’s very long dissection of the song’s construction, recording process, and effect on a wide variety of musical genres in the late ’70s and ’80s is eye-opening. It’s so good, it’s so good, it’s so good, it’s so good, it’s soooooooo goooooood.

The Creative Independent: Rayne Fisher-Quann

The Creative Independent is all about behind-the-scenes and craft and process, and I love reading how creators across a variety of media accomplish their art. I’m not familiar with Fisher-Quann’s work, though I learned from this interview that she has a Substack newsletter that I should probably check out. But I really liked her ideas about writing for the people who like your work and not for the people who don’t:

I’ll often see people make an argument and then they will add this claim or this aside that is very reflexively defensive of a stance that no sane person would ever assume somebody of having. I often feel the urge to do that too, because I don’t want to be misunderstood. But the problem with doing that is it gets to a point where you are writing for an audience that you don’t want to be your audience. When you start catering towards an audience who doesn’t want to understand you, that’s the audience that will start to grow. You should start feeding the audience that you want to build around your work.

The Most Enthusiastic Participant in the Morning Routine

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