The other day, I mentioned a problem to an acquaintance. For the purposes of this story, let’s call my acquaintance Sesquipedalian, “characterized by long words; long-winded.” Pleasingly euphonic, incontrovertibly gender-fluid, and entirely appropriate for the Maven Game. “I can relate,” said Sesquipedalian. “Have you heard of the such-and-such technique?

We get so attached to the work: the big idea, the outline, the draft. As long as it’s flowing, we are terrific, brilliant, inspired. Everything’s coming up Milhouse [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M67E9mpwBpM]. Then, things take a turn. As the easy and effortless surge of inspiration

What’s the difference between a polymath and a dilettante: Credentials? Concrete achievements? The opinion of the specialists, or of society as a whole? It’s only with hindsight and context that we can separate the dabblers from the doers. Circa 1502, Da Vinci must have been one frustrating employee:

Last week, I wrote [https://mavengame.com/2019/03/maybe-youre-winning-after-all/]: > A depressing percentage of students at every top school are there because somebody told them how to ace the test, someone handed them the impressive internships and travel experiences that padded their application, someone even wrote their essay. Yes,

The Italian cyclist Daniele Nardello won the Tour de France twice. Ever heard of him? I hadn’t. I’ve never seen anyone wearing his fluorescent charity-branded rubber wristband. I’ve never heard about him dating Ashley Olsen when she was half his age, either. In fact, despite twice dominating

Diamonds are precious because we think they’re scarce. They’re not [http://diamondssuck.com]. We get precious about our work because we think creative opportunity is scarce. It isn’t. Want to cure writer’s block? Adopt an abundance mindset: * There are more than enough readers for the work

Whatever you’re working on, whatever you’re grappling with: relax, relax, relax some more. Breathe. Make it a deep one. Drop your shoulders. There you go. Now your jaw—open your  mouth wide and then let all the tension go. That’s right. You’re doing it. At a

In publishing parlance, I’m not “in house” anymore, meaning I no longer hold a full-time editorial position at a book publisher. (Ironically, I now work in my actual house.) It wasn’t an easy transition. When I left those roles behind, they stood me up in front of the

In a recent New Yorker: > Any work that resonates in some way can only be autobiographical. It just comes in different crypto-forms. This is Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, who wrote and directed The Lives of Others. His new film, Never Look Away, is loosely based on the life of

As a kid, I thought tonic water was just a weird-tasting soda my grandparents liked to drink. I had no idea it was medicine. Originally, people drank tonic water to ward off malaria. The gin was optional—in theory. Tonic water contains quinine, a bitter extract of cinchona tree bark