At least, at the OED. "It’s been quite a journey for “brain rot,” which triumphed over a shortlist of contenders including 'lore,’ 'demure,' 'romantasy,' 'dynamic pricing' and 'slop.'" - The New York Times
"The author was Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz, just 23 years old when his novel was published in 1938 and a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany. In 1935, he had made his way across Europe to reach Britain, where he was promptly classified as an 'enemy alien' and interned.” - The Observer (UK)
Robin Wall Kimmerer takes her students out on two-week-long foraging field trips, plants trees that will better meet the climate changing nature of her area - and writes another book. - The New York Times
Instead, it’s time. “Pundits and parents alike have emphasized preprofessional courses and downplayed the importance of humanistic study. ... In this environment, spending hours reading a novel may seem unproductive.” - The Atlantic
The company is seemingly “just trying to speed up” self-publishing “in a way that won’t work well, and of course, they don’t want to call it that”, said Marco Rinaldi, co-host of Page One – The Writer’s Podcast, in a post on Bluesky. - The Guardian
"The theory is simple. Countless classic works of literature have fallen out of copyright and into the public domain, granting normal people the right to reproduce, remix, and resell them. (YouTube hustler Dan) Pye … says this offers a remarkable opportunity, one that will reward those who take advantage." - Slate
Adam Moss: "(it) is full of notes-to-self that provide a real-time map of what was going through his mind. … It’s rare for a writer to allow you this far in to see how a novel is written; most are secretive, superstitious about exposing a process that even they don’t understand." - Vulture
“It’s really good for learning receptive skills: listening, reading, learning about grammar and vocabulary, so it can be a great place to start. But oftentimes people struggle with production: speaking and writing. Studies have shown that again and again." - The Dial
In 1984, the first year for which data is available, 35 percent of 13-year-olds reported reading for fun “almost every day,” according to NAEP. By 2023, that figure was down to 14 percent, and 31 percent of respondents said they never read for fun at all. - Vox
Lately, various writers with meaningful personal resources—money, followers, notoriety—have struck out on their own or made nontraditional arrangements. - The Atlantic
Macquarie Dictionary defines the word as "the gradual deterioration of a service or product brought about by a reduction in the quality of service provided, especially of an online platform, and as a consequence of profit-seeking." - The Guardian
The word saw an enormous spike in searches on the site in August, thanks to a TikTok video by a creator named Jools Lebron that went viral. - Smithsonian Magazine
Copyright law is a jagged rock on which many seemingly promising ideas have been wrecked. In this particular case, the perilous legal provision turned out to be Section 107 of the Copyright Act, which governs “the fair use of a copyrighted work.” - FreeThink
Taking Alex Ross’ 2007 book “The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century” as a model, Frank’s book makes the case for what, exactly, a 20th century novel is, what its authors’ methods and goals were, and how the unprecedented events of an ever more interconnected world shaped it. - Los Angeles Times
