Hacker News with Generative AI: Writing

I wrote a book called "Crap Towns". It seemed funny at the time (samj.substack.com)
In 2003, I wrote a book called Crap Towns. It seemed funny at the time. But plenty of people say it would not be possible to publish it today. Is that a problem?
Humor, Writing, Censorship
119 points by url 5 hours ago | 64 comments
50 Things I've Learned Writing Construction Physics (construction-physics.com)
I’ve been writing Construction Physics since September of 2020. Over the past four and a half years I’ve written 186 essays, totalling around 600,000 words. The newsletter was originally focused on understanding the problems of construction productivity (though it’s never been entirely about that), but I have branched out to write more about a variety of topics, including energy, transportation, and scientific and technological progress.
Construction, Productivity, Writing, Newsletter, Technology
10 points by bookofjoe 6 days ago | 0 comments
Comments on "The average college student today" (hilariusbookbinder.substack.com)
Wow did people have a lot to say about that post. Well over 300,000 people read it and nearly 1100 restacked it, thus making it more widely read than probably all of my professional writings combined. I am surprised and grateful for the engagement. It’s been very interesting to me to see what resonated and what others have experienced.
Education, Social Media, Writing
11 points by pcfwik 8 days ago | 1 comments
I got rid of SMS loan spammers. (or "how I accidentally wrote sci-fi copypasta" (medium.com)
I just wanted to have a little fun writing a reply, but when I read it I realized I had made my own sort of rickroll (sally roll?) copypasta and I was going to send it to every sms loan spammer that pinged my phone.
Spam, Humor, Writing, Copypasta
19 points by ycombiredd 9 days ago | 9 comments
Functional Programming Lessons Conclusion (jerf.org)
As many others observe as well, one of the major reasons to write is to firm up ideas in one’s own head. Serializing an idea out into English words is still no guarantee one understands it deeply, but it is great progress over a very fuzzy idea that has never been fleshed out at all.
Programming, Functional Programming, Writing
52 points by speckx 12 days ago | 47 comments
Audiobooks vs. Printed Books: a debate as a reader and an author (newsandreviews.substack.com)
On Monday morning this week I started a dot point list of notes I wanted to hit in this week’s bad review, then I looked up and it was lunchtime and I was 1200 words into something much, much bigger.
Audiobooks, Reading, Writing, Publishing
32 points by zeristor 13 days ago | 68 comments
"The Phantom Tollbooth" Was Supposed to Be a Nonfiction Book About Cities (arbesman.substack.com)
The Phantom Tollbooth was initially supposed to be a children’s book about cities.
Children's Literature, Writing, Urban Planning
12 points by arbesman 17 days ago | 1 comments
Longtime Writing Community NaNoWriMo Shuts Down After AI Drama (gizmodo.com)
National Novel Writing Month is no more (at least formally).
Writing, AI, Community, Controversies, Shutdown
19 points by gnabgib 19 days ago | 3 comments
Writing apps I used to start and finish my book (theverge.com)
Can you ever use too much software? Yes, but hear me out first.
Writing, Books, Software, Productivity
9 points by Tomte 20 days ago | 1 comments
Ask HN: How to write better tech blogs (ycombinator.com)
I have a blog but it seems most people who are with my content hardly like it.
Writing, Blogging, Technology, Content Marketing
13 points by sonderotis 23 days ago | 6 comments
The NaNoWriMo organization is shutting down (theverge.com)
NaNoWriMo will no longer offer its annual challenge ‘after years of financial struggle.’
Nonprofit Organizations, Writing, NaNoWriMo
7 points by Tomte 23 days ago | 0 comments
NaNoWriMo to close after 20 years (theguardian.com)
NaNoWriMo, the US-based nonprofit organisation that challenged people to write a novel in a month, has announced it is closing down after 20 years.
Nonprofit Organizations, Writing, Events
22 points by kawera 23 days ago | 14 comments
Markdown and the Slow Fade of the Formatting Fetish (ia.net)
You might not have noticed, but year after year, document formats like .docx, .ppt, and pdf lose a little bit of steam. Markdown is growing over and into the old formats, slowly, and nicely, like moss on a stranded star destroyer. Notes on a revolution in slow motion.
Markdown, Document Formats, Technology, Trends, Writing
11 points by cratermoon 23 days ago | 6 comments
Rich Text, Poor Text (2013) (laemeur.sdf.org)
Bold, italic, subscript, superscript, underlines, strike-throughs — I don't find any of these presentational attributes of text any more frivolous than quotation marks and exclamation points.
Typography, Writing, Design
57 points by SerCe 23 days ago | 28 comments
NaNoWriMo shut down after AI, content moderation scandals (techcrunch.com)
NaNoWriMo, a 25-year-old online writing community-turned-nonprofit, announced on Monday evening that it is shutting down.
Writing, Nonprofits, AI, Content Moderation, Scandals
7 points by healsdata 25 days ago | 3 comments
NaNoWriMo Officially Shutting Down (reddit.com)
We come to you today with sad news. After six years of struggling to sustain itself financially, NaNoWriMo (the nonprofit) will begin the process of shutting down.
Nonprofit Organizations, Writing, NaNoWriMo
10 points by empressplay 25 days ago | 1 comments
In the Matter of the Commas (theamericanscholar.org)
For the true literary stylist, this seemingly humble punctuation mark is a matter of precision, logic, individuality, and music
Grammar, Punctuation, Writing, Style, Literature
11 points by apollinaire 25 days ago | 0 comments
The Prevention of Literature (1947) (theatlantic.com)
To write in plain, vigorous language one has to think fearlessly, and if one thinks fearlessly one cannot be politically orthodox.
Literature, Politics, Censorship, Writing
9 points by petethomas 25 days ago | 2 comments
My Book's Pre-Sale Just Barely Succeeded (mtlynch.io)
For the past few months, I’ve been working on a book called Refactoring English: Effective Writing for Software Developers.
Writing, Books, Software Development
19 points by hyperbrainer 25 days ago | 7 comments
Open letter to graduate students and other procrastinators: it's time to write (nature.com)
Let me begin with a hard truth. As scientists, writing is our chief activity. It can be argued that it is the only thing we do that matters. It is the singular activity that you as a young scientist partake in that will raise your salary.
Science, Graduate School, Writing, Academia
8 points by indogooner 28 days ago | 0 comments
How to write blog posts that developers read (refactoringenglish.com)
I recently spoke to a developer who tried blogging but gave up because nobody was reading his posts. I checked out his blog, and it was immediately obvious why he didn’t have any readers.
Writing, Blogging, Developers, Content Creation
603 points by rbanffy 29 days ago | 154 comments
'We use them every day': the clack of typewriter keys can still be heard (bbc.com)
Computers and smartphones might be where most writing is done these days, but typewriters still have work to do in the US.
Typewriters, Technology, Writing, History, Culture
3 points by admp 29 days ago | 0 comments
George Orwell and me: Richard Blair on life with his extraordinary father (theguardian.com)
Richard Blair didn’t have the easiest start in life. At three weeks old, he was adopted. Nine months later, his adoptive mother, Eileen, died at 39, after an allergic reaction to the anaesthetic she was given for a hysterectomy. Family and friends expected Blair’s father, Eric, to un-adopt him. Fortunately, Eric, better known as George Orwell, was an unusually hands-on dad for the 1940s.
Biography, Family, History, Writing
73 points by lermontov 29 days ago | 25 comments
How to Use Em Dashes (–), En Dashes (–), and Hyphens (-) (merriam-webster.com)
Be dashing—and do it well
Writing, Grammar, Punctuation
650 points by Stratoscope 29 days ago | 473 comments
How to Write Blog Posts That Developers Read (refactoringenglish.com)
I recently spoke to a developer who tried blogging but gave up because nobody was reading his posts. I checked out his blog, and it was immediately obvious why he didn’t have any readers.
Writing, Blogging, Developers, Content Creation
8 points by mtlynch 30 days ago | 6 comments
A practical guide to writing on the iPad (2023) (billbennett.co.nz)
Apple didn't design the original iPad for writing. It was a device for reading or viewing media, not creating it. Over the years it has become a great portable writing tool. Many writers find it is better than a laptop.
Writing, iPad, Apple, Technology, Productivity
7 points by billybuckwheat 31 days ago | 0 comments
Ungovernable, Capricious Life (nybooks.com)
The sense of vulnerability is crushing, but it is also one of the characteristics Kureishi reveals about himself that makes him so likable here, and the writing so intimate.
Vulnerability, Writing, Biography, Literature, Personal Essays
6 points by mitchbob 32 days ago | 7 comments
Sorry, Sam Altman, A.I. Is Not Good at Real Writing (nytimes.com)
I was grading assignments for an undergraduate course in memoir writing when I experienced a severe crisis of faith regarding the future — of academia, of writing, of thinking.
Generative AI, Writing, Education
10 points by paulpauper 34 days ago | 2 comments
In some parts of the US, the clack of typewriter keys can still be heard (bbc.com)
Computers and smartphones might be where most writing is done these days, but typewriters still have work to do in the US.
Typewriters, Writing, Technology, Culture, United States
20 points by tigerlily 34 days ago | 10 comments
Rest Easy (commentary.org)
The Russian novelist Ivan Goncharov once said of writers, “And to write and write, like a wheel or a machine, tomorrow, the day after, on holidays; summer will come—and he must still be writing. When is he to stop and rest? Unfortunate man?”
Writing, Literature, Russia
51 points by lermontov 34 days ago | 21 comments