15345209_thread.json

{
 "id":"15345209",
 "name":"Brendan Schlagel",
 "screen_name":"schlagetown",
 "tweets":[
  {"id":"1206268052498780160","timestamp":"1576431689","retweet_count":"12","favorite_count":"58","in_reply_to_status_id":"null","in_reply_to_user_id":"null","in_reply_to_screen_name":"null","text":"Okay this is absolutely blowing up my timeline in the last 24 hrs so I'm gonna bite—\n\n*Now brainstorming: 100 opinions on books & reading*\n\n(1 like = 1 opinion. Max 100. RT if you'd like some hot takes about antilibraries, bookstores, reading habits & more!) https://t.co/VPZnuH2Shm"},
  {"id":"1206271268720455681","timestamp":"1576432456","retweet_count":"3","favorite_count":"27","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206268052498780160","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"1. Every curious person should be a serious reader. Ever serious reader should build an antilibrary.\n\n(Essential vocab for this thread: your antilibrary = all the books you know about but have *not* read, designating a sort of potential energy for learning / knowledge / reading)"},
  {"id":"1206271845613346821","timestamp":"1576432594","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"12","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206271268720455681","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"2. An antilibrary should exist in both physical form (books on your shelves; books browsed but unpurchased at your favorite bookstores) and virtual form (in digital lists; in tweets and reviews scanned; in your memory)."},
  {"id":"1206277514970177536","timestamp":"1576433945","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"11","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206271845613346821","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"3. An antilibrary should have many levels: books you have an urgent desire to read, books you definitely want to read someday, books you find intriguing but may never read, books you've lost interest in entirely\n\nCategorize not only by topic but by priority / importance / status"},
  {"id":"1206278182539800576","timestamp":"1576434104","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"14","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206277514970177536","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"4. You should add at least 10 books to your antilibrary for every book you actually read.\n\n(This doesn't mean you need to own them all! I mean you can if $ / space allows, but also…keep lists of books you want to read & refer back to!)"},
  {"id":"1206278999699283969","timestamp":"1576434299","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"14","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206278182539800576","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"5. The more time you spend building your antilibrary, the better you'll get at finding & learning about great books. \n\nAnd therefore: the better your antilibrary, the better books you'll read. Same time spent reading overall (hrs or books per year) becomes more valuable."},
  {"id":"1206347911086379008","timestamp":"1576450729","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"13","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206278999699283969","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"6. Corollary: You should cull your antilibrary semi-regularly. \n\nMaybe once a year, go through your shelves and get rid of unread books that no longer interest you, to make room for more of those that do. \n\nDigital too: clean up your list(s), re-prioritize your queue(s)…"},
  {"id":"1206348427816243201","timestamp":"1576450852","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"14","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206347911086379008","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"7. Most of the time, taking notes while reading is useless. You likely won't need super specific notes anyway and it distracts from the flow / immersion in what you're reading. \n\nIf you really want to come back to something, add a lightweight bookmark to flag for later review."},
  {"id":"1206392033901985794","timestamp":"1576461249","retweet_count":"4","favorite_count":"12","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206348427816243201","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"8. We should all be more aware of (& deliberately apply) the many different levels of reading that exist — the spectrum from close reading to skimming a book quickly for major themes / ideas.\n\nDifferent books + different contexts demand different approaches for optimal reading."},
  {"id":"1206393685094674434","timestamp":"1576461642","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"7","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206392033901985794","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"9. Bookstores are not libraries. Libraries are not bookstores.\n\nThey have both more overlap in mission / value, & more differences, than we sometimes recognize.\n\nBoth great for book discovery!\nEntirely different $ models!\nEach w/ diff weird niches!"},
  {"id":"1206394104277549056","timestamp":"1576461742","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"9","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206393685094674434","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"10. Bookstores should experiment more with weird business models.\n\nDear bookstores: don't be afraid of things like memberships, charging people admission, etc. If implemented well they won't tarnish your purity or whatever; they just might help sustain the bookstore!"},
  {"id":"1206401933113778176","timestamp":"1576463609","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"16","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206394104277549056","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"11. More books should be not-books instead. Intentionally, actively unwritten; sketched as potential books. Preemptive Borgesian self-annihilation to make space for the books that author truly should write.\n\n(Different from \"books that shouldn't exist\". Plenty of those too!)"},
  {"id":"1206405394991583235","timestamp":"1576464434","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"14","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206401933113778176","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"12. It's very often better to read one really big, long, challenging book, than 10 shorter ones.\n\nIf you choose well the long one will be more formative and memorable. Quality over quantity, but given quality, quantity can be its own pleasure!"},
  {"id":"1206408978911113217","timestamp":"1576465289","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"10","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206405394991583235","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"13. Every reader should regularly conduct a reading diversity audit. \n\nDiverse reading is valuable in many ways, for many measures of \"diverse\". Being more conscious of what your reading looks like is a good way to counteract unconscious bias / unintentionally narrow reading."},
  {"id":"1206409874034364416","timestamp":"1576465502","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"10","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206408978911113217","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"14. Book prices vary a ton. They should probably vary even more. Value of books varies astronomically!\n\nSome books should pay you to read them. Some books could be a good value at $1000."},
  {"id":"1206411094559997952","timestamp":"1576465793","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"9","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206409874034364416","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"15. The trick / challenge is that books don't have inherent fixed value. That depends on the right match of book + reader.\n\nSo getting really good at telling which books may deliver best value for *you* = reading arbitrage opportunity, get more out of each book than most could."},
  {"id":"1206413249362706432","timestamp":"1576466307","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"4","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206411094559997952","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"16. Libraries and ebooks are a match made in hell. Both are really and truly great (!) but putting them together reveals a clusterfuck of weird incentives and structural compromises and unrealized potential that threatens a migraine if you look too closely."},
  {"id":"1206416435150573568","timestamp":"1576467066","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"11","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206413249362706432","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"17. There aren't *that* many truly great books you definitely need to read.\n\nWhile there are infinitely more good books than you can ever read in a lifetime, you can probably get to a surprisingly high portion of those that are both excellent & a good match for you personally."},
  {"id":"1206416732551892993","timestamp":"1576467137","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"8","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206416435150573568","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"18. We need more sui generis books — books that attempt to create their own rules, define their own categories, blur all the lines."},
  {"id":"1206418837568180225","timestamp":"1576467639","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"11","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206416732551892993","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"19. You should be both more discerning & more guided by serendipity in your reading.\n\nMore discerning: have a high filter; add many books to your antilibrary but read relatively few.\n\nMore serendipity: seek books from uncommon sources; read books that others frequently overlook."},
  {"id":"1206419635349938181","timestamp":"1576467829","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"9","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206418837568180225","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"20. Corollary re: serendipity: you should spend more time in used bookstores!\n\nA truly great used bookstore = a truly great place to discover books you'd never in a million years stumble across in Barnes and Noble or on Amazon or in NYT Books or in recs from friends etc."},
  {"id":"1206420693509906432","timestamp":"1576468082","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"10","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206419635349938181","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"21. We should read more books aloud to each other! This practice all too often ends with adulthood. But it need not!\n\nListening to books read aloud (not audiobooks — they can be cool too — but live direct reading) is a great and special pleasure. As is reading them."},
  {"id":"1206424184282324992","timestamp":"1576468914","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"8","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206420693509906432","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"22. If you live in a city you should have at least one favorite bookstore. If a big city, ideally several, new & used & specialty. If you don't have any bookstores near where you live…what better heuristic for planning a move!"},
  {"id":"1206425235676946432","timestamp":"1576469165","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"4","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206424184282324992","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"23. Book collecting, fetishizing books as objects, is boring. Don't be precious about books!\n\nThere are absolutely books you should acquire physical copies of rather than ebooks. Owning many books is great. But should be b/c content demands it, not driven by collecting as an end."},
  {"id":"1206431147460366337","timestamp":"1576470574","retweet_count":"2","favorite_count":"15","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206425235676946432","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"24. Building your \"read really big books\" muscle is helpful for practicing sustained attention & deep engagement. Living with a text for months on end, whether a particular story or set of ideas, creates a special type of relationship!"},
  {"id":"1206432332531535872","timestamp":"1576470857","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"8","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206431147460366337","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"25. Book clubs / reading groups are if anything underutilized as a structure for both socializing & for learning.\n\nWe should experiment more with social reading formats: tiny emergent book groups, reading retreats, annotation collectives…all kinds of possibilities!"},
  {"id":"1206675360957550598","timestamp":"1576528799","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"8","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206432332531535872","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"26. Gifting books? Buy ones that you'd actually read too! Time it right & you just may be able to get through them yourself before you wrap and gift them. Like 2 books for the price of 1."},
  {"id":"1206675453236391941","timestamp":"1576528821","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"5","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206675360957550598","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"27. Regifting books: also totally fine! Books should have long lives. Exceptions: if you hated a book, just get rid of it quietly. If it's in visibly poor condition, ditto and also please take better care of your books."},
  {"id":"1206676590618456064","timestamp":"1576529092","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"4","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206675453236391941","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"28. Every reader should attempt to trace a reading path, history, trajectory of how your reading has evolved over a long timespan. \n\nHow has your reading practice shifted?\nHow have your tastes changed?\nHow has your antilibrary grown?\n\nAll fruitful questions to ponder!"},
  {"id":"1206735074638602245","timestamp":"1576543036","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"3","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206676590618456064","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"29. Aim to buy at least one book every time you go to a bookstore. It's just…how things are done.\n\nBarring special cases you *probably* shouldn't buy > 10 at once. Write down all interesting ones & add to your antilibrary. Any you can't get out of your head, buy later!"},
  {"id":"1206735501014777857","timestamp":"1576543138","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"6","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206735074638602245","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"30. More bookstore advice: any book that speaks to you (in whatever intuitively obvious way), and that you haven't come across before, counts as a special discovery and you should buy it right away."},
  {"id":"1206736860938158080","timestamp":"1576543462","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"8","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206735501014777857","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"31. I really want to see more experimental bookstores!\nA bookstore where you can browse but not buy anything\nA bookstore with only a tiny number of books for sale\nA bookstore with rotating curated selections\nA bookstore-museum hybrid\nA bookstore pop-up\nA bookstore…"},
  {"id":"1206749080015327233","timestamp":"1576546375","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"3","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206736860938158080","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"32. When it comes to discovering books, algorithms can only take us so far. We'll *never* have perfect book rec algos b/c so much of what makes a book good ~for you~ is emergent, concerns unknown unknowns, collisions of qualities you'd never know to look for til you find them."},
  {"id":"1206750293230313472","timestamp":"1576546664","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"3","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206749080015327233","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"33. If algorithms aren't great for book discovery, what's our best bet? Obsessive manual curation!\n\nMuch of this exists but we could use even more — \"best books\" lists, crowdsourced by diverse readers & experts, at least aspiring to asymptotic approximation of comprehensiveness…"},
  {"id":"1206751002831020037","timestamp":"1576546834","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"6","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206750293230313472","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"34. One thing we could really use is better, more thoughtful social graphs for books — both a) weighted relationships w/ the people we trust and the things they read and love, and b) graphs of relationships between books themselves, tracing connections, influence, etc."},
  {"id":"1206753629518086145","timestamp":"1576547460","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"4","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206751002831020037","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"35. Series' or trilogies are often better than standalone novels. Particularly genre fiction…extensive worldbuilding / long story arc often demand multiple books. Not all authors can handle it, but those who meet the challenge have produced some of the best fiction of all time."},
  {"id":"1207145718051491840","timestamp":"1576640941","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"1","in_reply_to_status_id":"1206753629518086145","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"36. There exists no good one-size-fits-all platform, system, or tool for managing your reading. Sure, use Goodreads, or some minimalist book list app…but also, take matters into your own hands: spreadsheets, personal bookmark system, arcane shelf organization — whatever works!"},
  {"id":"1207148899603034112","timestamp":"1576641700","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"2","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207145718051491840","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"37. Goodreads is broken…but maybe not in the ways you think. Yes, search is janky, social features lacking, etc.\n\nBut I think the main problem is it tries to do too much.\n\nIs it for browsing & discovery?\nIs it for book / reading tracking?\nIs it for social discussion?\n\nToo much!"},
  {"id":"1207150734371885056","timestamp":"1576642137","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"1","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207148899603034112","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"38. If kitchen-sink book apps are unworkable, what might we dream up instead?\n\nI want a distributed network of powerful single-purpose tools. To track reading: something super customizable. For book discussion: thoughtful spaces. For discovery: niche hand-built lists."},
  {"id":"1207151643957051392","timestamp":"1576642354","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"4","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207150734371885056","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"39. The world needs more weird library projects. More independent, extra-institutional, hyper-niche and possibly too-absurd library projects. \n\nGive me libraries large and small. Libraries in treetops and underground. Libraries puerile and profound."},
  {"id":"1207152287975714817","timestamp":"1576642507","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"3","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207151643957051392","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"40. You can have an antilibrary for…pretty much anything! We might generalize the antilibrary as negative space for consumption & attention, consciously held.\n\nFor me: folders of PDFs, screenshots of online shopping carts unpurchased, saved playlists in Spotify & YouTube…"},
  {"id":"1207161384116592640","timestamp":"1576644676","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"4","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207152287975714817","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"41. We need more ways, more *interesting* and *substantive* ways, to talk about books.\n\n(Private chats? More randomness? Better ways to find people with shared reading goals? Extremely slow long-term conversation? Antilibrary show-and-tells?)"},
  {"id":"1207162637265580033","timestamp":"1576644975","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"2","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207161384116592640","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"42. To attack the intractable problem of \"too many books!\" we need to address both breadth and depth. But somehow being a \"T-shaped\" reader (omnivorous + deep on one thing) feels inadequate. Better: rich balanced forest ecology, emergent growth, seedlings & stands & undergrowth…"},
  {"id":"1207166329050058752","timestamp":"1576645855","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"2","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207162637265580033","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"43. There are many book APIs (Amazon, Google, Goodreads, Open Library…) They're all hard to use, missing data, or both. Why?\n\nIn some cases, limited by design (e.g. Amazon). More often: data's just not there! Good book data is *hard*; *no one* has it all! Huge problem to solve!"},
  {"id":"1207167337583054848","timestamp":"1576646096","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"2","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207166329050058752","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"44. Here's a thing we could use: more good ways to share books w/ our friends & wider circles. (Not just recs, the ~actual books~)\n\nMailing physical books is a pain; sharing pdf / epub files is impersonal, lacks a social element. Community book exchanges? Asynchronous book clubs?"},
  {"id":"1207172791625277440","timestamp":"1576647396","retweet_count":"1","favorite_count":"3","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207167337583054848","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"45. You should have a \"non-reading practice\" — being intentional about not-reading certain books (just as some authors should not-write certain books!)\n\nAbandon more books. Browse many; read few. Choose to engage w/ books & their ideas outside the text itself."},
  {"id":"1207395570891067392","timestamp":"1576700511","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"0","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207172791625277440","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"46. Should you carry a book with you everywhere and fill all possible time with reading? Tempting but…no. Pace yourself & read when you can really savor it.\n\nRead whenever, ofc, but \"the more the better\" isn't true in any absolute sense. Also need time to think, absorb, digest."},
  {"id":"1207396458271559682","timestamp":"1576700722","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"2","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207395570891067392","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"47. Related: your reading will ebb and flow. Roll with it. \n\nSome months you won't feel like reading; some weeks you may read all day every day. Only \"rules\" are very simple, a la Michael Pollan: read regularly, keep it diverse, mostly books."},
  {"id":"1207399308875771904","timestamp":"1576701402","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"1","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207396458271559682","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"48. Have you ever done a ~book walk~ i.e. reading while walking? If not I highly recommend!\n\nIt's a unique practice: embodied experience, good method for focusing attention, clearly bounded, gives momentum to your reading…also good practice for peripheral vision ;)"},
  {"id":"1207400310488158208","timestamp":"1576701641","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"1","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207399308875771904","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"49. Here's the best way to do a book walk:\n\n-Pick a good book, one that's easy to get into\n-Choose a familiar route, say 30-45 minutes\n-Kindle works well: compact & easy to grip\n-Stay alert & avoid areas of heavy traffic\n-Have a nice time reading & walking!"},
  {"id":"1207404686829072384","timestamp":"1576702684","retweet_count":"0","favorite_count":"1","in_reply_to_status_id":"1207400310488158208","in_reply_to_user_id":"15345209","in_reply_to_screen_name":"schlagetown","text":"50. Goodreads' best feature is the annual \"Reading Challenge\".\n\nIt's helpful to track books you've read w/ specific times you read them. And fun to look back and chart your reading progress! (I always set a slightly too-ambitious goal but still end up reading ~50 books / year)"}
 ]
}