Archive (Page 2) • Quick Brown Fox • Buttondown

🦊 The Printing Puzzle

January 23, 2023

#101 — Planning the print editions for my upcoming book of fables

🦊 The Rains Have Ceased

January 16, 2023

#100 — Launching a drawing course, illustrating my book of fables, and my continued obsession with Hayao Miyazaki

🦊 Greatest Hits

December 19, 2022

#99 — My best essays of 2022

🦊 Bumps Are the Road

December 12, 2022

#98 — Life is meant for living, not waiting.

🦊 Favorite Books of 2022

December 5, 2022

#97 — The best philosophy, creativity and fiction books I read this year, along with a few thoughts on my book reading habits.

🦊 Inspirations

November 28, 2022

#96 — The greats I'm grateful for: Alan Watts, Liz Gilbert, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Joseph Campbell, Derek Sivers, Hayao Miyazaki and Peter de Seve.

🦊 Sing Your Song

November 21, 2022

#95 — A plea to publish: Share your words. In a world of information overload, we need your signal to survive the noise.

🦊 Creative Leftovers

November 14, 2022

#94 — Stop while the going is good. Leave a note on what comes next. Your future self will thank you.

🦊 Motion is Life

November 7, 2022

#93 — Momentum over motivation, animating my website, and the power of taking walks.

Don't Wait for Motivation, Act for Momentum

November 6, 2022

Waiting for motivation is a losing game. Too often, I’ve sabotaged my goals by telling myself I’ll do the thing when I’m “in the mood,” or when I have “the...

Where Does It Lead?

November 1, 2022

Most of us are insecure. We look at others and think, “Wow. I want that.” In an algorithmically-optimized feed-scrolling world, we face a constant barrage of...

🦊 What if you succeed?

October 31, 2022

#92 — Resist the lure of social media success stories

October 24, 2022

#91 — Don't wait for motivation. Act for momentum.

🦊 Creative Constellation

October 17, 2022

#90 — How do you decide what to make? Guide your creativity by clarifying your strategy.

🦊 Morphin Magic

October 9, 2022

#89 — Animating a fox 🦊 turning into an elephant 🐘

🦊 Beyond the Bean

September 23, 2022

#88 — Three ingredients to a magical experience: identity, integrity, and connection.

September 11, 2022

#87 — A breath of fresh air, a new podcast interview, and the rewards of routine.

Rewards of Routine

September 8, 2022

When I left my full-time job to pursue a life of creative independence, the thing I valued most was my freedom. I wanted to stay loose with my schedule and...

🦊 Kill Your Darlings

September 6, 2022

#86 — In writing and programming, clarity is king.

🦊 Quick Links: August 2022

August 26, 2022

#85 — Creative solitude, the purpose of art, and escaping the envy trap.

🦊 Knowledge Instructs, Wisdom Encourages

August 13, 2022

#84 — If we find the courage to act, wisdom waits for us on the other side.

🦊 Write It While It's Hot

#83 — Striking while inspiration is hot, semi-public sharing, and the struggles of maintaining momentum.

🦊 Energy Mindset

#82 — Manage your energy, not just your time.

Manage Your Energy, Not Your Time

“Work-life balance” boils down to a simple idea: Don’t work for too many hours, and make sure you rest for enough hours. While this approach can reduce the...

#81 — Nature as a creative spark + Separating yourself from online criticism

🦊 Crafting Characters

#80 — Behind every great story is a compelling character.

🦊 Showing Up

#79 — When we’re standing still, a single step is a giant leap.

🦊 Become a Patron

#78 — Support my creative journey, follow the creative chaos of revision, and get a free writing guide.

🦊 Creative Experiments

#77 — Applying startup lessons to creativity: Embracing uncertainty, and trying smaller experiments to lower the barrier to learning.

🦊 Second Life

#76 — New York State of Mind

🦊 Peeling the Onion

#75 — Discovering ourselves through writing, one layer at a time.

🦊 Low Stakes, Strong Takes

#74 — Reduce visibility to elevate vulnerability

February 10, 2022

#73 — Control the chaos of feedback by asking with intent and handling with care.

How to Ask for Feedback

February 9, 2022

Great feedback is a gift, but most feedback isn’t great. It takes a lot of intention, practice, and self-awareness to master the art of giving feedback. It...

🦊 Five Favorites

January 17, 2022

#72 — Best Books I Read in 2021

🦊 Point Price

January 2, 2022

#71 — Celebrating milestones, big and small.

December 21, 2021

#70 — Balancing Chaos vs. Structure, Planning an Annual Review

November 24, 2021

#69 — The benefits of rest, and how to know which activities are restful.

A Plea to Publish

November 22, 2021

You’ve been meaning to start writing online, but you’re afraid. You’re afraid of what people might say when they read it. You’re also afraid that no one will...

Perspiration vs Preparation

November 10, 2021

🦊 #68 — To do challenging work, you need to be emotionally ready

Slow Down to Speed Up

October 23, 2021

🦊 #67 — The double-edged sword of creative independence

Mourning Muscles

October 10, 2021

🦊 #66 — Self-Growth, Alan Watts, and the Tragedy of Cats

Listen to Yourself

September 26, 2021

🦊 #65 — Do you hear the whispers from within?

The Boat of Stillness

August 29, 2021

🐺 Modern Fables #1

Save Your Breath

August 15, 2021

🦊 #63 — Learning to swim saved me from drowning in overthinking.

The Magic of Boredom

🦊 #62 — Benefits of boredom, the future of AI-assisted creativity, and an ode to procrastination.

Magic of Boredom

Back in the early 2000s, I was an IT intern at an agricultural engineering facility. I literally worked on a farm. The company did scientific research and...

🦊 #61 — If you seek change, beware of the status police who limit your range.

Versioning Myself

🦊 #60 — Weaving a web of multitudes, drawing iteratively, and cats slamming doors.

The Lost Wisdom of Childhood

🦊 #59 — How many lessons did we learn as children, only to forget as adults?