Backlisted has introduced me to so many great writers, but none continue to amaze me across their work like Annie Dillard. I’ve only just started The Writing Life yet I’m already swooning; her ecstatic register doesn’t hesitate to pack a punch. Here she is, talking about ditching one’s first draft:

I remember the phrase "they can't be allowed to melt back into society" re: the de-Baathification of Iraq after the war there. Like everything about that experience, the attempt was cynical, stupid, and botched. But there really should be a plan about what we do with guys like these in the future.

Thread of my favorite reads 2025: Henry James, The Ambassador (1903)

Merve Emre in Granta on her year in reading. "I mostly avoided contemporary fiction. The American exceptions were Makenna Goodman’s hallucinatory closet drama, Helen of Nowhere...." Thanks Merve! grantamag.substack.com/p/a-year-in-...

On this page you'll find nine clearly AI James Gandolfini biographies that were published after mine. It's absolute madness and authors have no power. Don't buy books from Amazon. Buy them from @mzspress.bsky.social or @bookshop.org or your local bookstore or even fucking B&N but not goddamn Amazon

Over at @coyotemedia.org my colleagues and I are trying to build a new, worker-owned outlet in the Bay Area. We've already broken stories and had impact. To continue that work we need more members, plain and simple. And now you can get a discount! 🎁 Use COYOTE2026 for 15% off an annual membership.

Tuesday at the Makeout Room, come see me read from my unpublished novel FLASH IT TO THE BEAT ! I'm part of the 5-reader lineup for Happy Endings, the Bay's liveliest monthly read. Other readers are Sailor Galaviz, Rebecca Pierce, Owen Karlsen, and Jen Hu. Showtime is 7:30. The Makeout is forever.

Super psyched to see Lunchbox’s “Evolver” on this great list! “Each play reveals another gem from the innocence of DIY recording, blending jangle, electronic, ambient, and dub into something imperfect and genuine. Bravo!”

WPA everything but particularly the arts and journalism

10am sharp on @bff.fm ! I Luv Mondays' Hits of the Bay pt 2! bff.fm/shows/i-luv-...

I'll be talking calendar compiling, possibly Gertrude Stein, possibly stories of ancestors born in West Oakland or working out of its port. Come drink wine, eat cheese, and bring East Bay ephemera to exchange at the @oaklandreviewofbooks.org holiday party! www.thelocaleconomy.com/events/oakla...

TONIGHT! SF! Join us at Casements in the Mission for food, drinks, a live DJ set from @bff.fm, priceless gossip with journalists and indie music folks, tote bags… what more could you want, truly luma.com/f2jy4dho?tk=...

EAST BAY FOLKS! I'm gonna be in this show at Rock Paper Scissors Collective in Oakland next week! come out and say hi and see my piece (and a lot of other cool art too!)

10am sharp on @bff.fm I Luv Mondays' HITS OF THE BAY 2025 pt 1 ! All my favorite songs, all the songs that saved me. Follow along here for the tracklist:

BREAKING: According to a recent investigation by NYC's Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, Starbucks illegally violated workers' protection laws in NYC 500,000 times since 2021. Over $35.5 million will be paid in restitution to Starbucks workers! gothamist.com/news/starbuc...

If you love a small press, check out these 100 notable small press books from 2025!

I'm reading from my novel FLASH IT TO THE BEAT at the Makeout Room on Tuesday December 9th for Happy Endings, that lit monthly that serves

PROMOTE YOUR BOOKS! EVERYONE WANTS TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR PUBLISHED BOOKS! gonna be reposting your books because hoo you made a book! www.versobooks.com/products/303...

San Francisco! Come hang with @coyotemedia.org worker-owners and @bff.fm DJs on Tues December 2nd at Casements in the Mission. Drinks, swag, the satisfaction of knowing you're supporting indie media instead of outlets funded by shady billionaires, what more could you want luma.com/f2jy4dho?tk=...

1) Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres 2) Spirit of Radio 3) Tom Sawyer 4) SUBDIVISIONS 5) The Big Money

Rest in Power to Mother Viola Ford Fletcher. 111 years, the oldest survivor of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre. She never got the justice she deserved www.fox23.com/news/mother-...

10am sharp: the annual covers episode! bff.fm/shows/i-luv-...

In Monrovia, California, protesters are purchasing 17¢ ICE scrapers from Home Depot and immediately returning them to create long lines and slow down the entire store. Their aim is to disrupt sales and convey a message opposing ICE raids occurring in their neighborhood.

My colleague Ted’s magnificent new book on Denis Johnson came out last Tuesday, in case any of you DJ fans are interested.

We're pretty sad that Seablite are calling it a day too. Read what our man @heavymetalkidsuk.bsky.social has to say! heavymetalkids.music.blog/2025/11/03/f...

ICE activity confirmed near Hoover Elementary in West Oakland. license plate looks like 304072. Stay safe #Oakland, and let's keep out communities safe #AbolishICE #NoICEInOakland

The growing ubiquity of predatory sports gambling companies is an actual, non-imaginary problem that is ruining the lives of young men right now, yet I have NEVER heard any of the prominent "men are struggling ☹️" commentators mention it. It's almost as if helping young men isn't actually their goal!

Even when @coyotemedia.org was just a little baby pup of an idea I knew I wanted service journalism to be a major part of it. Today I'm thrilled to introduce our First Aid Kit: an acknowledgement of today's challenges, and a rejection of despair.

Some nice words for Blue Ocean’s “Fertile State,” a great record that people will be discovering in ten years or so. “Blue Ocean marry the “avant” side of shoegaze with loud indie pop in a fascinating way here; this one is for the adventurous guitar pop devotees out there.”

In light of recent news

"If blaming aliens is a paranoid misattribution, then blaming people collectively is a smug one... [I]n reality, the enemies of human flourishing are all too easy to recognize. The truth isn’t out there—it’s right in front of our faces."

This is far worse than anyone expected. Trump's HUD plan would cut *two-thirds* of permanent housing and push as many as 170,000 formerly homeless people back onto the street—redirecting funds to work mandates, forced treatment, and encampment sweeps. All as mass internment camps are being built.

What a thrill to be part of @talkingpointsmemo.com's series about the past 25 years of digital media! I wrote about why private equity goons destroyed Deadspin and why it matters.

Earlier this week, I watched Sam Altman join Steve Kerr for a conversation about "innovation, leadership, and San Francisco," here's what they said (plus some stray thoughts on SF in the third tech boom) defector.com/an-evening-w...

I'm the last reporter regularly reviewing Council agendas. With a Council committed to avoiding public scrutiny & participation, this is more important than ever, there's never been a more crucial time to support independent journalism, & Oakland Observer.

This is what the police are actually for

Rufus Wainwright singing the national anthem might be the best surprise of the World Series 🇨🇦⭐️❤️

Our annual contests close Saturday......... fc2.org/prizes You know what to do!

10am sharp, episode 378: -Blues Lawyer -Whitney’s Playland -Big Top (Portland) -Crop Top -Otoliths -Liana Warren bff.fm/shows/i-luv-...

NEW: Eric Adams will pack the Rent Guidelines Board with at least 6 new members in an attempt to block Zohran Mamdani's plan to pause rent increases for regulated apartments, the New York Post reports.

I am glad "enshittification" is common parlance now although it is now pretty clear it is synonymous with "capitalism".

Stoked to read at Page Street tonight-- it's sold out but apparently the waitlist works, and ofc you can also show up and try to get in: www.eventbrite.com/e/booksmart-...

Are you enough of a GRINDSET ALPHA to become a SERF?! 💪💪💪💪

I'm gonna be interviewed on the radio THIS FRIDAY 10/24 from 1pm-3pm PST to discuss my new album WAXWORLD, play songs from the album, and play other songs that I like!!! Streaming link below ↓↓↓

Putting this out there: I would love to do more literary events over the next year or so! I’m based in the SF Bay Area, but can Zoom in for remote events. 🧵 for the types of events I’m open to…