4 ms·

> Out of curiosity, are you a reader? Very much so. I started reading adult novels at 7 years old, and by the time I was 12 or so, I could if I was hurrying re

by lproven 8mo ago

> Out of curiosity, are you a reader? Very much so. I started reading adult novels at 7 years old, and by the time I was 12 or so, I could if I was hurrying read 5 or 6 novels a day. I read the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy for the first time in 5 days at that age. I've reread it again another 4 times or so. My personal library is somewhere in the region of 5,000 to 7,500 of my favourite books. I estimate that I have read at least twice as many books as I own, and probably more: in the tens of thousands, I'd think. https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6730645-liam-proven https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6730645-liam-proven I only started using Goodreads in my 40s though. I am also a professional writer and have been for 30 years. I've had 2 short books published, many hundreds of articles for about 15 different print magazines and professional paid articles on 3 commercial websites. Currently, I am the Linux and FOSS reporter for the Register: https://www.theregister.com/Author/Liam-Proven https://www.theregister.com/Author/Liam-Proven This was one of the hardest pieces to write for me: https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/23/david_mills_obit/ https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/23/david_mills_obit/ I knew little of the man. I had to read at least 30,000 words about him in a single morning in order to learn enough about the man to write his obituary. It was hard work. > When was the last time you read a full length chapter book for fun? I have about 25 on the go currently. Most recent start was Polostan by Neal Stephenson. I also have 1 print magazine subscription on top of that, but mostly, I read online now, several tens of thousands of words a day every day. I think it is far to say I am a big and voracious reader. Why? Do you think I object to excessive verbiage because I struggle through it? No. I can at a push read about 3000 words a minute but I normally cruise along at 1,500 or so. When I see "estimated reading times" on things online, I typically find they are approaching 10x longer than I take. FWIW I can also read 5 or 6 other languages than English, but I am painfully slow in all of those. Currently I'm reading a copy of Charlie Hebdo I bought at FOSDEM and the new Astérix album. :-)

mapontosevenths 8mo ago
> Do you think I object to excessive verbiage because I struggle through it? That was the heart of my question, yes. The only way I could fathom it was to think that maybe some people just found reading generally difficult. The hypothesis being that those few extra words hurt, because reading in general was high effort. It seems I was very far off the mark, at least in your case. For what it's worth, I've enjoyed several of your recent pieces and found both the Mills and Hoare obituaries to be both informative and empathetic. Now I wonder if it is sometimes the opposite problem: A skilled writer losing patience when someone less skilled is at the wheel. Others in his thread explored that theory, and it seems they may be onto something.
- lproven 8mo ago
  > Now I wonder if it is sometimes the opposite problem: A skilled writer losing patience when someone less skilled is at the wheel. Others in his thread explored that theory, and it seems they may be onto something. Could be. The KISS principle applies in communication as in the rest of life. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KISS_principle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KISS_principle
  - mapontosevenths 8mo ago
    Of course, but it takes skill and intelligence to speak plainly. Meanwhile, half the people you meet every day are of below average intelligence. It's best not to expect more from people than they have to give.

by lproven 8mo ago

mapontosevenths 8mo ago

> Do you think I object to excessive verbiage because I struggle through it? That was the heart of my question, yes. The only way I could fathom it was to think that maybe some people just found reading generally difficult. The hypothesis being that those few extra words hurt, because reading in general was high effort. It seems I was very far off the mark, at least in your case. For what it's worth, I've enjoyed several of your recent pieces and found both the Mills and Hoare obituaries to be both informative and empathetic. Now I wonder if it is sometimes the opposite problem: A skilled writer losing patience when someone less skilled is at the wheel. Others in his thread explored that theory, and it seems they may be onto something.

lproven 8mo ago
> Now I wonder if it is sometimes the opposite problem: A skilled writer losing patience when someone less skilled is at the wheel. Others in his thread explored that theory, and it seems they may be onto something. Could be. The KISS principle applies in communication as in the rest of life. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KISS_principle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KISS_principle
- mapontosevenths 8mo ago
  Of course, but it takes skill and intelligence to speak plainly. Meanwhile, half the people you meet every day are of below average intelligence. It's best not to expect more from people than they have to give.