For a creatively-presented alternative to all those contemporary-bestseller summer reading lists coming your way, see this nifty flowchart, via literary agent Nephele Tempest and Teach.com:
Who’s a Writer?
“So, what do you DO?” Don’t get me started.
“Utter Non-Interest in the Facts”—Orwell On Truth vs. Ideology
Orwell was willing to change his views based on new information, and even to seek out experiences that might re-shape his beliefs—an astonishing sort of open-mindedness that seems to have gone extinct.
Help the GRRRLs Conquer the World
Vali Forrister helps to open the world for teen girls, and she could use a little help. Girlfriends! Cough up some spare change!
Open Letter to a Developer: What Is “Local”?
A neighborhood meeting gone south, and the grumpy letter that sprang from it.
Best Word-Nerd Tattoo Ever
Some people are just cooler than we are. Lauren’s tattoo proves that she is in this category.
Jennifer Egan’s Poetweet Serial
I hope you’ve been reading novelist Jennifer Egan’s serial spy story on Twitter these past nine evenings. Last Sunday night, it began like this: The e-verse is not killing great writing; it’s providing more and more fascinating ways to deliver it. Last year I fell in love with Dan Sinker’s brilliant foray into serialized Twitter performance…
A Letter from Tennessee to Poland and Ukraine
A little tough love for Eastern Europe, from a Southern state that knows a little something about stereotypes and bigotry.
The Greenery 