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writingslowly.bsky.social
Writing Slowly
@writingslowly.bsky.social
150 followers 540 following 300 posts
My name's Richard and I live on Bidjigal land, Sydney. I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters (https://writingslowly.com/shuhari-book/). Find me at Writingslowly.com though one day I may speed up.
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writingslowly.bsky.social
Writing Slowly @writingslowly.bsky.social · Aug 3
I've written a book and here are the details!: https://writingslowly.com/2025/08/03/ive-written-a-book-and.html
The front and back cover of 'Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters', with a white and red design,. The back cover introduces the Japanese concept and its application to learning and teaching. It's authored by Richard Griffiths. A rustic bamboo gate opens to a lush, tranquil Japanese-style garden path surrounded by trees and shrubs. A book cover titled Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters by Richard Griffiths features Japanese kanji and a red circle design.
writingslowly.bsky.social
“seemed” is really working overtime there
February 9, 2026 at 11:27 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
💬 “If it takes three years, find the right teacher.”
One way to find the right teacher is to start doing the work. Begin your learning journey visibly, and mentors may find you - writingslowly.com/2026/02/0…

How did you find your mentor?#Learningn#Mentorshipi#Writingn#Creativityt#shuhariri
https://writingslowly.com/2026/02/0…
February 8, 2026 at 8:02 PM
writingslowly.bsky.social
"💬 “If it takes three years, find the right teacher.”"

Sometimes the best way to find the right teacher is to start doing the work. Begin your learning journey visibly, and mentors may find you - like the barn builder who attracte... https://writingslowly.com/2026/02/09/if-it-takes-three-years.html
February 8, 2026 at 7:48 PM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Discovery, aesthetics, and the art of self-publishing: my latest post explores Leonard Koren’s influence on my new book, Shu Ha Ri.

writingslowly.com/2026/02/0…

#WabiSabi #ShuHaRi #Japan #Aesthetics #WritingCommunity
Leonard Koren on Life as an Aesthetic Experience
writingslowly.com
February 8, 2026 at 1:00 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Dick Fosbury looked odd jumping backwards at the '68 Olympics. But he was willing to be a beginner again, and the 'Fosbury Flop' changed high jumping forever. True experts are willing to start over
writingslowly.com/2026/01/18/t...

#LifelongLearning #learning #BeginnersMind #GrowthMindset #ShuHaRi
The Spiral of Mastery: Why the Greatest Experts Are Serial Beginners
The greatest experts aren’t afraid of starting again …
writingslowly.com
January 20, 2026 at 10:13 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
My tennis serve was rough after a long time off. But drilling the basics reminded me mastery is a loop. To move forward you have to be ready to go back to the start.
writingslowly.com/2026/01/18/t...
#shuhari #Shoshin #ZenMind #Philosophy #Mindfulness #Wisdom
The Spiral of Mastery: Why the Greatest Experts Are Serial Beginners
The greatest experts aren’t afraid of starting again …
writingslowly.com
January 20, 2026 at 5:04 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Dugin is wrong; it’s not ‘eternity against modernity’. Reactionaries work hard to *invent* an imagined past and then make us live there
December 12, 2025 at 11:34 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Really helpful thoughts on creating a Zettelkasten
dznz.bsky.social Daniel @dznz.bsky.social · Nov 11
Yesterday marked the one-year anniversary that I have been using a digital Zettelkasten. As someone with ADHD and a long history of half-used notebooks, I've been surprised with how successful the experiment has been. I've put together some thoughts below on what I learned.
Screenshot of network graph. Each dot is a markdown file, each line is a hyperlink between them. Colours represent different areas in the directory.
December 8, 2025 at 5:21 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
I've been interested in Warburg's Zettelkasten for a while. It'll be great to see the cards themselves. writingslowly.com/2023/05/09/a...
Aby Warburg's Zettelkasten and the search for interconnection
Aby Warburg and the compulsion to interconnect Aby Warburg …
writingslowly.com
December 8, 2025 at 5:09 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
💬 "When they email or text me about a post it feels like applause from a dark corner of a large, empty theater where I rehearse."

https://daniel.industries/2025/11/22/why-write-online/

/cc @writingslowlydealingwith https://indieweb.social/users/dealingwith/statuses/115596160677512931
Why Write Online?
Why niche blogs and Small Rooms still win - even in the age of technofeudalism
daniel.industries
November 24, 2025 at 11:49 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Daniel kindly replied to my meandering questions about writing online, which circled the theme of ‘what’s the point?’

His blog is a commonplace book, written first for himself. He says blogs got hit hard by social media. I cal... https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/24/daniel-kindly-replied-to-my.html
Why Write Online?
Why niche blogs and Small Rooms still win - even in the age of technofeudalism
daniel.industries
November 24, 2025 at 10:41 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
"💬 “You cannot transcend a craft you have not yet learned.”"

hachyderm.io/@macf00ba…

#shuhari #LifelongLearning
Reinhard Lackner (@[email protected])
Just watched a Hanselminutes Podcast (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIDkT_QDHsY) where @shanselman interviewed @[email protected] Really liked Safia’s point about how curricula might have to include a “code review” class. The problem is that you cannot teach review until people actually know what they are looking at. With GenAI in the mix, too many early-career devs skip straight to “vibe coding” and let the model fill in the blanks. That means they never develop the sense of when code smells off. It reminds me of the Japanese concept of Shuhari: first follow the rules, then adapt them, then transcend them. You cannot transcend a craft you have not yet learned. I was also reminded of something Mark Russinovich said in another video (“Scott and Mark Learn”) about how he “vibe coded” something, and it worked, but only because he “supervised the shit out of it.” That is the key difference: someone with deep experience, muscle memory, and the ability to “drive stick shift” can keep these tools on track.
hachyderm.io
November 24, 2025 at 7:35 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
🎬 Paper Films! In the 1930s, Japanese films were made on fragile paper rolls. Nearly lost forever, researchers have digitized and preserved this unique history! Learn more: Japanese Paper Films.

#PaperFilm #FilmHistory #JapaneseFilm #LostMedia #JapaneseFilmFestival #JapaneseHistory
Japanese paper films
writingslowly.com
November 23, 2025 at 9:55 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Japanese paper films: https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/23/japanese-paper-films.html
A montage of the Japanese Paper Films presentation, showing stills from the paper reels.
November 23, 2025 at 9:41 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
“Each person possesses a mind with powers that are… always unique. — César Aira.

In an age of ‘thinking’ machines, what is the feat that only you could have carried out?

#WritingCommunity #UniqueVoice #AIandWriting #Blogging
November 20, 2025 at 4:04 PM
writingslowly.bsky.social
"💬 “The way we organise our online lives bleeds into the way we organise the rest of our social interactions. If it’s just assumed without question that the online space is a fiefdom, then democracy everywhere is undermined.”"

Why... https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/20/the-way-we-organise-our.html
Why niche blogs and Small Rooms still win - even in the age of technofeudalism
writingslowly.com
November 20, 2025 at 11:17 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
"💬 “When I was a kid I used to practice my music in public by busking. And I always busked where the crowds were, not down an empty back alley where no one was listening. My parents disapproved, until I told them how much I was earning. I... https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/19/when-i-was-a-kid.html
Why niche blogs and Small Rooms still win - even in the age of technofeudalism
writingslowly.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:00 PM
writingslowly.bsky.social
What is the feat that only you could have carried out?: https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/18/what-is-the-feat-that.html
Publish first, write later
writingslowly.com
November 18, 2025 at 11:05 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Remembering Tea Master Sen Genshitsu (1923-2025), who spread peace through sipping.

His philosophy is quoted on page 53 of my book, Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning: writingslowly.com/shuhari-b…

#SenGenshitsu #Chado #Peace #ShuHaRi #UNESCO
UNESCO deeply saddened by the death of Goodwill Ambassador Sen
www.unesco.org
November 18, 2025 at 10:59 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Why niche blogs and Small Rooms still win - even in the age of technofeudalism: https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/16/why-niche-blogs-and-small.html
An audience of 1,000 is seated in an auditorium, attentively facing a stage or speaker. A crowd of 250 people enthusiastically clapping and cheering in an indoor venue. A Reddit post from r/Zettelkasten discusses the debate on assigning unique IDs to notes, mentioning timestamps and Luhmann's method, with engagement metrics displayed below, showing 14,000 total views. An audience of 10,000 watches a professional tennis match in a well-lit indoor stadium.
November 16, 2025 at 12:09 PM
writingslowly.bsky.social
Hey @manton now that micro.blog is getting very serious about video, perhaps there should be a video emoji on the discovery list. I’d love to be able to find more easily the videos micro.blog users will be making!
Micro.blog - @manton
micro.blog
November 13, 2025 at 9:38 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
There's a fundamental flaw in how we learn about expertise: https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/07/theres-a-fundamental-flaw-in.html
Auto-generated description: Three book covers featuring Speak Spanish in 8 Days, Learn to Ski in a Weekend, and The Ten Day Draft: A Writer's Guide to Finishing a Novel in Ten Days. A group of monks dressed in traditional robes and sandals walk in a solemn procession along a street.
November 7, 2025 at 1:02 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
📷 From the top of the castle the town seemed to have been poured into its valley, where it flowed gently.

My book, Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters, is out now. Please check it out.

#Matsumoto #Photography #JapanCulture #ShuHaRi #Learning #Nonfiction #JapanTravel
The Matsumoto cityscape with a mix of modern and traditional buildings is set against a backdrop of mountains.
November 6, 2025 at 10:04 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
"💬 “How convincing does the illusion of understanding have to be before you stop calling it an illusion?”"

That’s the question James Somers asks in The New Yorker.

My answer: Fail to see the illusion and you’ll fail to ... https://writingslowly.com/2025/11/05/how-convincing-does-the-illusion.html
Jules Verne could have told us AI is not a real person
writingslowly.com
November 5, 2025 at 11:14 AM
writingslowly.bsky.social
To truly learn a language, you don’t need computers, you need human interaction. Time to get serious!
Where to Go to Get Serious About Learning a Language | WIRED

—I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters.

#LanguageLearning #ShuHaRi #WIRED #Polyglot
Done With Duolingo? Where to Go to Get Serious About Learning a Language
To really speak and understand a new language, you need to interact with humans.
www.wired.com
November 4, 2025 at 11:50 AM